Newsroom

February 27, 2025

FEDERAL Member for Kennedy Bob Katter has called on the Department of Infrastructure to make haste and determine the outcome of the Queensland Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program (rPPP) grants and declare the successful applicants before the federal election is called and before caretaker mode is enforced.

“Grant recipients have been revealed in other states but not for Queensland,” Mr Katter said.

“And if it goes into caretaker before those grants are awarded, it’ll be at least six months before anyone knows if they’re successful, but worse still, the whole grant program could be thrown out if there is a change of government. It is just not good enough that they are taking this long.

“We have applicants like Cloncurry Shire Council who have spent countless hours collating information for their airport upgrade application only to be told the guidelines have changed at the eleventh hour and they should consider re-submitting.

“Changing the rules halfway through a game is far from ideal, especially if the delay causes Queensland applicants to miss out on this vital funding because an election is called and government business grinds to a halt,” Mr Katter said.

“The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts need to fast track assessments and get their recommendations to the Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister who makes the final decision.”

Cloncurry Shire Mayor Greg Campbell said, “The airport is the gateway for FIFO staff at the Ernest Henry Mine, Dugald River, Eloise, Great Australian Mine (GAM) and Rocklands.

“It will also be the main access for workers on the CopperString project and for the new Eva Mine,” Mr Campbell said.

The rPPP grants offer regional councils and other organisations between $5M and $50M to improve local infrastructure and cover project costs of construction materials, leasing equipment, project labour and administrative overheads and aim to foster partner relationships between governments and community to deliver multi-purpose regional precincts tailored to local needs.

With a project completion date of March 31, 2027, the grants can be utilised to deliver projects involving creating or expanding regional infrastructure neighbourhoods, commercial hubs or recreational areas.

Photo: Cloncurry Shire Mayor Greg Campbell and Bob Katter.