Llew O'Brien
Wide Bay · National Party · Australia
“Mal is a relentless optimist, possibly powered entirely by community spirit, and he has built a 26,000-strong following celebrating Gympie and its past and present. As for Sean, if there's an award for helping people, either he has won it, he has been nominated for it or he's too busy volunteering and helping people to even notice it.”
“Two of the Gympie region's hardest workers and biggest advocates, Mal Dodt and Sean Connelly, have been given microphones and a licence to inform and entertain.”
“The show featured a wide range of agricultural displays and entertainment, and, together with the Murgon rodeo, people celebrated local industry and tradition. One of the biggest challenges facing show societies today is a lack of volunteers.”
“The Prime Minister and every Labor member of this parliament went to the last election asking the Australian people to trust them. What has the Albanese Labor government given the Australian people in return? Broken promises and betrayal in the form of tax increases on savings, investments, housing and small business.”
“This is to be achieved by removing some of the red tape around the Fair Work Act to allow the Fair Work Commission to be more efficient, particularly in matters relating to dismissal or unlawful termination disputes, and enabling the commission to dismiss or prevent frivolous, vexatious or unreasonable cases and applications.”
“That also sounds good—too good, actually. The third is to improve fairness to contractors, especially in the road transport sector, by extending protections for unfair termination and contract thresholds. The fourth is intended to modernise the system and remove some of the technical flaws in the existing legislation.”
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“I helped secure $2.5 million to build a new community house at Peregian Beach and another $2.5 million to build the Sunshine Beach Surf Club. I also worked with Katie Rose Cottage Hospice at Doonan to secure $1.5 million to increase its capacity. In Murgon, I worked with my friends at the Murgon Men's Shed to help them bring the railway museum to life. Veterans in Murgon have a dedicated drop-in centre thanks to a $450,000 commitment to help them access advocacy services. A $1.65 million fossil and fine arts museum, 55 Million Years Ago, is showcasing Murgon's paleontological history. In Gympie, a $1.8 million project is underway to create a new place to honour our veterans, and 200 new jobs have been created at Nolan Meats through a $5 million investment to extend their production line.”
“But, in the time since Labor was elected, they've not funded any new mobile phone sites. With the 3G shutdown, which occurred under Labor's watch, mobile phone coverage has seriously deteriorated. In Maryborough, we secured $28.5 million to build a new projectile-forging plant, creating a hundred new jobs and boosting Australia's defence capability. A $700,000 commitment is helping to upgrade the Maryborough Military and Colonial Museum. We invested more than $25 million replacing and upgrading bridges in Fraser Coast, Gympie and Noosa, including the replacement of Coondoo Creek Bridge on Tin Can Bay Road to better connect Cooloola Coast with other communities. In Noosa, I worked with organisations like Sunshine Butterflies at Cooroibah so that they can share their magic with more families.”
“It's no because Labor has given us the worst six months of business insolvencies on record, with 27,000 businesses going insolvent over the last three years. It's no because mortgages have almost tripled. It's no because Labor wanted to divide our country by race. It's no because Labor's economic, energy, immigration and industrial relations policies are driving up inflation and stretching household budgets to breaking point. These failures are hitting homes and businesses in Wide Bay, and we can't afford another three years of Labor. When you look back three years, before Labor was elected, you can see that real progress was being made across Wide Bay. This Labor government has abandoned regional communities like ours. I worked to extend mobile phone coverage to 19 new locations throughout Wide Bay.”
“At the last election Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised a better future for all Australians, but if you ask yourself, 'Are you better off now compared to three years ago?', I bet the answer is no. The answer is no because of Labor's homegrown inflation disaster, which has seen an 18 per cent increase in the cost of living. The answer is no because Labor has delivered seven quarters of negative growth, giving us the longest per capita recession for 50 years. It's no because productivity has crashed 5.6 per cent, and real disposable incomes have fallen by 8.7 per cent. It's no because Labor promised a $275 reduction in our power bills but instead Queenslanders are paying $948 more than Labor promised. It's no because gas is up 34 per cent, insurance is up 19 per cent and savings are down by 10.2 per cent.”
“Ever since I was elected in 2016, I've worked to build a better Wide Bay. That has involved working with the community to identify local solutions and seek assistance from government to get the right outcomes. I've worked with many community, sporting, veterans and service groups across Wide Bay to help them get the support they need and work with the community and my coalition colleagues in Canberra to secure funding for the Gympie bypass and the Tiaro bypass. But over the last three years the challenges Wide Bay and our nation face have been made so much harder by the Albanese Labor government. Labor's bad decisions, warped policies and wrong priorities have made life harder for everyone.”
“Sasha will be one of the youngest rally drivers competing at the Queensland Rally Championship and the youngest female driver in the championship. Having tasted success in the swimming world and competing at two national swimming championships, Sasha is determined to do the same in the motorsport world. I wish Sasha all the best, and I'm sure she joins with me when I say: long live the combustion engine!”
“One of Wide Bay's successful young women with a bright and promising future is 17-year-old Sasha Power from Kilkivan. Sasha has been competing in khanacross motorsport events since she was 12. In 2023, Sasha achieved first, second and third place over three classes at the national khanacross titles. In 2024, Sasha dominated an all-female field at the Gold Coast by placing first against very experienced drivers. Sasha has been working as an electrical apprentice for the last 12 months and is starting her second year. She's been putting wages aside to save for her first 'proper' rally car. The motorsport community has noticed Sasha's success, and she already has a sponsor for the Queensland Rally Championship in 2025, with Cameron and Tahnee Henry from Virtual Security Guard on the Sunshine Coast.”