Bancroft Candidates: QLD State Election 2020

Published 3:29pm 14 October 2020

Moreton Daily invited candidates in the State Election to answer the same questions and provide a photo. Their responses are listed below in the same order their names will appear on the ballot paper. Some responses have been edited to ensure all are a similar length, and candidates receive fair and even treatment.

Name: Chris Whiting

Party: Labor

Suburb: Burpengary East

Profession: Member of Parliament

Top 3 issues to address:

Keeping Queenslanders safe through our strong response to COVID-19. As part of our health plan to keep you safe, we will hire an extra 9,475 front line health staff if re-elected. We will deliver more and better health services
Keep the Economic Recovery Plan going. Queensland’s economic recovery is underway and our plan is getting Queenslanders back to work.
Keep delivering the infrastructure we need. For example, under a re-elected Palaszczuk Government, $258 million will go to new multi-purpose and performing arts centres at Queensland schools including $5 million for a new hall at Deception Bay State School.

Top 3 key commitments:

Keep the improvements rolling at Caboolture and Redcliffe Hospital. We’re investing half a billion dollars in refurbishing and extending these two local.
Keep investing in local schools. I will keep pushing for a state school in Burpengary East, and we will take the first step with the commencement of planning for this school under a re-elected Palaszczuk Government.
Keep building infrastructure in our community. The Deception Bay Road overpass over the highway is about to commence, and we’ll keep rolling out improvements along Deception Bay Road to add onto the $80 million we are already investing there. And we will keep delivering many types of local infrastructure, such as $1 million to the construction of an artificial running track on Zammit Oval at Deception Bay.

Name: Barry Grant

Party: Independent

Suburb: Deception Bay

Profession: Small business owner

Top 3 issues to address:

1. Youth crime is on the rise and has become a huge issue in our community

2. Health care system is overloaded and in crisis

3. Urban density and the impact on the local green spaces

Top 3 key commitments:

1. Youth crime – 24-hour police station at both North Lakes and Deception Bay. Time to be tougher on crime with harsher punishments at the court levels, no more slap on the wrists. Lobby with the Attorney General to get youth crime under control and get our community back to being safe for everyone.

2. Health care system - With the increase in our community’s population, our health care resources have been stretched to crisis point. We are in need of a new public hospital which will then take the pressure off our neighbouring hospitals. People need to feel safe and know that if they are unwell that they will receive the proper care and currently that is not happening.

3. Urban density - Development needs to have commonsense. With our green spaces feeling the squeeze from urban development we need to have better planning in place so that there is more of a balance between urban living and the environment.

Name: Phil Carlson

Party: LNP

Suburb: Bancroft

Profession: Solicitor

Top 3 issues to address: 2

Crime and youth justice
Creation of new jobs in the electorate
Save North Lakes greenspace

Top 3 key commitments:

Operational and publicly accessible 24-hour police station at Deception Bay and increased police presence throughout the electorate to combat crime.
Create new jobs by unlocking growth opportunities throughout the electorate.
Amending the Planning Act to provide clarity for the residents of North Lakes that prohibited development will not occur on the North Lakes golf course green space.

Name: Nik Aai Reddy

Party: Pauline Hanson’s One Nation

Suburb: Deception Bay

Profession: Public Servant

Top 3 issues to address:

Law and order: Whether it might be ice epidemic, break-in, car theft or hooning; crime is a huge issue across our region and the government has been too soft all these years. We have seen some serious offenders being released recently and of course it’s just a slap on the wrist for young offenders. Prevention, Detention and Rehabilitation is what is needed rather than Catch and Release. It’s time to be tough on crime and we have put forward our 10-point plan for Law and Order and Youth Justice.
Education: As a father for two young kids, I am worried about their future as the education is a mess under this government. The 3R’s are now replaced with gender, climate and border less society. We need to bring back basics to our education system and One Nation has a 10-point action plan to revamp our education system. We have clever and creative minds in our community but there is no support for new ideas unless you are a major player. We need to open a business coaching/support hub to provide assistance with grants, legislation and walk them through to the production and export.
Local infrastructure: Our region has been neglected for years by the government’s too little too late delivery model; it is evident from the stalled local infrastructure and of course the political infight and blame game kicks in when questioned. Our community is growing rapidly and we don’t have the infrastructure that sustains the current population. We must build infrastructure for 25 years down the line rather than doing band-aid fixes that only work until next election.

Top 3 key commitments:

Invest in Aquaculture right at our doorstep to create jobs for our children’s future.
Deception Bay road to be upgraded to a two-lane road each way from Lipscombe Road intersection through to the highway.
Make Mango Hill /North Lakes Police Station a 24-hour publicly accessible station along with more police presence and security cameras installed across the electorate.