A regular feature, this month we have interviewed two Councillors from Queensland.
Councillor Mike Berwick, Mayor Douglas Shire, Queensland
Q. How long have you been Councillor?
I have been Mayor of Douglas Shire since 1991.
Q. Tell us about yourself and your involvement in the community?
I was born in Dublin, I spent my childhood in East Africa and Australia. I attended the Universities of Melbourne and Queensland and moved to North Queensland in the mid 1970s.
I earned a living as a carpenter and cabinetmaker. I was as an activist in the voluntary conservation movement, being arrested on two occasions, one at a picket opposing rainforest logging in 1981, Windsor Tableland and the other opposing the construction of the Bloomfield Road in 1983. With my partner Jane King, I owned and operated the Port Douglas and Mossman Gazette, a weekly newspaper circulating in the Douglas Shire.
At present, in additional to my council work, I am Chair of the North Queensland Natural Resource Management Board – the organisation appointed by the Commonwealth and State to plan and fund the management of the regions environment and natural resources. I am also a member of the Sugar Industry Guidance Group, which was appointed by the Commonwealth Government to prepare a reform plan for the Australian Sugar Industry and the Queensland Government’s Vegetation Management Advisory Committee.
Q. Describe your community.
The Douglas Shire can be described as a melting pot of culture. Major industries are farming – mostly sugar – and tourism. The population is made up of travellers, Indigenous groups, lifestylers and farmers whose families have lived in the Douglas Shire for many, many years.
Q. What are the most important issues in your Local Government area?
Sustainable growth of the Shire, indigenous advancement, conservation of agricultural land and Douglas Shire’s unique environment, which is predominantly the Daintree and Wet Tropics region, and the Shire’s struggling sugar industry.
Q. What are the key aspects to being a good Councillor?
Intelligence, commitment to the community, good communication skills and an understanding of Local Government.
Q. What major developments are currently taking place in Douglas?
Douglas Shire Council has recently released its Draft Planning Scheme for public consultation which closed in August. The major change in the draft Planning Scheme will assist in conservation of the Daintree Rainforest by limiting development in this area.
Douglas Shire Council is also assisting the local sugar industry with options for farmers regarding alternative crops and ethanol.
Mayor Joy Leishman, Caboolture Shire, QLD
Q. How long have you been on Council?
I was first elected to Caboolture Shire Council as a Divisional Councillor in 1985 and went on to become the first woman Deputy Shire Chairman during my second term from 1988 to 1991. I did not seek re-election in 1991 to devote more time to my family and a family owned business. I was elected as Mayor of Caboolture Shire in March 2000 and was re-elected for a second term in March 2004. I am looking forward to helping the Shire celebrate its 125th birthday this November.
Q. Tell us about yourself and your community?
I have been married to my husband Ron for 34 years and have two adult children, Adam and Deni. For the past 26 years I have been a partner or owner of a highly respected local electronics and communications service business, which has grown from two to 16 employees. I am also Director of a rapidly expanding local company, which has an overseas target market.
My extensive community involvement includes:
- Life membership of the Caboolture and Districts Child Care Association
- Instigator of the Mayor’s Chaplaincy Support Breakfast which raises much needed funds to keep full time chaplains working in local high schools
- Past President and Charter Member of Caboolture Business and Professional Women (BPW) Club, which is now the largest in Australia
- Past President and secretary of Caboolture Chamber of Commerce
- Patron of several community organisations including Caboolture Netball, Bribie Island Surf Life Saving Club, Friendship Force of Caboolture and the Bribie Island Orchid Society
- Charter member of Caboolture Toastmasters
- Extensive involvement with Caboolture Shire Counter Disaster Committee, including past Chairman and current committee member
- Former Chair of Caboolture TAFE during its establishment
- Long time sponsor of Caboolture Little Athletics Centre and many other local, charity, sporting and cultural groups
Q. Describe the community of Caboolture?
Caboolture Shire is one of the fastest growing regions in Australia and is currently growing at three per cent per annum. It is recognised as one of the top ten Local Governments in Queensland and the State Government has designated Caboolture as a Key Metropolitan Centre. The Shire covers 1,215 sq km and is home to almost 130,000 people, more than half of which arrived in the past ten years alone. Council’s 2004/05 Budget includes some $157 million of work.
Since I became Mayor in 2000, several national and multinational companies have established in the Shire, including Spotlight, Harvey Norman, The Warehouse, Aldi, Bunnings and two major BP Travel Centres on the Bruce Highway.
Lifestyle really counts in Caboolture. From the beaches of Bribie Island to the D’Aguilar mountain ranges in the west, there is diversity and opportunity in housing to suit even the most discerning buyer. It is possible to obtain that ideal balance between family and work life, time to play and time to enjoy. People chose to live here because it is clean and green and has good public facilities. Caboolture Shire boasts a new hospital, electric train service to the city in 45 minutes, excellent educational facilities including a TAFE college, QUT university campus, 36 primary and secondary schools and six libraries. Our sporting facilities are second to none with a new $10 million Regional Aquatic Leisure Centre that includes a 50 and 25 metre heated pool. Netball, football, hockey, equestrian and cricket facilities are all close by.
However, I believe the real secret to Caboolture’s success lies in its heart. There is an infectious attitude in the Shire for people to help each other. We have a considerable number of volunteers supporting many organisations including those involved with the environment, sport, caring for children and older people. This strong community focus is the defining difference of Caboolture.
Q. What are the big issues in Caboolture? How do they affect people?
I am a strong advocate for structured development in the Shire and firmly believe that a commitment to controlled growth will continue to firmly enhance the motto of the Shire, which is: Where Lifestyle Really Counts. With such rapid growth comes the need for Council to provide a host of community facilities that were not required in a rural based Shire some 20 to 30 years ago. This is primarily to cater for substantive population growth in all corners of the Shire, away from existing facilities such as libraries, sporting fields and community halls.
Also, Caboolture Shire is desperately crying out for an increased level of State Government resources particularly police, youth workers and extra funding for State roads. The population growth in the last decade has now stretched these resources to breaking point.
Q. What are some of the big challenges you’ve faced while in Local Government?
Of the almost 130,000 people that call Caboolture Shire home, more than half have come in the past decade. In many ways, this makes Caboolture Shire a very young community that is still making its way forward and is hungry for information and resources. Too often people suggest that a service or facility available in Brisbane or on the Sunshine Coast can also cater for Caboolture Shire residents. However, these areas can be very difficult for some of our residents to access. Many State Government departments that have set up in the Shire are still, sadly, not equipped to cope with the large demand for their services. This rapidly growing community needs to have those services and facilities available locally which makes them easily accessible for all.
Caboolture Shire has a strong multicultural population and I’m delighted that this Council has been very proactive in the way it encourages and empowers people from non English speaking backgrounds to play a significant role in the development of this community. It is critically important that we do this, but it does not come without significant challenges along the way! We have worked particularly hard with the Shire’s large Samoan community, developing programs that include helping parents gain a better awareness of Australia’s education system and the role they can play to assist their children in topics as diverse as good study habits to health matters.
Caboolture Shire is also home to Australia’s first Maoto Fono, or Samoan Meeting House. Council and the State Government jointly funded its construction, as part of the Community Renewal Program in Deception Bay.
Successful communities of the future will be those that are inclusive, no matter what land people have called home in the past. It is important that we have processes in place that engage and provide opportunities for new residents to play a significant role in the development of a happy, healthy and vibrant community.
Q. What are the aspects to being a good councillor?
I believe a good Councillor must have a sense of fairness, good communication skills and tolerance. It is also important to recognise that the overall decision making process is larger than the area an individual Councillor represents. Decisions made by a councillor should not be based on securing votes at the next election, but made around the reasoning that the Councillor was to fulfil the obligations of representation determined by the last election.
