This bill is vital to turning around the downward spiral of unemployment, substance and alcohol abuse and social dysfunction rife in our communities.

We are calling on the Member for Cook and the three Townsville Labor MPs as Government Members to support these vital changes to get First Australians back into work in their communities.

Briefly the KAP bill ensures any applicant for a Blue Card from a relevant indigenous community, who is about to be rejected, has their application redirected to the Local Justice Group (LJG) in the community they reside in.

Provided there are no 'Disqualifying Offences' recorded against the individual's name, the LJG can then make the call on the application as to whether they think that person is fit to potentially work with their kids.

This approval then would 'only' apply to the indigenous community they reside in - it would not extend to any other parts of Queensland.

This essentially meansthe judgement call is made by the indigenous community the individual lives in and will only be valid in that same community.

The fact is that these communities are invariably so small that the LJG has a good handle on the all the risks in the community better than some bureaucratic officer in Brisbane.

The state-wide Blue Card system is currently one of the strongest barriers to accessing jobs in Aboriginal communities in Queensland.

You can have a person with a 10 or 20-year-old assault charge recorded against their name who has completely reformed their lifestyle find that they cannot get work in their community due to some officer in Brisbane putting a cross next to their names.

It breaks your heart having to listen over and over again to First Australians in communities that are trying desperately to break out of a cycle of unemployment and substance and alcohol abuse, only to find that when they front up to engage back in the workforce the first message they receive from government is you can't work because you are not eligible for a Blue Card.

We should be "breaking the ankles" figuratively speaking, of these people seeking to reform their life. This is the pathway back to meaningful work, steering away from substance and alcohol abuse and forming a stronger family unit.

The truth of the current crime crisis across the North and the North West is that we are experiencing kids on the street, turning to crime, right now because many parents aren't working and the family unit is non-existent.

Surely, they should be empowered themselves to make the decisions on who is acceptable to work with their own children in their own tight community.

I am of the view that to think the system is better served by these decisions being made from the city is both paternalistic and condescending.

Where it is appropriate, we want to give some autonomy and decision-making abilities back to these communities and that is what our bill aims to do.

If you feel passionately about this, like I do, please call, write to or in some way reach out to your local State Member to insist they vote in support of our First Australians through this proposed legislation.

The KAP deeply appreciates any interest you take in this important issue, and any support you can provide to it.

Please either contact my office on 07 4730 1100 or your local MPs office if you require further details.

Robbie Katter,

Member for Traeger