An opinion piece by Gympie Regional councillor Dolly Jensen
Quote: Here’s to strong women; may we know them, may we be them, may we raise them.
As International Women’s Day gets closer, I look back with a small smile of satisfaction when I see how far we have come. But then, with a little trepidation, I look ahead and see how far we still have to go.
We’re getting there, slowly. Really slowly.
Just recently, I signed up for a nine month course through LGAQ called “Women Leading in Local Government” so if you were wondering how we of the fairer sex are going in local politics, this pretty much says it all. But at least my welcoming letter was signed by a bloke called Gary.
At the same time, some regional areas experienced significant growth in house prices as demand for properties increased. So this has raised the questions: are we starting to see an exodus from our cities, and is this related to the COVID-19 pandemic?
Interstate buyers drive sales in South-East Qld
By Bianca Dabu
15 February 2021
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1 minute read
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Pre-approval requests are going through the roof as South-East Queensland experiences a surge in interstate migration, according to a finance expert.
A recent surge in interstate migration has led to a significant spike in property sales and growth in demand for home loan applications across the area, Brisbane-based finance brokerage Borro said.
Over the September quarter, Brisbane gained the most from net internal migration, with 3,200 people moving to the sunshine state, recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed.
But in addition to population growth, the relaxation of assessment rates by banks has aided the boost in loan applications and property sales, Borro’s owner, Cara Giovinazzo, said.
Hospitality workers, beauticians, and house cleaners have bourne the brunt of massive job losses during the coronavirus pandemic.
Closures of pubs and restaurants, restrictions on close contact services, and public fears of going out left thousands in Centrelink queues.
However, other industries had enormous booms as Australians spent more time at home and needed their goods and services more than ever.
Demand for IT workers has soared as Australians increasingly work from home during the Covid pandemic (stock image)
The need for IT experts rose dramatically along with handymen and gardeners, detailed labour force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed.