Collaboration the key to the Future of Northern Australia

The existing strength and future potential of Northern Australia was celebrated last Friday when The Hon. Tony Abbott MP, Prime Minister of Australia launched the Northern Australia Alliance in Cairns.

The Alliance sees key advocacy bodies from Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia unite to work collaboratively and act as catalysts to help shape and change communities across Northern Australia in a strategic and consultative manner.

The Prime Minister witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Advance Cairns, Broome Future Ltd, and Northern Territory Chamber of Commerce, as each organisation committed to advancing and promoting the development of Northern Australia.

Advance Cairns hosted the event and Chair, Trent Twomey said, “The economic potential of Northern Australia is as vast as the area it covers and there are many exciting nation building projects such as Nullinga Dam, the Ord River Irrigation Scheme, investment in the Bruce, Hann and Savannah highways, further expansion of HMAS Cairns and Coonawarra, and greater funding for health and research at the Cairns and Darwin Hospitals.”

READ FULL MEDIA RELEASE HERE

Advocacy Wins for Northern Australian Connections

Leading business organisations, Advance Cairns, Cairns Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Tropical North Queensland welcomed the recent visit to Cairns by The Hon. Tony Abbott MP, Prime Minister of Australia and the announcements he made regarding the region, whilst launching the Northern Australia Alliance.

“This kind of go ahead thinking, which characterises Northern Australia, is absolutely critical to the success of our nation as a whole. The development of Northern Australia is not just the task of people living in Darwin, Cairns, Townsville, Broome, Mackay and Rockhampton – it is a task for every single Australian, because the better Northern Australia goes the better the country will go,” said the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister went on to announce that the Northern Australia White Paper will be released in June and confirmed that, included in the White Paper, will be the upgrade of the Hahn Highway.

Not only does this announcement reinforce the recognition of the important role Northern Australia has in shaping the nation’s future, it also acknowledges the consistent and united advocacy from business groups in the region. Advance Cairns, Cairns Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Tropical North Queensland have been long-term advocates for the need to seal the remaining 90km of the Hann Highway.

The sealing of the Hahn Highway is one of the key 8 + 8 priorities outlined by Advance Cairns, Cairns Chamber of Commerce and TTNQ in 2014.

READ THE FULL MEDIA RELEASE HERE

Northern Australia Insurance Premium Taskforce announced

At the same event, the Prime Minister also announced the establishment of a Northern Australia Insurance Premium Taskforce to be headed by former senior treasury official Mike Callaghan to tackle the disparity in the premiums paid by residences and businesses in this part of Australia.

In a joint media statement made between Advance Cairns, TTNQ and Cairns Chamber of Commerce CEO, Deb Hancock said, “We have been working for some time to find a solution to the soaring insurance costs experienced by consumers and businesses across Northern Queensland and are passionate about seeing premiums reduced. It is pleasing to see that the Prime Minister has established the Insurance Taskforce and we welcome their recommendation to address this long standing issue.”

READ THE FULL MEDIA RELEASE HERE

In the meantime, to help North Queensland residents compare some home insurance policies and indicative premiums offered in North Queensland, visit this website - an Australian Government initiative.

FREE Dive into Digital Workshops

Upcoming FREE 2015 Workshops delivered by Digital Enterprise Program (DEP):-

• Business Tools:  13 May - Cairns
• Creating a Website:  27 May - Mossman
• eCommerce:  17 June - Cairns
• Getting online - 23 June - Cardwell
• Marketing Tips - 15 July - Cairns

For more information about each workshop topic or to register, CLICK HERE

Advance Cairns Member Breakfast Briefing

Tuesday 26th May 2015 - Pacific International Hotel (7:45 - 8:30am)

Join us at the next Member Breakfast Briefing and hear first hand from our Chair and CEO as to the priorities and focus of the organisation for the first quarter of 2015.  BOOK HERE

Open Data 500 Survey

Advance Cairns members may wish to be involved in an important survey run by the Commonwealth Department of Communications.  Advance Cairns has taken part in the survey and invite our members to do the same.

As described by the Department ‘The Open Data 500 Australia is part of the Commonwealth of Australia's Open Data initiative, and is the first comprehensive study of Australian companies and NGOs that use open government data to generate new business, develop new products and services or create social value. Open Data is free, public data that can be used, reused and redistributed to launch commercial and nonprofit ventures, conduct research, make data-driven decisions, and solve complex problems’.

For more information, and to complete the survey CLICK HERE

PwC in Digital Economy

The Queensland Government recently announced the establishment of the ‘PwC Chair in Digital Economy.  The role is a first in Australia and created in partnership with the Queensland University of Technology, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Brisbane Marketing and the Queensland Department of Science, Information Technology and Innovation.  The crux of the role is to investigate and shape the digital economy by exploring new opportunities for industry-academia collaboration.  As noted by PwC ‘The aim of the role is to shape digital transformation in Queensland through research, innovation and the instilling of digital capabilities in graduates at the university’.  

Advance Cairns is in contact with Interim Chair, Associate Prof. Robert Perrons of QUT and has been discussing how Advance Cairns and the region are able to participate in planned activities of this important initiative. 

For further details on the initiative, CLICK HERE

Are you doing business with India?

TIQ, in conjunction with Advance Cairns, are interested in collecting information about business dealings with India:-

1. How many local businesses are currently doing business with India
2. How many local businesses would be interested in doing business with India

Please send your responses to Shenal Basnayake, via EMAIL

Urban Spaces Creative Activation

Turning vacant spaces into vibrant places is the aim of a new program giving emerging entrepreneurs and creative industries a boost.

Under the Urban Spaces program, Cairns Regional Council will match newer local enterprises with vacant spaces in the Cairns CBD, to be used as pop-up retail outlets for a short-term, negotiated lease. Enterprises with unique products or services are invited to apply for the program, which would link them with prospective landlords for short-term tenancies of up to four weeks. READ MORE

Labour Force Brief - March 2015

Cairns Statistical Area 4 (SA4) Labour Force Brief:

To access the full report:  READ MORE

A Message for Advance Cairns Economic Development Team

Advance Cairns Economic Development Team has been busy undertaking a number of soon to be completed initiatives related to developing Trade and Investment within the region.  Several country  profiles and engagement plans (Japan, China, Singapore, Indonesia, PNG, India) are underway and will be soon completed and ready for member use.  The purpose of these are to provide members with an overview of each country and the opportunities for business collaboration.

A number of industry capability profiles have already been completed in the areas such as Agriculture, Biotechnology & Biofertilisers, Education & Training with several more currently being developed.  These documents were developed to showcase the diversity of capabilities within the region and to attract new enterprise and investment in these areas.  Chinese language translations of these documents have already been done with both the English and Chinese versions being distributed to Austrade and Trade & Investment Queensland. 

The recently established Investment Leadership Group has been gaining traction by defining its areas of activity and being in contact with various State and Federal Ministers and counterpart members of the opposition.  The group has received a number of responses to its correspondence and is eagerly pursuing a structured agenda for delivering regional investment support and growth.

Wind Farm Approval Powers Confidence in TNQ

Advance Cairns, the Cairns Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Tropical North Queensland welcomes the Queensland Government’s approval of the Mt Emerald Wind Farm project.  Deputy Premier and Minister for Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Jackie Trad announced the approval of the $380m project on Friday, which will generate power for up to 75,000 homes.  

The project is expected to generate $150m of direct investment in Queensland, employing 155 in construction and 15 permanent positions in operations and maintenance and is a sign of investment confidence and opportunity in our region.  READ MORE

Collaboration set to improve the Health Services in North Qld

Advance Cairns welcomes the Federal Government’s announcement that will see the North Queensland Primary Health Care Collaborative assume responsibility for the coordination and delivery of primary health care in the region as good news for patients in north Queensland.

As long term advocates for improved health care services in the region, Advance Cairns has been working closely with the Cairns and Hinterland Health Services to realise better frontline health services for residents in the north of the state.

Chair of Advance Cairns, Trent Twomey, as Chairman of the North Queensland Primary Health Care Collaborative is confident that this new structure will improve delivery and quality of services. “The Primary Health Care Network is designed to remove the focus on backroom bureaucracy and concentrate instead on delivering improved access to frontline services."  To read the full media release CLICK HERE

CQU Taipans head to China to promote Cairns

With a record-breaking 2014/15 season behind CQU Taipans, the club now has the opportunity to represent Cairns on the international stage, with its invitation to the Atlas Four Nation Challenge in China this May.  CQU are pleased to welcome aboard Advance Cairns, who have partnered with the club to assist our promotion of the Cairns region as a whole and invite other corporate partners to show3case their brand in the burgeoning China market, with exposure to an audience of more than 20 million people.  This is an exciting opportunity for the club and Cairns region, to find out more CLICK HERE.

The latest from The Cairns Institute

Read the latest news from The Cairns Institute bringing you stories from across the tropical world and details on a number of exciting events.  READ HERE

Love to Ride Cairns

11-31 May - Cairns

Organisations from around Cairns, their departments and staff are all invited to take part in the Cairns Cycle Challenge. A fun and free competition to see who can get the most people riding a bike.  You can ride anywhere, anytime during the 3 week Challenge. People only need to ride for just 10 minutes to take part.   MORE INFO

AIC Webinar - Are you ready to collaborate?

Thurs 14th May - FREE Webinar
Have you ever missed out on a business opportunity because you did not have all the necessary skills, equipment or people?  This webinar will explore successful business collaboration and the difference it can make to winning new opportunities. MORE INFO

Burdekin Value-Adding Seminar

Friday 15th May 2015 - Ayr
Be part of this seminar and learn from companies, both large and small, who are already value-adding to our primary resources.  READ MORE

AICD 2015 Cairns Economic Forecast Breakfast

19th May 2015 - Pullman Reef Hotel & Casino
Returning guest speaker Michael Workman, Senior Economist, Commonwealth Bank, will focus his presentation on what the economic indicators predict for the Qld and Australian economies, recent developments in the global and domestic financial markets and the implications on Qld businesses following the announced federal budget.  MORE INFO

Domestic & Family Violence Prevention Month

29th May 2015 - Hilton Cairns 

The annual breakfast event will be held at 7am, with guest speaker Dr Michael Kaufman, co-founder of White Ribbon.  Following the breakfast, White Ribbon Australia will host a series of regional forums across Australia showcasing the whole of society, whole of community approach to long term change in the prevention of violence against women.  MORE INFO

EOI's Open - China Business Delegation

10-15 June 2015 - Guangzhou

The Cairns Chamber of Commerce invites you to participate in a China Business Delegation, where they will attend the Guangzhou International Food & Ingredient Fair, which attracts 300,000 visitors.  Any businesses in the food, ingredient, food services and food processing industry are encouraged to participate.  MORE INFO

2015 Asia Pacific Cities Summit & Mayors Forum

5-8 July 2015 - Brisbane
Global media company, Bloomberg, joins 2015APCS as the major partner for the 'Future Cities' theme. As an industry leader, Bloomberg has a dynamic media platform and reach exceeding more than 300 million leaders world-wide. The summit brings together the key influencers and decision-makers of the Asia Pacific and in partnership with Bloomberg will help deliver the global conversation to an even wider audience.

GBR Masters Games

13-16 August 2015 - Cairns

Be quick and secure your spot in the biggest games in the tropics - READ MORE.

Study Tours at Shanghai Second Polytechnic University

11-24 October 2015 - Shanghai

Shanghai Second Polytechnic University will be running two study tour programs for 2015, one focussed around Language and Culture and a Dragon Boat and Culture tour.  Expressions of Interest to be sent to Sim Hayward via EMAIL

DATE CLAIMER: Major Projects Forum

Friday 30th October 2015 - Pullman Reef Hotel Casino

The Department of State Development will be hosting the 2015 Major Projects Forum on Friday 30th October from 7-11am.  Futher information regarding speakers and projects in the pipeline will be released soon.

Advance Cairns Welcomes New Members

Advance Cairns looks forward to partnering with the following new members to continue to build a self-sustaining, resilient and prosperous TNQ community:

PEASE ST DISCOUNT DRUGSTORE  Australian-owned and operated, Discount Drug Stores is a leading discount pharmacy brand which commenced operations in late 2001, with the first store opening at Sunnybank in Queensland, we have since expanded the brand nationally and proud to now have over 130 store locations Australia-wide.   READ MORE

If you would like to learn more about becoming a member of Advance Cairns, simply EMAIL our office and we will organise for one of our Board Directors to meet with you personally.

Brilliant Technologies takes out the prize

Brilliant Technologies has taken out two major awards at the recent annual Canon partner conference held in the Barossa Valley.  Brilliant were awarded the Queensland Business Partner of the Year and the coveted National Achievement Award for 2014.  Colin and Naomi MacKinnon received the awards from Taz Nakamasu, Managing Director of Canon Australia, and Canon’s Director of Business Services, Craig Manson.  Colin recognised his team of thirty dedicated staff for their excellence in supporting their varied customers throughout the deep north.

Congratulations to Cairns Penny Bank

Cairns Penny Bank recently celebrated their 116th Birthday and surprised the Advance Cairns team with their very own birthday cake to join in the celebrations.  Congratulations to Peter and the team in reaching this business milestone.