Queensland’s Country Week Expo targets tree changers

Queenslanders looking for a tree or sea change will be the target of the state’s first Country Week Expo to be staged in Brisbane in July.

Communities Minister Warren Pitt, who is in Port Douglas today for a quarterly Ministerial Regional Community Forum, said he was delighted to announce the Queensland Government’s support for Country Week Expo 2007.

“This expo will offer people looking for a lifestyle change the chance to learn about the many opportunities and advantages that life in rural and remote Queensland can offer,” Mr Pitt said.

“The Country Week Expo is an exciting initiative, both for rural Queenslanders and city dwellers contemplating a move away from our fast-growing urban centres. It will also appeal to interstate visitors who head north to escape the winter blues.

“If you are looking to escape the rat race, then this event is for you. It’s a great opportunity to walk around Queensland in a day.”

The three-day expo, to be staged at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre from 6 to 8 July, has been successfully held in New South Wales for the past three years, attracting and informing thousands of people about the benefits of life outside metropolitan areas.

“The Country Week Expo is just one part of the Queensland Government’s Blueprint for the Bush initiative, which is designed to help build a strong rural Queensland based on sustainable, liveable and prosperous communities,” Mr Pitt said.

“As part of this initiative, we are also undertaking in-depth research to better understand the perceptions of rural life and to implement a statewide campaign to promote rural lifestyles.

“The Country Week Expo team has already started promoting the event in south-east and south-west Queensland and will now move on to the Burnett region, then the central and northern parts of the state.”

The Queensland Country Week Expo will bring together all levels of government, as well as major businesses and organisations, where they will showcase the qualities and benefits of life in country Queensland.

Country Week Expo convenor Peter Bailey said the expo would highlight the diverse business and investment opportunities that exist, together with the positive aspects of living and working in regional Queensland.

“The event provides an opportunity to dispel many of the myths surrounding employment and general lifestyle outside the city,” Mr Bailey said.

“I think it’s wonderful to see Queenslanders, and many other Australians, moving away from the cities and pursuing their dream of a tree change or a sea change.”

Media contact: Minister’s Office 3235 4280 or 0408 701 379
Peter Bailey 0428 724 790