General News
25 October, 2020
Sign up for new North Queensland State
The fight for a separate North Queensland state has gone up another gear with a strategic billboard advocating for the separation appearing just before this weekend’s state election.
The fight for a separate North Queensland state has gone up another gear with a billboard advocating for the separation appearing just before this weekend’s state election.
Boot Brisbane Inc is a community group advocating for the creation of a Central and North Queensland State which according to their website states "Through active advocacy, with the support of the residents of Central and North Queensland, cause the Queensland Government to initiate the process to create the New State of North Queensland."
On Thursday, October 15 organisers from Boot Brisbane unveiled a 6x3metre ‘Welcome to North Queensland, the 7th state’ billboard adjacent to the northbound lane of the Bruce Highway just south of Gin Gin.
According to Boot Brisbane Co-ordinator Bill Bates, the location of the billboard approximates the separation border from the then Southern Division of the Colony of Queensland as detailed in an 1890 Separation Petition.
“In identifying this as the border for the separation of Queensland to create a State of North Queensland, Boot Brisbane Inc is deferring to the wisdom of our forefathers and it is for the opponents of separation to make the case against their determination,” he said
“North of this border will be 1.2million square kilometres, nearly one million residents and resources to create a viable and prosperous New State of the Commonwealth of Australia.”
Leading into the election two minor parties have thrown their weight behind the Boot Brisbane movement.
According to a North Queensland First Policy Statement that was released last month “That should NQ First candidates be elected to the Parliament of Queensland, they will actively advocate for a separate State of North Queensland and will vote in the affirmative on any motion that provides for the initiation of the process to create such a new State.” they wrote.
It also states that “We commit that, if NQ First is given the opportunity to form part of a minority Queensland State Government, a non-negotiable condition of any agreement to form such Government shall be that: On taking office, the Government shall, in the first sitting of the 57th Parliament, initiate the process to deliver statehood to the residents and regions of Central, North and Far North Queensland. “
Head of Katter’s Australia Party Robbie Katter is also supportive of the idea for a new FNQ state.
“We are the only party to have put a motion to the government to investigate the possibility of a new FNQ state in the past 40 years,” he said.
“It is absolute lunacy and nonsense to say we should regard as sacrosanct the lines that were drawn on a map over 100 hundred years ago.
“We should all question whether those lines on a map are still delivering the best cultural or economic outcomes, to never question that is the height of idiocy.”
Mr Katter said now is the time to start having conversations about a new state “We are now a mature intelligent state, we should be able to question things and have a mature conversation,’ he said.
“All the arguments that we hear about not having a new state are the same arguments that they said when Queensland broke off from New South Wales over 100 years ago.
“Not enough people, not enough money, etc well look us now.”
Mr Katter said that if a referendum has held tomorrow on the issue of a new North Qld state he would vote yes “I would vote yes a hundred times if I could.”
