By Staff Writer Mozza
Consultation with local people and businesses is now underway as part of a state government review of its strategy to transition Minjerribah (formerly North Stradbroke) Island from mining to tourism, following death threats and claims of financial mismanagement.
Island residents and business owners have reported little progress on the island despite the government pumping $36m into social and infrastructure projects. The government has now asked locals to engage with them over “the ongoing transition of Minjerribah to a world class eco-tourism destination.”
The Department of Tourism’s ‘Minjerribah Futures’ policy includes the setting up of a “small team of human centred design thinkers to develop strategies that positively benefit the people and planet.” (Really, you have to love the positive spin our bureaucrats put on all things).
“The government has lost the support of the bulk of the community,” said Straddie Chamber of Commerce president Colin Battersby.
Dr Mark Robinson, Member for Oodgeroo, the electorate covering the island, said “There have been many voices and warnings to the government that its economic transition was going off the rails. They’ve ignored at every point those warnings and now they have got the problems of funds expended with very little built, division in the community that was not there before and they haven’t got the results that this amount of money should have achieved.”
Let’s be vigilant that we here on Bribie never experience this type of ‘government help’. We’re going OK at the moment, thanks.
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