Hinchinbrook MP, Andrew Cripps, says the time available to support the petition regarding the Garners Beach Cassowary Rehabilitation Centre was coming to an end, with paper petitions due to be returned at the end of the week and the online petition closing on 14 September 2015.

Mr Cripps said despite a recent interim funding announcement by the Palaszczuk Government to keep the Centre open for three months, it was decided that the petition needed to continue because key questions about future support from QPWS Rangers had not been answered.

“The petition is an opportunity for the community to voice their concern and opposition to the decision by the Palaszczuk Government to close the Garners Beach Cassowary Rehabilitation Centre and there has been a very strong response from across the region” said Mr Cripps.

“As of this morning, 4,295 people had supported the online petition on the Queensland Parliament’s website and I have received a number of paper petitions with many signatures at my electorate office, which I will table in the Queensland Parliament in two weeks” he said.

“We are asking for people to send the paper petitions to my electorate office by Friday 4 September 2015, so they can be collated and presented to the Queensland Parliament along with those who have supported the petition online” said Mr Cripps.

“We had no choice but to continue with our petition, because despite a three month reprieve for the facility, there is currently no long-term solution proposed that will remove the enormous pressure placed on local veterinarians like Graham Lauridsen” he said.

Mr Cripps said the failure of the Palaszczuk Government’s policy was underlined recently when Dr Lauridsen, was forced to unnecessarily euthanase a young adult Cassowary on the Atherton Tablelands, because it would not allow the Garners Beach Centre to accept any adult birds.

PETITION DETAILS

Paper petitions are to be returned to the Hinchinbrook Electorate Office, PO Box 1515, Ingham, Qld, 4850, by Friday 4 September 2015.

Alternatively, people who would like to support this campaign, but don’t have access to a paper petition, can sign the e-petition on the Queensland Parliament website, at the following address.

www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions/e-petitions

The e-petition will close on Monday 14 September 2015.