REGIONAL
PLANNING
COUNCIL: ALL TNQ STATE ELECTORATE: ALL TNQ FEDERAL ELECTORATES: LIECHHARDT, KENNEDY
POPULATION AND MIGRATION STRATEGY BRIEFING NOTE SUMMARY • A Population and Migration Strategy will provide the framework to attract people to Tropical North Queensland and encourage people to stay long-term. • Australian residents are showing they want to live in regional areas. Policy that supports population migration to the regions can aid in balancing Australia’s population growth trends, which are currently centred around metropolitan areas. • Development of a Cairns Region Population and Migration Strategy requires shared State and Federal Government investment of approximately $1.5 million and supports the objectives of the Commonwealth’s newly formed Centre for Population.
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THE ISSUE
In 2018 Australia’s population reached 25 million people, two decades earlier than predicted, which has put unprecedented pressure on metropolitan capitals. Significant population growth in capital cities has created a settlement imbalance, leading to sizable infrastructure investment in cities and an infrastructure deficit in the regions. While population growth has been centred on capital cities, Australian residents are showing they want to live in regional areas with more than 400,000 people choosing to relocate from the city to the regions in the five years to 2016. Migration away from capital cities has predominantly occurred in the 30-39 year and 60-69 year age groups, leading to unexpected increased demand for regional school enrolments and health care services, and demonstrating the important role of population policy planning for regional locations. To encourage the trend of regional migration to continue, and ensure that relocation is a real and viable alternative to capital cities, there is a need to rebalance national infrastructure spending away from urban fringe locations such as the Gold Coast to regional city locations such as Cairns. Infrastructure investment will
improve the accessibility and liveability of regional cities and in the case of Cairns, deliver on the Federal Government’s northern Australia agenda for economic growth. Population growth should not be a side effect of other policies as it leads to unplanned urban growth and insufficient infrastructure, and this has been the experience to date in northern Queensland. The Cairns Region Population and Migration Strategy will therefore provide a strategic approach to population that demonstrates the needs of the region, leading to proactive plans that drive catalytic projects such as roads, health services and water infrastructure plus a supportive policy framework. The strategy will inform forward planning for government at all levels, delivering on the objectives of the Commonwealth’s newly created Centre for Population.
BACKGROUND
In December 2018, population became a standing agenda item for the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), placing it firmly on the national policy agenda. In delivering a new approach to population planning, the State Treasurers and the Australian Local Government Association
THE COMMITTEE FOR TROPICAL NORTH QUEENSLAND
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