By Dominique Tassell
Member for Southern Downs James Lister spoke against the Public Emergency Bill in parliament last week, saying he believes the state government “took too much of a scattergun approach with their powers during Covid“.
Mr Lister spoke about the toll that border measures took on the Southern Downs, stating that it was a “very costly exercise“.
“I have never called for the borders to be opened,“ he said. “I understood the need for those orders for them to be closed“.
While he said that he had never called for borders to be opened, due to the nature of the Southern Downs “the closure of the border caused enormous disruption“.
“My electorate spans 400 or 500 kilometres of border country with communities which are situated on both sides of the border that regard themselves as part of their community of interest,“ he said.
“I am not talking about personal inconveniences; I am talking about businesses, primary producers and families who have been forced to travel very long distances in order to cross a border, if they were allowed.“
Mr Lister said he opposed the bill as he did not trust that the state government is “sufficiently in connection with the people“.
When border closures were rolled out and measures considered, Mr Lister said he was not consulted. He stated he believed they were rolled out too quickly and should have been considered in the House first.
“A number of decisions were made which imposed unworkable situations for those in my electorate and needlessly caused economic hardship and pain for the people I represent,“ Mr Lister said.
“I am opposed to the extension of the powers that enable those kinds of restrictions to be imposed,“ Mr Lister said.
Of the community in the Southern Downs, Mr Lister stated that “the hardships that we endured were perhaps greater than in any other part of Queensland“.
Mr Lister then spoke about “one of the most pressing matters“ associated with border closures, that being that an ambulance that has to travel across the border can be obstructed by a concrete barrier across a road.
“I am not saying that the barrier should not be there but that it should be able to be opened by someone on the gate so that somebody who has had a heart attack, been involved in a vehicle accident or something like that can get to the nearest hospital,“ Mr Lister said.
“In my part of the world, the communities are connected with one another.
“If you need hospital treatment, you may go from Wallangarra to Tenterfield District Hospital or from Liston to Stanthorpe Hospital.
“I would not like to think that my ambulance had to take an hour-long round trip to reach the nearest border crossing.“.
