NORTH Queensland Senator Susan McDonald has been named Special Envoy for Northern Australia in newly elected Nationals Leader Barnaby Joyce's party reshuffle.
The reshuffle comes after the Nationals returned Mr Joyce to the party leadership on Monday June 21, sending Mr McCormack to the backbench.
Based in Townsville, Senator McDonald has pledged to use her position to focus on supply chains - particular within the corridors of growth, regional internet connectivity, new water projects and child and aged care sevices.
"This appointment is a great honour and I'm determined to repay the faith shown in me by the National Party and the people of Queensland," Ms McDonald said.
"Northern Australia produces so much wealth for this country, but it's home to only about 1 million people, so we need strong voices in Canberra to ensure we keep getting funding for the roads, rail, healthcare and internet connectivity enjoyed by those further south.
"I've always said that Northern Australia doesn't want an advantage, we just want a level playing field.
"This means our kids having access to STEM teachers, our roads to be navigable in all conditions and our hospitals and businesses to have reliable, fast internet with which to provide services.
"All this makes the North more liveable and will attract young families looking for good-paying, stable work and a terrific lifestyle."
Senator McDonald entered the Senate in the 2019 election and was instrumental in setting up a 2020 Senate Inquiry into agriculture's effect on the Great Barrier Reef.
She grew up on her family's cattle property, 70km south of Cloncurry and was educated by Correspondence School and Mt Isa School of the Air before boarding school in Brisbane.
Senator McDonald's family had bought a chain of butcher shops in Brisbane and the Gold Coast and she ran them for 6 years before being elected to the Australian Senate for Queensland.
Currently the chairman of the Federal government's Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport committee, Senator McDonald said mining, agriculture, transport, water, health and education are her top priorities.
"The corridors of growth from Darwin to the Great Australian Bight and the Gulf of Carpentaria to Victoria were identified in 2020, and complement the Tennant Creek to Townsville corridor which will be a focus in regards to freight movement and connectivity," she said.
"I suspect I will return to Canberra armed with plenty of work to lobby Ministers for, but I won't apologise for that.
"The Morrison Government has proven it has made Northern Australia a priority, and it's my job to ensure this keeps happening as quickly as possible."
Senator McDonald will conduct a tour of Northern Australia while Parliament is in its winter recess.