About Peter

Qualifications and background

Peter has been the Councillor for Toowong since 2007 and has worked hard to make Toowong Ward a better place to live.
As a member of Campbell Newman's team, Peter has delivered improvements to local parks, roads and transport infrastructure.
Peter has a Bachelor of Arts (in Politics and Economics), Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws and is trained as a Solicitor. He has worked in private practice and the state government. Before his election to Council, Peter worked as a sole practitioner in Toowong.
Married with two children, Peter is a member of local community groups and is committed to the issues affecting local residents.
Committee memberships and interests

Peter is Chairman of the Environment, Parks & Sustainability Committee.

The responsibilities of the Environment, Parks & Sustainability Committee are to protect and enhance Brisbane's environment including the Brisbane River, waterways, biodiversity, air quality and natural areas and:

• ensure Brisbane is a leading city in energy efficiency and integrated water management
  
• foster Brisbane's development as a green and shady city with a focus on its parks and gardens and natural areas
  
• partner with the community and business to enhance the environment
  
• support volunteer organisations in their contribution to the protection and enhancement of Brisbane's environment
  
• ensure environmental risks are minimised

Maiden Speech

It is a great honour to be standing here today as the Councillor for Toowong Ward and I am humbled and very aware of the responsibility of the position.

I know a lot was said about Judy at the council meeting two meetings ago, but I would like to take this opportunity to thank Judy Magub for being generous with her time, sharing of her knowledge and gracious in her manner during the transition period.  Without her cooperation my task would have been more difficult.  And I am sure that the residents of Toowong Ward would join with me in thanking Judy for her years of serving the area and wish her well.
 
I would also like to acknowledge Councillor Carol CASHMAN and her enormous contribution to her Ward and to our city.  Her wealth of experience, determination, knowledge and, dare I say, interjection will be sorely missed by some.
 
Mr Chairman, my Ward has a fascinating and rich history and includes landmarks synonymous with Brisbane’s identity.  The Toowong area first became a shire council in 1880 and was proclaimed a town in 1903.  The 1925 City of Brisbane Act amalgamated Toowong with 19 other local authorities into what we know today as the Brisbane City Council.  And Toowong Ward was created in 1994 from the old Paddington and Taringa Wards and, as of today, I am only its second councillor.
 
In the past 120 plus years the area has matured from its rural origins to a modern, vibrant, sophisticated precinct.  The chic café strip that is Park Road; the extensive retail variety at Toowong village; the adjacent commercial centre in Toowong Tower; the luxury high-rise units with views of the Brisbane River and to the city.  The Wesley, one of Brisbane’s leading private hospitals.  The television studios up on Mount Coot-tha.  The Rosalie Cheese Festival just last Sunday, to which my office contributed.  And there’s that iconic Queenslander, the Fourex Brewery.
 
Yet the uniqueness of Toowong remains.  To the east, the banks of the Brisbane River; the west bounded by Mount Coot-tha and its expansive forest, on the slopes of which is located the beautiful Brisbane Botanic Gardens, home to the education Planetarium and Tropical Dome.
 
There are still many sought-after tin and timber old Queenslander homes in leafy suburbs and famous historic landmarks including Government House, Toowong Cemetery and the Regatta Hotel.
 
Educational facilities in my Ward include our State Schools such as Ironside, Toowong and Milton, Toowong College (Queensland’s first public-funded academy), Brisbane Boys College, Stuartholme, and the world-renowned University of Queensland.
 
All of this infrastructure contributes to the rich cultural diversity that makes up my Ward.
 
I am aware of the challenges our city faces as it grows and adapts to accommodate an additional 145,000 dwellings by 2026.  The resulting growing pains will be felt in the inner west and particularly around Milton and Toowong.  The test will be in balancing the unavoidable impacts of such growth while at the same time endeavouring to maintain our identity and culture and that, Mr Chairman, is my vision for the ward: to accommodate the new and preserve what is significant from our past.
 
Mr Chairman, being a local councillor is the closest that an elected representative can get with the constituents on a day-to-day basis.  The most important lesson I have learned in my professional work life as a lawyer is to listen, and listen I will, as I face each challenge as it arises and, importantly, act on them.
 
I am here to serve the needs of those who live in the Toowong Ward.  Their priorities are my priorities.
 
Mr Chairman, I also believe it is a vital part of my role to contribute where possible to the community groups, not only for their continuation but importantly for their growth, for it is these groups such as the St Lucia Community Association which continue to bind us, to assist our fellow citizens, to remind us of our history, to provide friendship and accordingly to strengthen our community as a whole.
 
Further, Mr Chairman, with the growth and development it is vital we do not forget the green space.  The parks in my Ward are vital assets.  Their importance to our environment and to the community socially and for recreation cannot be underestimated; that is why I will continue to maintain the excellent condition and inviting presentation of the parks in the Ward and to obtain the feedback of the locals in order to further develop our parks and the facilities.
 
Another challenge in my Ward is traffic congestion.  Most is not generated by locals but originates from along the western corridor as far afield as Ipswich.  With little choice of routes it is funnelled onto Milton Road, Coronation Drive, and Metro 5 and that is why I strongly support LORD MAYOR Campbell NEWMAN’S TransApex Program which will relieve the peak-hour bank-ups at Toowong Roundabout and reduce traffic on Milton Road.
 
I am proud to be the Councill for the Toowong Ward.  But I’m also proud to be a member of LORD MAYOR Campbell NEWMAN’S Brisbane City Council team.  The LORD MAYOR’s record since he was elected just over three years ago is a tribute to his foresight, dedication and tenacity.  It speaks for itself but I would be remiss not to mention just a few of his achievements that have benefited our city, achievements which truly entitle him to be known as “Can Do Campbell”.
 
Since 2004 Council debt has been reduced by 18 per cent.  There’s been the introduction of neighbourhood planning which involves local residents in helping Council to determine how and where Brisbane will grow.  And since 2004 the number of air-conditioned buses has grown from the previous administration’s 35 per cent to now nearly 75 per cent.
 
Which leads me to another of his achievements:  keeping his word; meeting his pledge to get Brisbane moving.  Since 20045, commuters have returned to our buses.  Patronage has increased by 30 per cent to around 63 million.  Since 2004, 210 new buses have been purchased and there has been record public transport funding to date.  A record commitment has been made to capital works expenditure programs on roads, footpaths and bikeways in 2006/2007.  Work has commenced on the North-South Bypass and Airport Link Tunnels, a key election promise.  And the preferred tenderer for the Hale Street Link Bridge Project, an important part of the TransApex initiative, was recently announced.
 
But it is not only to the LORD MAYOR that I pay tribute.  Our Lady Mayoress, Mrs Lisa Newman, as Chair of the LORD MAYOR’s Community Trust, has been extremely active in prosecuting the cause to alleviate the desperation of Brisbane’s deprived youth and the distressed circumstances of our homeless.
 
Her well recognised enthusiasm, energy and application driving this and other efforts is great to have, for the impact of these problems on our city and our society cannot be underestimated.
 
I owe much to those who have demonstrated their faith in my ability to do the job.  I would not be here today without the strong support of the members and especially my close friends within the Liberal Party.  To them all and sincerely I say thank you.
 
To my friends outside of the party and to those who are here today, Julie, Simon, Wayne, Steve, I thank you all for your friendship and support and for your attendance.
 
To my mother, Milena, and my father, Michael, thank you for your guidance, your values and your love.  Because of you I am well equipped not only to appreciate the good things that happen in life, but also to manage the trials and tribulations we all face from time to time.
 
To my wonderful sister, Nadezda, of whom a brother could not wish more and who has more pride in me than I deserve, thank you.
 
But the full weight of my journey to this Chamber has been borne by my family, my wife, Moira, and children, Alexander and Olivia.  They more than any have made the sacrifices not only in the last few weeks, but in all the times before, which has now allowed me to accept the opportunity to serve the Ward of Toowong and our city of Brisbane.
 
To my wife and children, my mother, my father and my sister, I express my eternal gratitude.
 
Mr Chairman, I am conscious of the pending boundary changes and the upcoming Council elections.  I fought hard to win my preselection.  I will fight even harder to continue to serve my Ward.  I look forward to March 2008.  I look forward to playing my part in the team that will contribute to the return of Campbell NEWMAN as Lord Mayor and I look forward to seeing a majority of Liberal Councillors seated in this Chamber.
 
I thank the Chamber for its attention.