Davis Must Do Better Or Go

Media Release.

Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk says Communities Minister Tracy Davis appears to have spent more than a fortnight doing nothing to establish the facts surrounding the financial viability of the Regional Community Association Moreton Bay.

“Just because the Newman Government has tried to wash its hands of Scott Driscoll there is no excuse for Tracy Davis doing the same with the RCAMB,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

“Just over a fortnight ago the Minister responded to Opposition questions in State Parliament saying the association was delivering its services.

“She also said her department was ‘working hard with the community centre to ensure its viability’.

“Now when the RCAMB goes into liquidation she claims to have had little knowledge of its true position.

“On Good Friday I called on the Minister to return from holidays and sort out what everyone else could see was a looming problem.

“She had the power to order a forensic audit of the association but when everyone else could hear the alarm bells ringing she did nothing.

“Either the Minister shapes up and starts to take a hands-on approach to this problem or she should go and make way for someone who is willing to do that.

“When the RCAMB and Mr Driscoll have been so closely linked the Minister needs to give priority to sorting out the association’s financial problems and looking after its staff and clients,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

Hansard: Tues 19 March…

Regional Community Association Moreton Bay
Mr MULHERIN: My question without notice is to the Minister for Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services. What services does the Regional Community Association Moreton Bay deliver to the local community and have these services been affected by the allegations involving the member for Redcliffe?
Ms DAVIS: I thank the honourable member for the question. The services that this organisation delivers are exactly the same services that were funded under the previous government. But to be more specific, the Department of Communities funds that particular organisation for domestic and family violence, for homelessness and some support for people who are doing it a bit tough with regards to accessing day-to-day food. So that emergency relief funding is what we fund it for. What is terrific is that they are still delivering that to the community. The department is working with them and that is appropriate because we are here to help people out in the community who are vulnerable and need government to help them get on with their day-to-day lives.
What is very exciting about being the Minister for Communities is that I do get to go out and meet different people working for different organisations, particularly community groups. At our recent community cabinet in Hervey Bay I had the very great opportunity to go and visit, with the Assistant Minister for Child Safety, the Hervey Bay community organisation. It is a wonderful organisation which comes together to offer a range of services out into the Hervey Bay and Maryborough region. The types of services that they deliver are the types of services that we see community and neighbourhood centres deliver right across this state, including youth support programs and domestic and family violence programs. We even had Toastmasters there on the day that we visited, but more than that we had a serenade by Men’s Song which is a group of retired gentlemen who are not into the tools of the Men’s Shed but want to engage in a more cultural experience in retirement. So the assistant minister and I were well serenaded by some very fine gentlemen who were also, might I add, the first male vocal group to be asked to perform at an Anzac Day ceremony and do the New Zealand national anthem in Maori. They were very excited about that. They were disappointed though that they were not able to dress up in their full regalia to sing to the assistant minister and I, but they did not need it, they were terrific. They are just one example of the types of groups that come to our community and neighbourhood centres right across this fantastic state of ours. 
Hansard: Wed 20 March…
Regional Community Association Moreton Bay
Mr MULHERIN: My question is to the Minister for Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services. Yesterday when the minister was asked about the activities of the Regional Community Association Moreton Bay she confirmed the group delivered emergency relief funding, and said— “What is terrific is that they are still delivering that to the community.”
I ask: will the minister advise if she is aware of claims by the association members that this group is in such disarray that, despite the hard work of staff, it has been forced to stop distributing funding to families who are in dire straits?
Ms DAVIS: I thank the honourable member for his question. It was my understanding that the community organisation was delivering all of those services that it is funded to do. It does a very good job, as do all of the neighbourhood centres across Queensland, in delivering and doing referral work for our most vulnerable Queenslanders. As I have just indicated, we will continue to support the community organisation in delivering its work. The funding that the department provides to community and neighbourhood centres is a little flexible. If that is what the organisation is choosing not to deliver at the moment, then that is a matter for the community centre. I can say that our department is working hard with the community centre to ensure its viability.