Mayor’s Budget Address 2025

Good morning Councillors, Council Officers, members of the gallery, and those joining us online. We are turning the page – from business as usual to business for the future. That means moving beyond the habits of over-extension and short-term fixes, and instead focusing on discipline, sustainability, and setting Cairns up for long-term success. Today I […]

The ABCs of Local Government: ‘A’ – Advocacy

No more campaign slogans nor roadside signs and no election in sight for another three years or so.

Securing Cairns’ housing foundations

We’re pushing for a Priority Development Area (PDA) to be declared over the Mount Peter Southern Growth Corridor along with trunk infrastructure funding to unlock an estimated 18,500 new homes for our city. Council recently endorsed the Securing Cairns Housing Foundations plan, urging the State Government to declare the corridor as a PDA. This move […]

Water security project powers ahead

Great to see so much progress on Cairns’ largest-ever infrastructure project. I’ve been out on site at the Cairns Water Security Stage 1 project a couple of times in recent weeks, checking in on the huge body of work required to secure our water supply for decades to come. In January, we successfully secured an […]

Delivering results for Cairns: 6-Month Action Plan

Since launching my six-month action plan in January, we’ve been steadily ticking off milestones to make Cairns more liveable, economically secure, and culturally rich. From community safety to setting the foundations for our future housing needs, the 27 items in this current Action Plan move us closer to a stronger, more vibrant future for Cairns. […]