To: Bundaberg Regional Council and Mayor Helen Blackburn

From: The Residents and Ratepayers of the Bundaberg Region

 

 

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We, the undersigned residents and ratepayers of Bundaberg Regional Council, call for the immediate termination of Bundaberg Now / BRC Now and demand full transparency and accountability from Council regarding the use of our rates.

 

Here's why:

 

🧾 Rates are rising — again. Despite promises from Mayor Helen Blackburn that there would be no rate increases, the community has faced two rate hikes since she was elected.

 

📉 Bundaberg Now is not essential. Ratepayers should not be funding a Council-run media outlet that duplicates or competes with existing local news organisations, especially when essential services and infrastructure are under pressure.

 

📵 The new “BRC Now” cuts off community voices. Under the new model, the Council will no longer publish contributed community content — silencing local stories and events in favour of controlled messaging.

 

💼 It’s not Council’s job to run a newsroom. Local journalism should be independent — and it's not the role of Council to dominate the media space with Ratepayer-funded platforms.

 

📣 Let local media do their job. Bundaberg already has strong local outlets like ABC Wide Bay, 7 Local News, Triple M, HitzFM, and The NewsMail. Council should support them, not compete with them.

 

 

 

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We demand:

 

1. The complete shutdown of Bundaberg Now / BRC Now to stop the waste of public funds on non-essential services.

 

 

2. An independent review of how rates are being spent on Council communications and media.

 

 

3. A guarantee that community voices will be heard and that future media or communications initiatives will be put to public consultation.

 

 

 

Our rates should fund roads, infrastructure, emergency services, and cost-of-living relief — not a Council PR machine.

 

It’s time to get back to basics. Sign this petition and tell Council:

👉 SCRAP BUNDABERG NOW FOR GOOD.