Whitsunday Regional Council will receive $285,175 for a lighting upgrade and the installation of fencing to reduce wildlife hazards at the Bowen Airport.

Burdekin Shire Council and Whitsunday Regional Council will be able to reinforce their region’s resilience to natural disasters thanks more than $670,000 in funding through the Federal and Queensland Governments’ Managing Disaster Risk program.

Today I visited C&K Mackay Children and Family Centre at Andergrove to announce the allocation of an additional $350,000 to Mackay services and more than $1 million across the electorate to support vital child care services in the region and help meet the needs of local families.

Five services in Mackay and a total of nine across the Dawson electorate will receive funding through the Liberal National Government’s Community Child Care Fund (CCCF) which helps improve access to child care and increase workforce participation in regional, remote and disadvantaged communities.

The Morrison Liberal National Government is calling for expressions of interest to join its Local Jobs and Skills Taskforce for the Mackay Employment Region.

It is one of 26 new Taskforces being established across the country as part of the Morrison Government’s $276 million Local Jobs Program.

Bowen residents have received a major road safety boost with the Australian Government announcing it will invest more than $460,000 to rectify a key intersection under the 2021–22 Black Spot Program.

The Morrison Government is providing up to $20 million in funding for early intervention projects and up to $10 million for security infrastructure through round six of the Safer Communities Fund.

The early intervention grant opportunity opens today - 28 May 2021 (closing 22 July 2021) and the security infrastructure grant opportunity opens on 15 June 2021 (closing 5 August 2021).

Support for the health of men and boys will be given a further boost in the region with the announcement of $6500 to two men’s sheds in the Dawson electorate in the latest round of grant funding under the National Shed Development Programme.

Students throughout the region will benefit from the Morrison Liberal National Government’s record $5.4 billion funding for schools in Queensland next year, up from $5.1 billion in 2021.

The Australian Government is investing $10 million in three new projects in the Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday region under the Regional Recovery Partnerships program to deliver jobs and economic recovery and diversification.

This includes a new Aquaculture and Agriculture Tech Skills Hub for the Whitsunday region, delivering Stage 2 of the Clermont Saleyards and Showgrounds Revitalisation and upgrading the Biocommodities Pilot Plant in Mackay.

A Bill to implement a series of important Coalition Government reforms to the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) has passed through Parliament paving the way for a new wave of job-creating investment in the north.

The biggest win for the people of Mackay, the Whitsundays, Bowen, the Burdekin and Townsville in Budget 2021 is undoubtedly the announcement of a $10 billion government-backed reinsurance pool which will increase competition and drive down prices from 1 July 2022.

The highest priority in terms of funding for water infrastructure in tonight’s Budget is Urannah Dam, and once again myself and Member for Capricornia Michelle Landry have called upon the Morrison McCormack Government for further support to ensure the project continues.

The lion’s share of $400m in funding for the Bruce Highway to be included in tonight’s Budget needs to be directed to flood-proofing Goorganga Plains just south of Proserpine.

The 2021-22 Budget will drive new opportunities and growth across northern Queensland with a package of measures worth just under $190 million focused on jobs, digital connectivity and help for business to grow and diversify.

Communities like ours which are hit by major disasters like floods and cyclones will be supported by a new national agency dedicated to coordinating locally-led recovery and driving efforts to reduce the impacts of future large-scale disasters.

The Morrison Liberal National Government has established the new National Recovery and Resilience Agency, part of the major Disaster Resilience Reform package recently unveiled in response to the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements.

After a decade of fighting for cheaper insurance for businesses, strata title holders and home owners in North Queensland, we can finally celebrate a huge win, thanks to the establishment of a reinsurance pool by the Morrison Liberal National Government.

My office has recently received several reports from concerned locals about a similar phone scam that’s being doing the rounds.

The dodgy calls came from someone falsely claiming to represent Telstra and NBN asking for payment of $399 to continue their phone service.

Motorists travelling on the Peak Downs Highway can now take in spectacular views across the Pioneer Valley from the new rest area on Eton Range crossing, west of Mackay.