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Rackemann Defends Road 'Vision' February 1, 2012 - Katter's Australian Party candidate for Nanango Carl Rackemann today defended his vision of a road linking Kingaroy to the Sunshine Coast in the wake of an anonymous YouTube video, ridiculing the proposal, that has gone viral in the South Burnett (see story January 31). "It's something that I want to see happen," Carl told SBBiz. "It's not a first-term promise and it's clearly not possible in the first term. It's ridiculous to suggest that we want to do it in the first term, but I'm not going to apologise for having a vision. "It would be a wonderful infrastructure development for our part of the world. Anyone who is criticising the idea doesn't want our part of the world to go forward and progress. "I appreciate that the idea itself is being promoted and considered. I'll let people make up their own minds whether it would be a good thing. "It's something I want to see happen and achieve if humanly possible, but it's ridiculous to suggest that we would be doing it during the first term."

Workshop To Help Local Businesses February 1, 2012 - Award-winning "cluster" expert Rodin Genoff will be delivering a workshop in Kingaroy tomorrow to allow local businesses to learn how to win contracts, new customers and increase profits. The workshop will be held from 5:30pm-7:00pm at DEEDI's Taabinga Conference Room (the old DPI complex) opposite Kingaroy Airport. It has been organised by the Wide Bay Burnett Cluster Development and Business Matching Project. For more information, contact South Burnett Regional Council Economic and Tourism Development Officer Ross Anderson on (07) 4189-9328. * * * The South Burnett Regional Council has called tenders for the next phase of its Flood Restoration roadworks program. Tenders have been called from contractors short-listed by the Department of Transport and Main Roads. The tender is for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of sealed and unsealed roads, cross-road culverts and floodways at more than 1000 sites on 233 roads. * * * Council's "Healthy Communities" program is travelling throughout the region with launches in nine different towns. The first occurred in Blackbutt on Monday. The program will then move to Nanango on Friday (at Reg McCallum Park) and Kumbia on Monday (Kumbia Hall). There will be prize giveaways at each launch plus free activities including breakfast and personal trainer sessions. Each launch will run from 7:00am to 9:00am and will include a live broadcast from CROW-FM. Other dates are: Kingaroy (Feb 10 - Dr Ellen Kent-Hughes forecourt), Wooroolin (Feb 13 - Wooroolin State School), Tingoora (Feb 17 - Tingoora State School), Wondai (Feb 20 - Visitor Information Centre), Murgon (Feb 24 - Visitor InformatioN Centre), Proston (Feb 27 - Proston State School). * * * Local independent broadcaster Our Country FM (87.6FM Murgon and 88FM Wondai) was officially switched off yesterday. The station was launched in March 2009. * * * Kingaroy's Club Hotel, on the corner of Alford and Kingaroy streets, has been listed for sale at auction on site on February 25. The hotel includes pokies and a TAB agency.

Mixed Reception For New Cropping Land Laws January 31, 2012 - The State Government's Strategic Cropping Land (SCL) legislation - which came into effect yesterday - has received a mixed reception in the South Burnett. Natural Resources Minister Rachel Nolan said it was landmark legislation that would protect cropping land for future generations. "This legislation means that our best land, notably but not only, on the Darling Downs, in the Lockyer Valley and in Central Queensland's golden triangle, will now be protected for agriculture forever." The Queensland Farmers' Federation welcomed the new laws. QFF CEO Dan Galligan said the legislation was an important milestone. "The real test will be ensuring that SCL is implemented to the full intent of the policy, and that it is done so based on science," he said. However Greens candidate for Nanango, Grant Newson, was highly critical, saying the legislation was "little more than a green light to mining companies" and left most farms in the South Burnett unprotected from CSG mining. He said said the legislation was "deeply flawed". "Coal seam gas is given a complete exemption from any of the strategic cropping land legislation," he said. "The majority of the SCL legislation is weighted heavily in favour of mining companies that would force our food producers into a bureaucratic labyrinth while allowing miners to carry on business as usual. "For the Natural Resources Minister to claim that this legislation would protect Queensland's food bowl forever is untrue and indicates to me that the State Government either does not understand or doesn't care about the long term economic sustainability of the South Burnett or the Brisbane Valley." LNP candidate for Nanango Deb Frecklington said the party had two key policy papers which would remove uncertainty for both farmers and mining companies. She said it was already on record that iconic farming areas like the South Burnett would be protected by the LNP, (see SBBiz, September 29). The LNP proposes to draft Strategic Land Use Maps that would clearly define where mining activity can and can't take place. These maps would be drawn up after community consultation. The LNP also supported the continued shutdown of the Cougar Energy UCG project at Kingaroy and would ensure that any trials of such unproven technology in future would be conducted well away from communities and areas of agricultural importance such as the South Burnett. During a visit to Kingaroy last year, Opposition Leader Jeff Seeney said "the resource companies that are currently exploring the rich red soils of the South Burnett ... are wasting their time and money".

Battle For Nanango Turns To YouTube January 31, 2012 - The campaign for the strategic seat of Nanango has been wound up a notch with the publication of an anonymous "attack ad" on YouTube. The short video ridicules Katter's Australian Party's vision of connecting Kingaroy to the Sunshine Coast with a high-speed highway (see SBBiz, January 20). Katter candidate Carl Rackemann told SBBiz this morning that he had no official response at all at this point. LNP candidate for Nanango Deb Frecklington said she saw the video for the first time last night after she returned home from a meeting. She had no idea where it came from.

Local Anger Over Aircraft Auction January 30, 2012 - A receivers auction scheduled to be held at Kingaroy Airport tomorrow is causing anger and frustration among South Burnett businesspeople, some of whom have sunk thousands of dollars into the failed Dean-Wilson Aviation Boomerang project. The auction, which is being held under the instruction of receivers PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), includes tools and metal fabrication equipment, aircraft parts and office and computer equipment. Lot 156 will probably attract the most interest: a Whitney Boomerang experimental two-seat training aircraft which will be sold unregistered. The pre-auction sale of the Dean-Wilson Aviation hangar - built with the assistance of a $165,000 grant from the Federal Government - has particularly upset some local aircraft owners who had been considering forming a consortium to purchase the building. They question why the sale was not advertised locally. They also question why interested parties were not made aware that tomorrow's auction was occurring. "We only stumbled across it by accident," one businessman told SBBiz. "If I could stop that sale, I would do everything in my power to do it." Another Kingaroy businessman said he was concerned about the way the whole matter had been handled. "There has been very little communication with the shareholders and debtors and we only found out about the auction by chance. The liquidators will get their money but everyone else will dip out." Receiver Darryl Kirk had no comment when contacted by SBBiz.

A Cheap Shot Angers Proud Wondai Residents January 29, 2012 - Stand-up comedian Mandy Nolan came back home to Wondai recently to visit her gran ... but no one is laughing. She published a column, (right), about her trip in a NSW newspaper last week, describing Wondai as a "dry and desolate ghost town" with only an emu wandering the streets. Well, Mandy may be surprised but Wondai isn't as backward as she implies. Her column - which was published on Page 21 of an obscure weekly newspaper in far-off NSW - was being passed around on smartphones just a day later at Wondai's Australia Day barbecue. The reaction from locals was swift and predictable. Mandy noticed that people don't wander Wondai streets on a hot day. No, these days they're sitting inside, in the cool, at their computers, writing letters to the editor and using social media to express their anger. Amongst the letter writers has been Jane Iszlaub, daughter of former Wondai Shire mayor Percy: I am proud to be a resident of the beautiful township of Wondai, located in the centre of some of the most scenic and productive farming land in Queensland. Wondai is home to many young families, professionals, business owners and retirees and is the home base for a significant number of "Grey Nomads" who find its central location appealing. Wondai is well-endowed with facilities including a hospital, a P-9 state school and several nearby rural schools, a beautifully-maintained heritage post office, a 25 metre swimming pool, cafes (with excellent coffee), an RSL, three pubs, a C&K Kindergarten, a daycare centre, a well-stocked library with children's section, an equally well-stocked IGA, a quality motel, a B'n'B, skate park, acreage developments, tennis courts and, of course, much, much more. Another former Wondai mayor, current South Burnett Regional Council Mayor David Carter also put pen to paper and expressed his outrage in a letter to the newspaper, on Facebook and on his website. Local resident Renita Olsen created a Facebook page "I Am Proud Of Wondai" where proud locals are posting all the reasons why they love the town. The slogan of the newspaper in question is "cheap to those who can afford it". This says it all really ... it was a "cheap shot" and Wondai residents are not happy.

ALP Names Candidate For Nanango January 27, 2012 - The ALP this afternoon announced the name of the candidate who will be contesting the seat of Nanango at the upcoming State elections. Virginia Clarke, (right), lives at Woolloongabba in Brisbane but is a foundation member of the Wivenhoe branch of the Labor Party. The former Ipswich resident is also familiar with campaigning in the region as she stood for the seat of Blair at the 1998 Federal Election. At this poll, she actually came in second on the primary vote, behind Pauline Hanson but ahead of the eventual winner Cameron Thompson. Thompson won after the distribution of preferences. This is one of the rare occasions in Federal elections when a candidate who did not finish first or second actually went on to take the seat. Ms Clarke sees the 2012 State election as an opportunity to "have a conversation" in public about the issues that concern her. She has a grown family and is a volunteer at UnitingCare. She is a former member of the Federal Labor Women's Committee and the State Labor Women's Committee, anti-racism groups and ecumenical social justice groups.

$6000 Helps Endeavour Clean Up January 27, 2012 - The Kingaroy Lions Club and the Kingaroy Masonic Lodge have joined together to lend a hand to the Endeavour Kitchen. The two groups have donated $3000 each to help Endeavour purchase some new industrial cleaning equipment for their premises in Kingaroy Street. The groups presented a cheque for $6000 to Endeavour recently. Lions Club treasurer Neil Edmunds said the club had donated profits from the 2011 Lions Rodeo. "We received lots of support from local businesses for the rodeo. This is an opportunity to let them know what happens to the money they helped to raise," he said. RIGHT: Endeavour Kitchen supervisor Jeffrey O'Shannessy and client staff member Rodney Millard with some of the new equipment purchased with the help of the Lions Club and Kingaroy Masonic Lodge. * * * The Peanut Company of Australia told ABC Radio today that the recent rain in the South Burnett should restore confidence amongst peanut growers. PCA chief operating officer John Howard said it was still a long time to harvest but it was "looking good". "If we can get a good crop coming through from a yield perspective, well it's a year where prices are going to be good as well, so hopefully it'll be a double whammy for the growers," he told the ABC. * * * Lady Bjelke-Petersen will officially open the new home of the South Burnett Toy Library next Thursday (February 2). The library, which was formerly run as co-operative, was located at the South Burnett Enterprise Centre. It has now been re-located to the South Burnett Family Day Care centre at 9b Toomey Street, Kingaroy. The official opening will occur at 10:00am and anyone interested is invited to attend. * * * Local landholders interested in forestry management practices have been invited to attend a "chopper roller" field day at BJ Gentry's eastern property off Manumbar Road, Nanango, next Friday (February 3). The free field day, from 9:00am-3:00pm, will demonstrate cost-effective ways to thin overstocked spotted gum regrowth forest. For more information and to RSVP, contact Private Forestry Service Queensland on (07) 5483-6435 or by email

Australia Day 2012 Round-Up January 27, 2012 - Here's the full list of all South Burnett Regional Council Australia Day award winners announced at Murgon on Wednesday night: South Burnett Citizen of the Year - Maree Hammond, (see story below) South Burnett Young Citizen of the Year - Georgia Payne South Burnett Cultural Award - South Burnett Filipino Australian Caring Group South Burnett Community Event of the Year - Nanango Country Music Muster South Burnett Small Communities Award - Rose Park's Charity Fair for Proston Angels Relay for Life Team Murgon Citizen of the Year - Prue Collard Murgon Young Citizen of the Year - Amanda Anderson Wondai Citizen of the Year - Winston Burrows Wondai Young Citizen of the Year - Anita Welch Kingaroy Citizen of the Year - Davic Crawford and Denny Etherinton (joint winners) Kingaroy Young Citizen of the Year - Jarred Gunn Nanango Citizen of the Year - Robin Ashby Nanango Young Citizen of the Year - Sarah Coughlan South Burnett Senior Sports Person of the Year - Felicity Reinke South Burnett Junior Sportsperson of the Year and recipient of the $1000 Matthew Hayden Bursary sponsored by the South Burnett Regional Council - Mikeely Roberts Two Special Australia Day Certificates were presented to the Barambah State Emergency Service and Doreen Campos for their exceptional work within the community, especially during and after the heavy rains and flooding last year. * * * Yarraman's Australia Day celebrations were held at the Memorial Hall in Browne Street. Local awards were presented to: Citizen of the Year Award – Jeffrey Thomson. Jeff is a member of the Yarraman Community Council and was instrumental in helping to make the "Colours of Yarraman" a success. Young Citizen of the Year Award – Eden Farrar Sports Award – Lorraine Holmes Cultural Award – Yarraman Community Council Inc (Colours of Yarraman) Community Group/Event Award – Yarraman Bowls Club Inc (Rosalie Fours Bowls Carnival) * * * At the Gympie Regional Council's Australia Day awards, Kilkivan's Donna Atthow was presented with the Sports Administrator of the Year Award for her work for many years as secretary of the Kilkivan Show and Campdraft Association. Last year was a particularly tough year for the association after floodwaters destroyed much infrastructure at the showgrounds. Donna helped secure a $40,000 grant from Freemasons Queensland to rebuild the announcer's box and storage facilities. TOP: South Burnett Mayor David Carter with new Australian citizen Leonard Kake at the Australia Day celebrations in Kingaroy yesterday. Leonard has been in Australia for 38 years, including the past 10 in Nanango. ABOVE: The canetoad races - with toads named after local celebrities - proved popular in Kingaroy. First home was "Fireworks Frecklington" (Deb Frecklington), followed by "Croakin' Kratzie" (Wayne Kratzmann). SBRC CEO Ken McLoughlin's toad "Meltdown McLoughlin" came in third.

Congratulations Maree ... a South Burnett Woman Of Note! January 26, 2012 - Congratulations to Maree Hammond, (right), from Blackbutt, who was named the South Burnett Citizen of the Year at last night's Australia Day awards ceremony at Murgon. Maree and her husband Ned moved to Blackbutt in 1991 and she immediately became an active part of the local community. She joined the QCWA, became a steward at the Blackbutt Show and hosted Cancer Fund morning teas in her garden. She also became active in the local Catholic community (her husband Ned started the St Vinnies shop at Yarraman). However Maree is best known for founding the Blackbutt Singers. When the group kicked off in 1991 there were just six members; now there are 20 regulars. The singers - technically not a choir, because there is no conductor - have performed all over the South Burnett as well as at Maryborough, Caboolture, Haden, Brisbane and at the Toowoomba Heritage Show. Members have also joined the Esk Choir on international and interstate performances. In 2006, three members toured Germany, Austria and Hungary. In 2008, four performed in Prague and in 2010 they joined the Esk Choir at the Sydney Opera House. "Last year four members went to Italy and performed up and down the country, singing in the most amazing places," Maree said. The Blackbutt Singers celebrated their 20th birthday on December 13 at the Maidenwell Hotel. Maree thought it was just their regular Christmas break-up but the group sprang a surprise. They organised a "Maree Hammond - This Is Your Life" tribute with former members travelling long distances to attend. Maree received another huge surprise when her name was read out last night at the South Burnett Regional Council Australia Day awards ceremony. "I was frozen in my chair. It was a great surprise," she said. Maree is always keen to welcome new singers to the group. "Everyone is welcome who can hold a tune," she said. "We are a very happy group and we all become friends with each other. It's a good way for people new to the area to meet people and make friends." The Blackbutt Singers' next practice session will be held on Tuesday, January 31, from 9:30am at the Memorial Hall in Browne Street, Yarraman. ABOVE: Maree Hammond with Jeff Connor at the Blackbutt Australia Day Breakfast this morning

Council Elections Delayed To April 28 January 25, 2012 - Local Government Minister Paul Lucas announced this afternoon that the Council elections will now be held on April 28. He said both the State Government and the Local Government Association of Queensland were keen to have the earliest possible date that did not clash with the State elections or with school holidays. "On the other hand, we were both aware of the need to ensure that an extension to the election date allows sufficient flexibility for councils in framing their budgets," he said. Mr Lucas said the new date was a 28-day extension on the previous date and was a date requested by the LGAQ. "The government has agreed with the LGAQ that we will extend the deadline for the adoption of budgets from September 1, as is currently the case, by an additional 28 days to September 29. "The Electoral Commission Queensland has been consulted in relation to the machinery aspects of the later date and has advised that it can accommodate the new date within its administrative processes. "Essentially the ECQ will add 28 days onto existing timeframes so as to minimise any inconvenience. "This means that the official calling of nominations for the council elections will take place on March 10 with councils to go into caretaker period on the same day. "This new date allows for five weeks between the State and Local Government elections." However electoral rolls for Local Government Elections would still close on January 31. "If you've moved house, or will be 18 by April 28, it's important to ensure you are on the rolls so you are eligible to exercise your democratic right to vote," Mr Lucas said. "Also, with council elections, you are only able to vote on the day if you are in your Local Government Area. If you are away, you need to organise in advance for a postal or pre-poll vote."

State Election Delays Council Poll January 25, 2012 - Local Government Minister Paul Lucas is currently consulting with the Local Government Association of Queensland to fix a new date for the Council elections following the announcement by Premier Anna Bligh this morning that the State poll will be held on March 24. The Council elections had been set for the following week, ie March 31. A spokesman for the Electoral Commission of Queensland told SBBiz this morning that the new date would be either late April or early May. A new date is expected to be announced this afternoon. UPDATE 10:00am In a media statement, Premier Bligh said the new date for the Council poll would be agreed upon "before the end of this month". Ms Bligh said a State election just one week prior to the scheduled Local Government elections would not be fair to local candidates or to the public. "The LGAQ themselves have described the prospect of simultaneous State and local government campaigns as disastrous," she said. "Local government is entitled to be consulted on this proposed change and I have instructed the Attorney-General and Minister for Local Government to do so today." Ms Bligh said her government would enter caretaker mode on February 19. SBBiz has been ringing ALP headquarters in Brisbane since November last year in a bid to find out who the party's candidate for the seat of Nanango will be. As of yesterday it appeared they still had not selected anyone (or if they had, they were keeping it a secret). If and when we can find out, we'll let you know ... UPDATE 12:10pm - We've now been told the ALP will endorse a candidate for Nanango on Friday afternoon Mayors angry over election delay * * * Jason Shearer-Smith, from the Smithfield feedlot near Proston, has predicted another tough year for local lotfeeders. Speaking to the Beef Central website, Jason said it would be very difficult for Australian grainfed beef to remain competitive in Japan, Korea or the United States because of the high Australian dollar. Read more here * * * Landcare South Burnett will be holding a free all-day Healthy Soils Workshop from 8:00am to 5:30pm at the Tansey Bowls Club on February 6. The workshop, which is based on the GrazingForProfit School, will discuss sustainable farm practices and ways to increase groundcover to reduce erosion. Numbers are limited. To book, contact Belinda Pennell on (07) 4168-6064 as soon as possible.

Local History Lost During Amalgamation January 24, 2012 - An overlooked casualty of the council amalgamation has been the loss of the unique library names in local towns. A telephone call to SBBiz this morning from a council staffer alerted us to the fact that there is no longer a "Col Morris Library" ... it is now simply Wondai Library. Likewise, the "Dermot Tiernan Memorial Library" is now Murgon Library and the "T.J. O'Neill Memorial Library" is now just Kingaroy Library. The SBBiz records have been updated but we can't help feel that we've lost a little bit of South Burnett history in the process. For the record ... Col Morris was Shire Clerk at Wondai from 1948 to 1975 T J O'Neill was Chairman of Kingaroy Shire from 1955-1965 and died while in office Dermot Tiernan served on Murgon Shire Council for 22 years. He died in March 1993 after trying to intervene in a brawl on the footpath outside his Australian Hotel in Murgon. He received a posthumous bravery award for going to the aid of police.

Carter Confirms He Will Stand Again January 24, 2012 - David Carter, (right), announced this morning on Facebook that he will re-contest the position of Mayor at the upcoming Council elections on March 31. "I wish to announce that I will be standing for the position of Mayor in the upcoming Local Government Election," he said. "I believe I have the proven skills, dedication, enthusiasm and extensive business and local government knowledge to take advantage of the financial stability and solid groundwork achieved over the past four years. I look forward to leading the South Burnett towards a bright and prosperous future." David Carter was born and educated in Gympie and completed a Diesel Fitter apprenticeship with Widgee Shire Council. For many years he grew duboisia in the Boondooma area. He was elected to Wondai Shire Council in 1994 and served as Deputy Mayor for nine years under Mayor Cr Percy Iszlaub; and then Mayor for four years after Cr Iszlaub retired. At the first post-amalgamation election, he narrowly won the mayoral poll to be elected Mayor of the inaugural South Burnett Regional Council.

Council Calls For 2km Buffer Zone On Wind Farm January 24, 2012 - The South Burnett Regional Council will urge the State Government to legislate to fix a 2km minimum buffer zone between residences and wind farm turbines. At their January meeting, South Burnett councillors listened to an address from Paul Newman, a representative of residents concerned about the proposed windfarm at Coopers Gap. They also considered a report from an acoustic consultant for the Flyers Creek wind farm in NSW. Council noted that decisions about the Coopers Gap project rested with the State Government. However councillors voted unanimously to write to Local Government Minister Paul Lucas stating that the project must comply with relevant noise legislation and Australian Standards in regards to environmental noise and reverberations. This letter would also request the 2km buffer zone. A community meeting with representatives from the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM), organised by Member for Nanango Dorothy Pratt, will be held next week. * * *LNP Candidate for Nanango Deb Frecklington signed the pledge on Saturday ... in a form of a large mobile billboard, (right), which is travelling around Queensland. The billboard lists the five items which LNP Leader Campbell Newman has pledged he will implement if elected, including lowering the cost of living for families and delivering better infrastructure. All LNP candidates are being invited to sign up to the same pledge. * * * Mark your diaries! The South Burnett Regional Council's second annual business expo, this year dubbed South Burnett Exposed, will be held from Friday April 13 to Sunday April 15 in Kingaroy in conjunction with the annual Home Show. South Burnett Exposed will provide networking opportunities and a series of workshops at the Kingaroy Town Hall. It is an initiative of the South Burnett Regional Council, local business associations, the Southern Queensland Institute of TAFE, DEEDI and CROW-FM. For more information, contact Council's Business and Economic Development Unit on (07) 4189-9174.

Telstra's $166,000 Solution For Chahpingah January 23, 2012 - The wait may soon be over for Chahpingah residents frustrated by frequent Telstra outages. Phone lines were out-of-service on a number of occasions last year, including during the January floods when residents were isolated and relying on their landline phone service. Mobile phone coverage in the area is also poor. South Burnett Regional Councillor Cheryl Dalton, (right), contacted Telstra on behalf of frustrated residents in October last year after the exchange failed again, seeking a permanent solution to the issue. Telstra despatched a radio system technology expert to determine the cause of the outages and recommend a solution. Area General Manager Nigel Beaman said on Friday that Telstra had now begun upgrading the network. A radio link between Chahpingah and Chilton Hill is being upgraded with modern microwave digital equipment at a cost of $166,000. The project was on track to being completed by the end of January or early February and would provide a much more reliable and stable phone service for local residents. He said the problems were in the transmission system to the exchange rather than at the Chahpingah exchange itself. The new equipment will be installed in parallel to the existing system and the switchover will occur at a time designed to cause minimum disruption. UPDATE February 14: The work on replacing the radio link between Chahpingah and Chilton Hill has now been completed

Woman Burned As Boat Catches Fire January 21, 2011 - A 48-year-old Kingaroy woman has been airlifted to hospital after a ski boat burst into flames on Boondooma Dam today. Emergency crews on the scene said the woman and her family had bought the secondhand ski boat just days ago and were taking it out for the first time. A skier was in the water waiting to go when the boat seemed to backfire and catch alight. Two passengers jumped overboard. The woman who was driving also jumped out but was last into the water. She was taken by ambulance to Proston Showground where she was transferred to the AGL Action Rescue Helicopter. The helicopter's flight doctor and flight paramedic treated the woman for superficial burns to her arms and legs and also for a possible airway burn. She was airlifted to the Royal Brisbane Hospital in a stable condition. ABOVE RIGHT: The woman is comforted by friends before being placed into the helicopter at Proston Showground. [Photo courtesy AGL Action Rescue Helicopter]

Katter Wants To Build A Highway To Kingaroy January 20, 2012 - A report in today's Sunshine Coast Daily suggesting that Katter's Australian Party wants to construct two new high-speed highways to Kingaroy is only partially right. The newspaper reported Federal MP Bob Katter as saying: "We want to stop the rabbit warren in Brisbane and the way we do that is to build two major highways, one going straight west from Kingaroy and the other one coming down from Caboolture, through Woodford to Kingaroy." The party's candidate for Nanango, Carl Rackemann, said the geography was "a bit mixed up" but the main thing was that the party wanted to connect Kingaroy to the Sunshine Coast with a new highway. "I championed the road to the coast at my launch," Carl said. He said the South Burnett was "landlocked" in terms of the Sunshine Coast. "The concept is to encourage the decentralisation of the population but at the same time make the trip to Brisbane quicker. "We want to open up these areas and the road to Kingaroy is one of these plans." The proposed road would pass through the forestry areas north-east of Nanango heading towards Nambour. On another matter, Carl told SBBiz that the party's policy, announced on Wednesday, to scrap the State Government's Year 7 high school transition scheme would save $620 million. "We will hit that on the head completely," he said. He said the scheme would have a particularly devastating effect on small country schools, which could close down completely when students numbers dropped. If they didn't close, they would lose teachers because of student / teacher ratios. Katter's Australian Party rules out preference deal with Greens despite common ground over coal seam gas

Kratzmann To Challenge For Mayor January 19, 2012 - Well-known CROW-FM breakfast announcer Wayne Kratzmann, (right), has announced he will challenge Cr David Carter for the position of South Burnett Mayor at the March 31 Local Government elections. Wayne, who is also General Manager at CROW-FM, has a strong background in Local Government as both an elected representative and as a council officer. He was Deputy CEO at Wondai Shire Council for 25 years and Deputy Mayor from 2004 to 2008. Wayne was born in Kingaroy and educated at Taabinga State School and Kingaroy State High School. After leaving school he worked as a clerk at the Kingaroy Courthouse and Murgon Courthouse. He then joined Wondai Council as a payroll clerk and worked his way up the ranks to Deputy Shire Clerk (later Deputy CEO), a position he held until 2003 when he resigned and purchased the Tingoora Hotel. He was elected to Wondai Council at the 2004 elections and was appointed Deputy Mayor. At the 2008 council elections - the first held after amalgamation - Wayne was defeated by just 685 votes by former Wondai Mayor David Carter after preferences were distributed. He told SBBiz that he had been inundated with requests to run again for the mayoral position. He believes he can help regain community belief in the council despite the furore over the Kingaroy Forecourt, the state of local roads and the sluggish business environment. Wayne will leave CROW-FM in February after 15 years as the breakfast announcer to concentrate solely on the Mayoral election. "I believe the South Burnett Regional Council urgently needs someone who can lead a team of Councillors to reinvigorate our region and get the community and council working together," he said. He is also concerned that the smaller towns in the South Burnett seem to have been left behind after four years of amalgamation. "It was always going to be tough after amalgamation and I realise there are not a lot of funds to carry out and implement major changes," he said. "However the available money must be better utilised." Kratzie will broadcast his final brekkie show on CROW-FM on Wednesday, February 22. UPDATE January 27: Due to the State Election, Wayne Kratzmann's last day on CROW-FM has been pushed back to March 16

Less Than A Fortnight To Get Enrolled To Vote! January 18, 2012 - Time is running out if you want to vote - or stand - in the upcoming Council elections. The council poll will be held on Saturday, March 31. Remember, voting is compulsory for all eligible citizens. The electoral rolls close on January 31. If you have turned 18 before this date - and haven't already registered - you must do so to vote in this election. Anyone who has changed their address must also update their electoral roll information. Would-be councillors should note that nominations open on February 11 and close on February 28. Enrol to vote online