Member for Burnett Stephen Bennett has slammed Labor for stating that dredging works at Round Hill Creek were “not a priority for the government”.
Mr Bennett said the spokesperson’s comments aired on ABC Wide Bay this week were arrogant and proved that the current Labor Government was out-of-touch with the community.
“How dare they dismiss this community and their reasonable calls for action to address the very serious safety issue,” he said.
“I find it offensive that Labor thinks it’s OK to fob this community off as “not a priority”, particularly given the marine incidents that have occurred in the region.
“This has been an ongoing, serious issue for this community, with boaties regularly getting stuck on the sand bar at the marine entry point.
“The community has just gone through yet another tragic event, and the local Volunteer Marine Rescue crew’s rescue efforts were again hampered by the sand build up at the mouth of Round Hill Creek.
“The sand build up poses dangerous conditions entering and departing for the rescue crews, which means these dedicated crews are extremely limited in the hours they can search.”
Mr Bennett said he would fight to see the dredging works completed as a matter of urgency.
ENDS.