CEO Column - March 2020

28th March 2020

To say the four weeks since my last column have been surreal would be an understatement. A column that celebrated the upcoming celebration of the historic QCB Stadium opening and what can be achieved when a community rallies together. Those days now seem like light-years ago and our new reality is confronting.

The unfolding coronavirus pandemic is a rapidly evolving crisis that has created significant angst for our community and businesses at a rate of knots.

Whilst there is great uncertainty as to how long our nation will be in the grips of this crisis, immediate, medium, shovel-ready and ongoing action can help support our region's businesses and jobs.

This is an uncertain environment we all find ourselves in and the health of the people in our community is the number one priority. The recovery of our region will also largely depend on the health of our economy. This is where we will continue to be strong in our message to governments to help the North keep doors open, people in jobs, and get the economy on its feet after the health situation abates.

We’ve welcomed relief packages from all levels of government to help ease some of the mounting pressure on businesses. While we know there is no silver bullet to end this pain, there are some gaps in the support for some and we will continue serving our business community to secure the relief they still need.

Local businesses are the backbone of our economy and their contributions have kept North Queensland ticking-over through a decade long economic and emotional roller-coaster.

These businesses are entrepreneurial, proud members of our community and now it's our turn to support them in what has and will be our nation’s greatest challenge in over 100 years.

What we are seeing unfold is heartbreaking as it is devastating. We stand with our community through this crisis and in strength we will tackle this challenge together.

Back to List

Media

Loading Archive...