Noosa Today takes you behind the scenes of the LG24 campaign
Day 1, 29 January
It’s on! It’s official, Noosa Council is in election caretaker mode, nominations are open and the campaign has begun. But first, a word from the stewards.
On the high traffic Residents For Noosa Facebook page, moderator Rod Ritchie warns the blogerati: “Now that we have at least two candidates standing with a history of sending concerns notices to social media commentators, you need to be aware of your obligations to post here.” We won’t go into them here, but we all know that, hate-speak aside, if you want to run for office you mustn’t grumble about a bit of rough and tumble.
BULLYING
Mayoral candidate Ingrid Jackson was first out of the blocks with a gripe in her candidacy announcement media release. Ms Jackson noted that there was “a crucial need” to improve the behaviour of some councillors. “Among the majority four male Councillors there are some who seem to believe that intimidation and disruption are appropriate tactics to adopt behind closed doors and even at open Council meetings. I experienced this in my term as the only female Councillor. And it has continued in the Stewart Council, where the Mayor and two other female Councillors are the targets of the most deplorable behaviour. This is inexcusable.”
Deputy Mayor and mayoral candidate Frank Wilkie fired back on Facebook: “Office of the Independent Adjudicator reforms protect councillors against false bullying claims. Baseless claims of bullying during debate and discussion have been, and are, being dismissed by the OIA, after investigators view recordings of live-streamed meetings and interview staff present. These findings uphold the principle that expressing a different point of view during debate or discussion is not bullying. Candidates seeking office need to understand that they will encounter people who disagree with them.”
Day 2, 30 January
CONGESTION TAX
The five councillors nominating for re-election as councillors seemed to be adopting a low profile in the opening days of the campaign, although Brian Stockwell did throw a press release into the ring that might have been a leftover from reaction to last year’s destination management plan but for the arresting headline: “Tackle congestion before it strangles Noosa”.
The Stockwell “congestion tax” on visitors was to get considerable play on mainstream and social media, although it was debatable how well it was playing out with voters. “While Council has tried to shift behaviour through providing ‘carrots’ such as free buses on week-ends and during school holidays, the community is telling us that we need to do more,” the veteran councillor said. “In my opinion the carrots will work better if we also have a stick.” While paid parking was another option to consider, it was unlikely to have as much impact on congestion as a charge that comes into effect during peak periods to deter the day trippers from sightseeing by car rather than bus, bike and on foot, he noted, quickly adding that vehicle recognition technology would be employed to identify and exempt resident vehicles.
DAY 3, 31 January
COFFEE WITH NICKY
Councillor candidate Nicola Wilson has “started to put together a calendar of where I’ll be in the coming weeks, starting with our lovely local parks. I’ll also add some local cafes etc. I’m really looking forward to meeting people and hearing your views on all things.” This friendly invitation on social media was coupled with a photo of a heart-shaped designer latté. Oh that the whole campaign should be so nice. Okay, it was a slow news day.
DAY 4, 1 February
CORFLUTE POLLUTION
On the Residents for Noosa page the ubiquitous Judy Barrass posed the question: “How do people feel about election Corflutes? Are they just unnecessary litter and environmentally unsound or are they necessary to tell you who’s standing and who to support? Is your voting influenced by the faces and names on our roadways or not?”
A fair question, accompanied by a fun Mickey Mouse election poster, and it drew an immediate response from councillor candidate Fiona Jacobs: “We must shift our perspective on elections and advertising. Noosa confronts a looming issue with landfill depletion … Advertising exacerbates the problem by being expensive and creating an uneven playing field for candidates. In my campaign, I commit to being Corflute and letterbox drop-free. It’s crucial for all candidates to reconsider the environmental impact of non-recyclable materials like Corflutes.”
Pressed on deadline, Campaign Diary didn’t have time to Corflute-check all candidates, but the two we reached were happy to share their minimalist plans. Cr Tom Wegener texted: “I only have six, essential on polling days. I also recycle them by using them to box up belly boards or I make them into seed trays.”
Veteran campaigner and mayoral candidate Frank Wilkie responded that he had a double-sided Corflute sandwich board for every polling booth (22) and that over the past couple of campaigns he had found a company that could recycle them, so this election will be their third time around.
Day 5, 2 February
PARDON?
There weren’t too many surprises in the nominations for Noosa Shire mayor and councillors published by the Electoral Commission of Queensland, but one that stood out was the second name in the list of six nominations of Nicolaj (Nick) Hluszko for mayor. The story is covered elsewhere in this issue, so let’s just note here that, while it was the biggest story of the week on the campaign trail, in some ways the name of disgraced former Noosa deputy mayor Frank James Pardon as second nominator makes sense – both are longtime North Shore residents, both men of the river, both men with aspirations to lead. So should the fact that Frank Pardon is also a convicted child sex offender raise alarm bells?
According to the ECQ website, Mr Pardon is entirely within his rights to nominate Mr Hluszko and Mr Hluszko is entirely within his to accept the nomination. The question will be one of judgement.
Meanwhile, unsubstantiated rumours of preference deals in the mayoral race continued to swirl around the campaign. Watch this space.
Day 6, 3 February
HOBBY HOTELS?
“I’ll say this at the outset – Noosa isn’t the only community that’s suffered from a proliferation of short-stay accommodation (or hobby hotels as I prefer to call them).” This was councillor candidate Tom Ellison beginning a rather long-winded explanation of his worldview of short-term accommodation issues on Residents for Noosa. While CD takes no issue with Tom’s thoughtful essay on the subject, we think he may live to regret “hobby hotels”.
Day 7, 4 February
SNOOZE TIME
Early-rising Frank Wilkie had a well-deserved weekend sleep-in. That’s all we can tell you.
