Councillor Jason Watts | Politician
Councillor Jason Watts
Phone: +61 418 342 872
Reviews
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25.01.2022 Another great breakfast this morning at the Yelarbon Men’s Breaky. Cr Mackenzie, Cr O’Shea and I enjoyed listening and speaking to a number of proud men in our Region. Great bacon and Egg burgers too!
20.01.2022 Great picture, but who would have thought such a beautiful body of water or state border can cause so many issues. As I have outlined in my speeches, another key point I want to continue working on if I am successful in Council is to continue the work that has been undertaken in addressing the many Cross-Border issues that exist. Cross-borders issues are wide ranging and these issues do impact on our businesses, economy as well as council resources so it is important we work... on strategies to address these. I acknowledge not all of the Cross-borders are negative but there needs to be a balance. I understand I am not going to solve all of the issues but I do want to continue the work being undertaken by Council to lobby and advocate to bring about change. I do believe the residents living in the cross-border regions should have equitable access to services however presently this does come at a cost to the Goondiwindi Region. Therefore there is a need to not only align service delivery and avoid the need for community members on each side of the border to navigate through different service systems but also have mechanisms in place so our region is not financially burdened by this. To achieve this, I believe Council needs to continue working collaboratively in finding solutions that make our lifestyle better and business easier for our border communities. As outlined in the Statement of Principles and Priorities for Cross-Border Collaboration 2016-2019 ‘the key focus areas for cross-border collaboration are regional economic development, aligning services and sharing information, local transport and issues of national significance.’ Furthermore it states ‘This is important as it aims to develop a strategic way that benefits the whole community with the aim of improving integration, productivity and social and economic development’. I agree with this these principles and I know there has been some progress made in addressing some of these areas, but there is a lot more work that needs to be done to bring about substantial change which will benefit our region. Hopefully through the platform of Council I will get a chance.
20.01.2022 On Friday Cr Kelly, Cr O’Shea and I travelled out to Inglewood to attend the official opening of the Greenup Meeting Place. Well done to Kenny and Shelly Rielly for all of your hard work. The place looks great!!
19.01.2022 On Saturday night, Jane and I enjoyed attending the 2020 Lions Club of Goondiwindi Installation Night at the Royal Hotel. Congratulations to the new President Pieter Kruger and all of the new board members who took office. The contribution to the local community by the Lions Club is invaluable and we are truly appreciative of the work and the service you provide to our community.
19.01.2022 On Wednesday, all Councillors and I enjoyed the opportunity to be a part of the Eastern Roads Tour with our tour guides Jason and Dion from Council. Throughout the day we travelled quite a few kms of road, met some locals, discussed some issues and had the chance to see more of our great Region, with Cr Mackenzie behind the wheel of our trusty tour bus!!!!
17.01.2022 Over the past few weeks, I have had the privilege of speaking across the Region to several communities. I would like to take this opportunity to provide further... information on the topic of Community Safety. I have been approached by a few people asking what more can be done regarding Community Safety. My answer is plenty! As a police officer my duties won’t change with regards to reducing crime, Council could also play an active role in enhancing Community Safety. I believe this could be achieved through Council collaboratively supporting projects, initiatives, and education resources to address community concerns. This will in turn allow people to have a reduced fear of crime, resulting in them feeling safer in their community and having a greater quality of life. I have strived to ensure that the local communities feel safe and protected by implementing approaches to reduce crime, promoting community safety as well as promoting social cohesion. I have effectively managed partnerships and have worked collaboratively with a range of stakeholders including government and nongovernment agencies, businesses and residents, resulting in the strengthening of community ties and the promotion of community awareness. I believe everyone has the right to feel safe, whether they are at home, work or play. I fully support measures such as CCTV cameras, however we can do more in this area. Community safety could effectively be improved through supporting local crime prevention programs, addressing social problems and improving the physical environment through effective urban design and planning. Our safety within our community is important and I will strive to ensure this is maintained. I have witnessed the negative impacts crime has on victims and have delivered a lot of bad news to good people. I will continue to do what I can within my current role, but I believe if I was elected as a local Councillor the platform would give me a greater opportunity to make positive steps in sustaining our vibrant community.
16.01.2022 This week I had the opportunity with the other Councillors be a part of the western roads tour of our Region. During the day we visited council infrastructure, inspected more of our road network and spoke to a few residents at Daymar, Weengallon and Toobeah. I also enjoyed visiting and meeting the wonderful students at Bungunya and Talwood. Great little schools doing great things. ... Thank you Cr Mackenzie for being the driver and tour guide. It was a good day.
15.01.2022 Please make yourselves aware of the webinar that is available tomorrow night. Thanks to the Goondiwindi Regional Council and Goondiwindi Chamber of Commerce for presenting relevant information for our local community. It is important that we keep informed on how we as a community can minimise the impact of COVID-19.
14.01.2022 As the election draws to a close I want to take the opportunity to not only say good luck to all of the candidates but to say thank you to the many people who have assisted me and provided me with support over the last few weeks. I also wanted to say thank you to all the people in the Goondiwindi Regional Council area for taking the time to meet me. Lastly, thank you to my family for always standing with me.
10.01.2022 Today I had the opportunity to undertake a learning tour and gain some valuable insight into how Council can implement strategies to better manage our Council Reserves. Listening to Holly from Southern Qld Landscapes and Victor Steffensen from the Indigenous Fire workshops - Firesticks, I appreciated his insight and knowledge on how we as a Council, can use indigenous land management practices to care for our country.
10.01.2022 Thank you to the students and staff of Lundavra School for inviting us today. We enjoyed our visit and seeing the great work presented by the students
08.01.2022 Another one of the key points I have been speaking about over the last few weeks, the matter of water security for the Region. I know water is a very topical issue and will be for some time due to the ongoing drought conditions our region has been experiencing. I applaud the work Council has undertaken with the publishing of the Goondiwindi Regional Council Drought Management Plan which outlines key objectives for securing water for every community in the region. I also suppo...rt the ongoing work with the installation of new bores across the region to ensure water supply to each community. In additional to this, I believe it is important that we also explore supplementary water security and water efficiency measures to compliment the strategies outlined in the plan. We all need to remember the importance of being responsible in our use of water and to relieve the pressure on existing water supplies. Initiatives Council could explore may include avenues such as a water tank rebate schemes which have been implemented successfully in other council areas. This initiative will help community members capture and use rainwater for domestic purposes in and around our homes. Another method that has been used to increase water security is through the introduction of effective monitoring and controls for our town irrigation systems to reduce wasted water. Obviously these would be subject to budget considerations but are possible avenues that could be explored. Furthermore, any water efficiency measures are critical for future-proofing our region and does work in hand with current measures such as water restrictions being an effective tool. I know water restrictions can be hard but I do agree it is a fair way of ensuring everyone retains access to water supplies. Larger scale initiatives requiring State and Federal Government involvement such as dams, ground water allocations and manufactured water options are also possible avenues and I am of the opinion Council needs to continue to lobby and advocate for these. Water is a valuable resource and we need to support strategies aimed at preserving and sustaining our water supplies not only for the urban supply but also for our irrigators and agriculture sector. I agree that being responsible and having secure water supply underpins not only growth in our population but also in the economy and this will benefit the whole region.
07.01.2022 This week, I enjoyed a western roads trip with the Mayor and other Councillors doing a sight seeing tour of our roads network. This was also a great opportunity to meet some of our property owners and community members. As part of the tour we inspected some of our regional roads and had the opportunity to meet the wonderful students and staff at Lundavra and Kioma State Schools. These little schools are a great asset to our region and it was a great experience to meet the students who truly welcomed us in to their school. Over the coming months, more of these trips are planned which I am looking forward to. I do enjoy seeing what our region has to offer and meeting the people who make our region one of the best in Queensland.
02.01.2022 Yesterday I attended the Yelarbon Men’s Breaky with Cr O’Shea, Cr Mackenzie and Mayor Springborg. It was a chilly morning but a great opportunity to see the proud men of the Yelarbon and wider community come together and enjoy some breakfast and good company. Chantel Corish (Psychologist) provided some valuable information and advice we can use to improve our mental health. A special thank you to Tony Stepney and Jeff Hillard from the men’s shed for again supplying their cu...linary skills when preparing a great breakfast. This group is an example of a great community initiative being run within our Region and I encourage all men to attend. We all need to look after ourselves and our mates.
01.01.2022 The Goondiwindi region truly is a great region to call home. We are very lucky to enjoy an amazing regional lifestyle to raise our families and live amongst people who take pride in their community. Every person I have spoken to comments on how well our community is presented and what we as a region have to offer. That is why tourism could and should play a valuable role in promoting and supporting our communities. I believe we should invest more time advocating and working ...on enhancing the tourism opportunities across the region. It is important that we raise the profile of our region as we have so much to offer. I also agree that Council needs to have an ongoing commitment to the tourism sector by supporting existing markets and exploring the growth opportunities for the benefit of the region. Council has done a lot of work in this space through the creation of the Goondiwindi Visitor Strategy 2020-2024, outlining the opportunities we need to explore. This is something I wish to continue as the benefits will provide a flow on effect across the region, not only in visitor numbers but in revenue raised. Last year the region welcomed over 216,000 visitors, generating over $68m in revenue. The revenue generated through tourism provides ongoing support for our local businesses and economy. I believe it is important to implement the visitor strategy to enhance and increase tourism across the region. The revenue raised would have a significant positive financial impact for all our communities. As a region, we do such a great job in this space, but I believe Council needs to be there to support, promote and advocate the tourism sector for the whole region.
