Mayoral Minute - July 2024
The Mount Isa Mines 100 Ball was held on Saturday July 20, and it was an occasion to reflect on our history as a town, how we have predominantly been a one-company town for the last 100 years, and the opportunities, security and lifestyle that that has afforded so many of us over the past century. But it was also a time to mark a new direction, a coming of age and maturity.
As I keep saying, there is an understanding that mining is as much our future as it is our past, that it will be in a more diversified, sustainable and innovative way. The mentality of “rip and ship” has passed, as the CEO loves to say, and we need to be value adding, to achieve maximum economic benefit.
I had the opportunity to deliver the opening speech. I expressed disappointment at the announcement of the underground copper mine closure, but also gratitude that we have had 18 months’ notice to finalise our Economic Transition Plan.
Council will be the first presentation at the MIM Limited Bill hearing on August 6, and we are working hard at the moment in preparation for that.
In early July we had NAIDOC Week, and I was able to attend celebrations in Mount Isa and Camooweal. As a Council, it is our aim to have our spaces activated by events like these that benefit the whole community and bring people together.
The week was a credit to everyone involved, as it has highlighted the ongoing struggles of Indigenous people in our community, but it also got the whole community involved in celebrating Indigenous culture, and everyone definitely “Kept the fire burning – Blak, loud, and proud”.
The march from Outback at Isa to the Civic Centre lawn was very well attended, as was the Family Fun Day.
Celebrating culture in September, there will be the annual Multicultural Festival put on by the Catholic Church, and also Council’s new event – Welcoming Week – where we will be celebrating both our oldest culture – our First Nations people – and all cultures that have joined us since.
We will be holding our next citizenship ceremony in conjunction with this event on September 17 at Centennial Place. It is during the school holidays, so we hope everyone will take advantage of that and come along and help us celebrate.
NAIDOC Day in Camooweal on Friday July 20 was also a big success. Thanks to the Drovers Camp, in conjunction with Myuma and Rainbow Gateway, for organising the Elders’ lunch, the school children’s animal mask parade, and other cultural activities on the day.
I would also like to congratulate the Drovers Camp Committee on their ongoing mural project. The ones they’ve got done so far are looking fantastic, and there’s more work ongoing.
While we’re discussing Camooweal, I’d like to thank the community for being patient and working with us at this time. While we don’t have a Council employee living there, the team here from Mount Isa are traveling out on a regular basis, providing the different services as required, though this is hopefully only a temporary measure and a more permanent arrangement can be put in place shortly.
With regard to the consultants’ reports on the six economic pillars, the drafts have been submitted to Council and are being consolidated to present to the community, industry, government and the Queensland Tourism Industry Council.
The Australian Mining Cities Alliance had a meeting in Canberra last month. Mount Isa is proud to be a founding member of the Mining Cities Alliance, and the work being conducted by that advocacy group is very important as we go through our economic restructure.
It was beneficial to meet the politicians in Canberra to discuss issues pertinent to mining cities, such as returning a percentage of royalties to the regions, advocating for a seat at the Net Zero Authority table, progressing the advocacy around Fringe Benefits Tax for housing and mining cities, and sharing thoughts and strategies for attracting and retaining labour in the regions, such as HECS forgiveness, Zone Rebate Allowances, and first-homeowner amendments.
The Mining Cities Alliance is looking to grow its membership base, and the more cities that join the discussion, the stronger advocacy and the better outcomes for everybody involved.
All councillors will be attending the LGAQ Annual Conference in Brisbane which will be held in October, the week prior to the State Election.
We believe this is an excellent time to be out in unity, advocating for the adequate funding we require for our economic restructure.
The work being done in relation to youth crime continues. Council is in the process of making sure our CCTVs are operational and the entire system is working as it should be.
I would like to congratulate the Mithangkaya Nguli Young People Ahead group on receiving funding to run the Intensive On-Country Program.
We met with them earlier this month – coincidentally, on the day the funding was announced – and we look forward to hearing more about their plans and working in conjunction with them to help achieve community outcomes.
One hundred days of us being in Council passed recently, and I want to reflect on our initial achievements and outline our future direction.
What I’m happy about so far that we’ve achieved, there have been zero internal Office of the Independent Assessor complaints, and that has meant that our Governance Officer has been able to work on disaster management mitigation instead of investigating complaints.
We have the beginnings of a PMO, so that we can manage projects internally and get better value for money for ratepayers.
The work done by Stronger Communities Early Action Group Community Coordinator Alan Baillie in conjunction with Council has allowed us to be able to take restorative justice workers here at Council. And we have a permanent CEO locked in until the end of 2025, providing continuity and consistent leadership to those in the organisation.
These are each small things which will make a big difference over time. As a Council, we all believe that getting the small things right is important, and we still have many challenges, but we can see improvement.