Bob Katter (Kennedy, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

The town of Hughenden has dropped from 4,000 people about 40 years ago to a little over 1,000 people now. We are talking about small business. All of those small businesses have collapsed, gone broke or are struggling to stay alive. Why not consider a simple contribution of some of that superannuation money with a government guarantee on the money? Heaven only knows superannuation loves water rights, but they will not put money into building a dam. So what we are saying is: we do not want a dam; we just want a few rocks in the river with some concrete poured over it to divert the water into off-stream storage, where it can be held very cheaply and then distributed. I believe that in my lifetime the towns of Hughenden and Richmond would again rise up to towns of nearly 10,000 people. Little Richmond is struggling at well below 1,000 people now.

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