Queenslanders will vote in the State Election on October 26, and the Caloundra electorate covers 227sqkm from Currimundi to Glenview.
There are three declared candidates for 2024 – Jason Hunt of the Australian Labor Party (who currently holds the seat), Kendall Morton of the Liberal National Party and Peta Higgs of The Greens.
The Aura Post asked each candidate to answer key questions about traffic, infrastructure, housing, the environment and youth.
Polling Booth Locations – 4551
Early voting is available at the Baringa Community Centre at 20 Edwards Terrace, Baringa, from 8am-6pm Monday to Friday.
Other polling booth locations across the 4551 postcode include:
- Caloundra CCSA Hall, 1 Nutley Street, CALOUNDRA
- Unity College, 47 Lomond Crescent, CALOUNDRA WEST
- Currimundi Primary School, 17 Buderim Street, CURRIMUNDI
- Golden Beach State School, 34 Gregory Street, GOLDEN BEACH
- Caloundra City Private School, 200 Pelican Waters Boulevard, PELICAN WATERS
- Our Lady of The Rosary Primary School, Alfred Street, SHELLY BEACH
Jason Hunt – Labor
Traffic & Infrastructure: “How will you reduce traffic congestion and improve roads in Caloundra?”
Since I was elected as your local member in 2020, I’ve been working hard to deliver the infrastructure that Caloundra needs to keep up with our growing population.
We’ve delivered the Mighty Bells Creek Arterial Road connecting Aura to the Bruce, Traffic lights at dangerous intersections at Peachester and Ridgewood Road, upgrades to the Steve Irwin Way, and locked in funding for Stage one of the Sunshine Coast Direct Rail line which will take hundreds of cars off the Bruce and Caloundra Road.
Moving forward our Government is undertaking business cases to fix the Caloundra Road/Kawana Link Way roundabout at Aura and the Caloundra Road/Nicklin way roundabout as well.
It’s important that parties who commit to improvements can fully fund those commitments – there’s no value in promising over a billion dollars of improvements without knowing the costs and with only a fraction of the funding available.
Affordable Housing: “What’s your plan to increase affordable housing for locals?”
I know firsthand that this community is facing housing pressure.
Here in my office, my staff and I help people every week facing housing insecurity by connecting them with the government services they need like rentconnect and social housing.
We’ve introduced new rental reforms to protect renters and invested in our rentconnect programs which help folks with rental security subsidies, bond loans, and more.
I’ve personally opened more than four different new Social Housing builds in the area in Caloundra, and we’re currently building two new social housing builds right here in Aura.
In fact, over 81 social and affordable projects are currently under construction across the Sunshine Coast.
We’re also making it easier for first home buyers to get their first home, raising the stamp duty exemption from $500k – $700k and doubling the homeowners grant from $15K – $30K.
Environment: “How will you balance development with protecting Caloundra’s environment?”
It’s important that we recognise that pressure for housing has to be balanced against the lifestyle that we all want to enjoy here on the Sunshine Coast in the first place.
I have already saved one forest – Ferny forest in Landsborough from logging, and I am very pleased that the first trial of Renewable Energy Zones, which will make us less reliant on fossil fuels and put less pressure to bear on existing native forests, will take place in only two locations in QLD – Townsville and right here in Caloundra.
Since 2015, close to two million hectares of land has been added to Queensland’s protected area estate by our government, protecting it in perpetuity.
Healthcare: “What will you do to improve healthcare access and reduce wait times here?”
Just last week I was delighted to announce more than $88m in funding for our Caloundra Minor Illness and Injury Clinic (or the MIIC as most people call it) to boost services and most importantly, extend the operating hours to 8am – 10am.
We’re also hiring more nurses, nurse practitioners and doctors to provide the highest quality care whilst improving patient wait times at both our Caloundra MIIC and Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
I was also very excited to announce that a re-elected Miles Labor Government has announced we will build a new Satellite Hospital on the Sunshine Coast to add to our health services and take pressure off our existing health services.
Most importantly we need to protect the jobs of our health workers – we never want to see thousands of nurses and midwives sacked again as they were under the LNP.
Youth & Jobs: “How will you create more opportunities for young people?”
QLD Labor’s free TAFE strategy has been a massive success – this week we’ve hit over 100,000 young QLD’ers who have taken advantage of our free TAFE and with the top courses here on the Coast being Nursing and Early Childhood Education.
We’re skilling our young people for the jobs of the future, ready for our renewable energy future, our Big Build, and our Homes for Queenslanders plan.
We should never forget that the LNP closed TAFE campuses here on the Coast and sacked almost 400 TAFE workers.
And before our kids get to TAFE, they need a quality education.
Labor has opened three new schools in Caloundra in the past four years, compared to the LNP who last opened a school here in 1983.
Kendall Morton – LNP
Traffic & Infrastructure: “How will you reduce traffic congestion and improve roads in Caloundra?”
While Labor have cut funding from important road upgrades, an LNP Government will deliver our $400 million congestion-busting plan to finally fix the bottlenecks and pinch points along Caloundra Road.
This includes Kawana Link Way overpass, upgrades to Bellvista Boulevard roundabout, and a road from Aura Boulevard straight through to Pelican Waters Boulevard.
In addition, we have committed to delivering Sunshine Coast Heavy Rail all the way to Maroochydore to ensure Caloundra doesn’t become a carpark.
Affordable Housing: “What’s your plan to increase affordable housing for locals?”
The LNP will kickstart new housing construction through a $2 billion housing infrastructure investment fund.
We will boost home ownership by abolishing stamp duty tax for new homes for every first home buyer.
We will provide more rental options for Queenslanders by getting more homes built faster and we will save renters up to $700 a year by funding grants for solar panels on rental homes.
Environment: “How will you balance development with protecting Caloundra’s environment?”
Like so many people in our community, I love our beaches, our magnificent natural environment and the incredible Pumicestone Passage.
It’s important to ensure we get the balance right between ensuring we have the housing and infrastructure we need, while also protecting the environment that makes our part of the world so special.
One of the ways the LNP will ensure local residents have greater say in how our waterways are managed is through establishing a new Sunshine Coast Waterways Authority.
This will be a legislated one-stop-shop to end the bureaucratic buck-passing and ensure local knowledge is fed into waterway management decisions for the Sunshine Coast.
Healthcare: “What will you do to improve healthcare access and reduce wait times here?”
We will restore health services when you need them, by investing more to clear waiting lists and listening to doctors, nurses and paramedics who are on the frontline.
We will hire more doctors, more nurses and more paramedics to provide our growing region with the services they need, and we will provide real-time health data to give Queenslanders the transparency they deserve.
We will also remove Labor’s Patients’ Tax to save you paying more when you visit the doctor.
Youth & Jobs: “How will you create more opportunities for young people?”
The LNP will build a TAFE Centre of Excellence in Aura, south of Caloundra, to train the construction and trades workers needed in this fast-growing region.
Under Labor, South East Queensland has a need for 90,000 additional tradies, with demand growing due to Labor’s Housing Crisis.
The LNP’s TAFE Centre of Excellence will secure a pipeline of skilled workers for the Sunshine Coast, ensuring the region has the workers needed to deliver the new homes needed for our growing population.
This is just one example of the pathways and investments the LNP will make to ensure we have happier and healthier students in Caloundra.
Peta Higgs – Greens
Traffic & Infrastructure: “How will you reduce traffic congestion and improve roads in Caloundra?”
The best way to stop traffic is to get people out of cars and into public and active transport.
The Greens have a plan to massively expand frequent bus routes on the Coast, deliver the Sunshine Coast Rapid Transit project, and upgrade our heavy rail with an extension to Maroochydore, duplication from Beerburrum to Nambour, and a second Brisbane to Sunshine Coast rail bypass corridor to allow for faster connections.
Everyone should get the benefit of 50c fares, not just people in Brisbane.
Affordable Housing: “What’s your plan to increase affordable housing for locals?”
Rents are skyrocketing, mortgages are out of control and the social housing list is ballooning – but the major parties don’t have a plan to tackle the housing crisis.
Rent on the Sunny Coast is up $200 a week, a 44 per cent increase since 2020.
It’s no surprise that one in five renters on the Coast are in rental stress.
The Greens will cap rent increases to let wages catch up and build 100,000 affordable and energy efficient homes through our public housing developer plan.
Environment: “How will you balance development with protecting Caloundra’s environment?”
Our plan to deliver 100,000 publicly built homes will deliver gently dense infill around shops, services, schools and parks – not bulldoze native forest and koala habitat like Labor and the LNP want to.
Meanwhile, the major parties are in lock step on fossil fuels, approving dozens of new coal mines and thousands of new gas wells – with many more in the pipeline – making a mockery of our commitments to fight climate change.
The Greens will phase out thermal coal, stop new coal and gas mines, deliver 100 per cent publicly owned 100 per cent renewable energy and help households with the transition.
Healthcare: “What will you do to improve healthcare access and reduce wait times here?”
As a doctor who has worked in public health for over 30 years, I know my patients are struggling.
My priority is making healthcare truly free which is why the Greens have a plan to build 200 publicly funded GP clinics including allied and mental health services to make sure everyone can see a bulk-billing GP.
And that’s why we’ll fully fund public hospitals, delivering 2,000 more hospital beds and ending ambulance ramping.
Youth & Jobs: “How will you create more opportunities for young people?”
The chronic underfunding of our public schools has forced more and more out-of-pocket costs onto families.
This means less money for excursions, extracurricular activities or team sports.
The Greens will fully fund public schools, abolish all out-of-pocket costs including for excursions and give every kid a free season of community sport every year.
