How much do you know about the candidates standing for the seat of Gregory?
All five - the LNP's Lachlan Millar, the ALP's Dave Kerrigan, independent Bruce Currie, One Nation's Mark Higgins, and The Greens' Norm Weston - have been invited to participate in a Meet the Candidates forum in Longreach on Friday morning, where their policies will be given a thorough inspection.
So far, the first three candidates have said they'll be attending.
Being run jointly by Fairfax Media and the ABC, the forum, starting at the Birdcage Hotel from 8.30am, is open to the public and will include a Q&A session.
If you can't make it, you can join the livestream on our QCL Facebook page from 8.30, where you'll have the opportunity to pose your questions.
The idea sprang from the Remote Area Planning and Development Board’s 10 point plan, developed to help western Queensland voters focus on policies it says will stimulate the west’s economy.
The 10 regional priority points are:
- Growing business and community digital connections,
- Securing essential infrastructure to support economic growth and community wellbeing,
- Helping councils manage community assets and maintain workforces,
- Protecting the rural economy,
- Growing tourism to diversify the economy,
- Focusing on a renewable energy future,
- Responding to the economic and personal costs of drought,
- Implementing stock route management reform,
- Securing healthy aged living services for our seniors, and
- Developing world class health services for rural communities.
RAPAD chairman, Rob Chandler said they were a mix of short, medium and long term priorities, and reflected extensive community consultation.
“Securing essential infrastructure is mainly about roads and transport issues,” he said.
“Protecting the rural economy is about seeing which parties understand that a few dollars in things like a cluster fencing program can go a long way.
“We’d like them to support programs called for by AgForce and other rural lobby groups.”