Earlier this year Barcaldine celebrated the 125th anniversary of the shearers’ strike, from which the quintessential Australian phrase of “a fair go” was born.
Last week one of its regional councillors told fellow councillors they had forgotten that principle, as she fought unsuccessfully to have a decision to refuse to grant mobile roadside vending permits to fruit and vegetable operator Colin Holt overturned.
The 5/1 rejection of his appeal to be able to trade in Barcaldine, Alpha, Aramac and Muttaburra was described by the Charters Towers-based operator as “terribly unjust”.
It was made as requests by two mobile vendors to trade frozen seafood in Barcaldine for nine hours a month each, and a fresh mango trader’s application for the same amount of time in season were given the tick of approval at last Wednesday’s special council meeting.
As reported by QCL, Mr Holt had asked for a total of 9.5 hours a fortnight to trade in the five towns in the region, one of those hours in Barcaldine, but was only granted permission to trade for three hours in Jericho, which has no grocery store.
Without the income generated from the other towns, Mr Holt said he was losing money and facing the closure of the run.
“I’ve been doing this in Barcaldine an hour a fortnight for four years and not sent anyone broke. Barcaldine councillors need to trust their people,” he said.
It was a theme touched on by Mr Holt’s only supporter around the table, Cr Milynda Rogers, who said the feelings expressed to her since council originally rejected Mr Holt’s application to trade in June were deep disappointment and anger.
“There’s an overwhelming feeling that their right to choose has been taken away,” she said. “We have to trust our community to do the right thing, and we have to remember that Barcaldine is renowned for its fight for free rights.”
Cr Rogers proposed licences with conditions that specified locations and times itinerant traders could sell between, to ensure they were away from premium main street locations, which was adopted when council subsequently approved the three other applications.
In an emotional debate and before a public gallery of 24 onlookers, some of whom had travelled from Charters Towers and Windorah, Crs Sean Dillon, Garry Bettiens and Jenni Gray remained steadfast in their opposition to all outside traders but mayor Rob Chandler and Cr Becci Plumb voted with Cr Rogers to allow the seafood and mango traders to operate, in Barcaldine only.
They will be confined to Rotary Park one day a month, and will be paying annual licence fees of $200.
Cr Dillon invoked images of children waiting for trucks to arrive in order to do their shopping in future, if council allowed itinerant vendors to operate, saying he found it concerning that people saw them as an essential service.
“Businesses are closing and populations dwindling – there is a clear and present danger here,” he said.
Cr Bettiens said he felt the same way as he did the last time the issue was discussed.
“This bloke is selling eggs and yoghurt too, and God knows what else.
“Local businesses employ local people and sponsor local events.
“Without local businesses we won’t have communities.”
Cr Gray quoted from her 2008 election flier and its slogan of “building the region, securing the future”, which she said meant preserving what existed in the communities.
“We’re not taking away any right of choice where people shop,” she said.
The knock-on effect of the decision on other small communities in western Queensland wasn’t brought up at Wednesday’s meeting but the possible loss of service by remote customers on the 3300km fortnightly run was a big part of Mr Holt’s original pitch to council to be allowed to continue to trade in Barcaldine.
When contacted for comment, he said the decision would probably mean that he would have to sell his semi-trailer for a smaller truck, meaning he would no longer be able to service Birdsville or Bedourie.
“There was no openness to seeing how this decision affects others,” he said. “IGA have their own supplier, but even if they just said, give me bananas, I could do that for Gary Peoples or Russ Glindemann.”
The former is a current Barcaldine councillor and Aramac shopkeeper, who was absent from Wednesday’s debate, and the latter, a former Barcaldine councillor, runs a supermarket in Alpha.
“Other shires welcome me – I bring down stuff for the Jundah store and so on,” Mr Holt added. “People have eaten frozen and canned food all their life. They think this is the best thing since a bitumen road – it’s given them a better quality of life.”
A similar sentiment was expressed by supporters after council made its decision, including former western Queensland resident Daniella Koehler, who said one small vendor wasn’t the culprit for the difficulties facing businesses in the bush at the moment.
She was supported by local resident Dennis Wells, who said the council was putting the blame on vendors for communities that were struggling.
“Look higher, at state and federal governments for that,” he said. “All Australians should be concerned about their fellow man.”
Mr Holt said he would be continuing to service the west if possible.
“I’m too young to retire, and I have a real love for the people out there,” he said. “I’ve made lots of friends out there, and I look forward to catching up with them.”