Editor’s view: Council’s buffer-zone reply raises more questions than answers
A rule applied to all people is lawful, well-established and fits squarely within Council’s powers, as is the case with this notice in Queens Park Toowoomba.
Editor’s view by Cameron Outridge
When the Gazette asked Sunshine Coast Council a simple question – has it implemented or even formally considered interim by-laws or boundary-based exclusion zones around playgrounds and schools? – the reply was oddly categorical.
“Council does not have legislative authority to introduce interim by-laws or exclusion zones of this nature,” their statement says.
It sounds final, but it isn’t accurate in the way readers might assume.
Local governments in Queensland do have the power to make or amend local laws regulating camping, occupation and permitted activities in council-controlled spaces, including areas around playgrounds and school boundaries. Councils across the state use these tools all the time, provided the rules apply to everyone equally and comply with the Human Rights Act.
What councils cannot do is make a law that targets homeless people as a class. But that is not what advocates, including safety campaigner Helen Tagg, are proposing. The call is for a universal rule prohibiting camping within a defined distance of high-use children’s spaces.
A rule applied to all people, not a particular group, is lawful, well-established and squarely within Council’s powers to consider (see Toowoomba Regional Council signage as an example).
Council’s response has avoided the substance of the issue. They are not being asked to do the state’s or police’s work. Nambour families have raised the same concerns for months: needles in parks, aggressive and anti-social behaviour near playgrounds and staff withdrawals from sites due to safety fears. The request for short-term buffer zones is simply a precaution while risk remains unmanaged, boundaries non-existant and the public are left in the dark.
It appears council is going to continue to allow camping near parks, playgrounds, schools and public places.