• Survey of Rural Challenges
  • Small Town Speaker Becky McCray
  • Shop Local video
  • SaveYour.Town

Small Biz Survival

The small town and rural business resource

A row of small town shops
  • Front Page
  • Latest stories
  • About
  • Guided Tour
  • Subscribe
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • RSS

Rural issues come to the fore in Australia

By Becky McCray

Our friend Des Walsh from Australia sent me a great email, that I just had to share with all of you.

You might not have known but we had a Federal election here on Saturday. The outcome hangs in the balance (although I don’t think there are any hanging chads), with the likelihood of a hung Parliament – current Labor gov 73 seats, current opposition conservative coalition 73, give or take one or two, and the balance of power in the hands of three independents from rural or regional (ie not big city) electorates. One of them at least is from Central Casting as the rural eccentric, cowboy hat and all – Bob Katter. But crazy like a fox. (video)

A single-minded representative. A couple of pundits have said that Bob (member for the electorate of Kennedy) has 3 issues – Kennedy, Kennedy, and Kennedy.

The electorate of Kennedy is one third of the land mass of the State of Queensland and covers some 357,784 square miles.

The three independents have suddenly acquired a whole bunch of powerful friends who wouldn’t have given them the time of day last week.

In the election campaign the gov said they’d spend $43 billion on the new National Broadband Network (fiber all over this big country) and the Opposition said they’d do a $6 billion job and leave it to the private sector to sort out the details – wireless, satellite, yada yada yada. Lots of ignorance and fibs on both sides.

So guess what one of the key issues and thus bargaining chips is for the three blokes from the bush? Broadband!

Should be interesting.

Read more of the story in The Australian.

Des
–
Des Walsh
Business mentor coach & social media strategist
Manager, PitchEngine Australia & New Zealand

New to SmallBizSurvival.com? Take the Guided Tour. Like what you see? Get our updates.

  • About the Author
  • Latest by this Author
Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.

www.beckymccray.com
  • Start smaller: Any local business can be your incubator
  • Should I ask competitors before I start a business in a small town?
  • Will trendy axe throwing and escape room businesses last? More experience-based retail: the Hat Bar

August 24, 2010 Filed Under: Best of, entrepreneurship, global, rural Tagged With: Infrastructure, news, Support

Wondering what is and is not allowed in the comments?
Or how to get a nifty photo beside your name?
Check our commenting policy.
Use your real name, not a business name.


Don't see the comment form?
Comments are automatically closed on older posts, but you can send me your comment via this contact form and I'll add it manually for you. Thanks!

Comments

  1. Becky McCray says

    August 26, 2010 at 6:07 pm

    The New York Times has picked up on this story:
    Rural Lawmakers Hold Key in Australian Election

    I’m sure they read about it here first. ;)

    Loading...

Howdy!

Glad you dropped in to the rural and small town business blog, established in 2006.

We want you to feel at home, so please take our guided tour.

Meet our authors on the About page.

Have something to say? You can give us a holler on the contact form.

If you would like permission to re-use an article you've read here, please make a Reprint Request.

Want to search our past articles? Catch up with the latest stories? Browse through the categories? All the good stuff is on the Front Page.

Partners

We partner with campaigns and organizations that we think best benefit rural small businesses. Logo with "Shop Indie Local"Move Your Money, bank local, invest localMulticolor logo with text that says "Global Entrepreneurship Week"Save Your Town logotype

Best of Small Biz Survival

A few people shopping in an attractive retail store in refurbished downtown building.

TREND 2025: Retail’s Big Split: what small town retailers can do now

99% of the best things you can do for your town don’t require anyone’s permission

Three kids in a canoe

Get started as an outdoor outfitter without breaking the bank

A shopkeeper and a customer share a laugh in a small store packed full of interesting home wares.

How to get customers in the door of small town and rural retail stores

Rural Tourism Trend: electric vehicle chargers can drive visitors

Wide view of a prairie landscape with a walk-through gate in a fence

Tourism: Make the most of scant remains and “not much to see” sites with a look-through sign

More of the best of Small Biz Survival

Copyright © 2025 Becky McCray
Front Page · Log in
%d