Latest news with #CityOfMoretonBay
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Queensland council blocked from evicting homeless sleeping in tents at city park
Queensland's supreme court has temporarily ordered a council not to evict homeless residents from sleeping in a park, warning those sleeping rough faced 'serious risk of harm' if denied shelter. Justice Paul Smith issued the injunction on Friday as part of an ongoing human rights challenge by 11 residents of Goodfellows Road, a park in Kallangur. It prevents the City of Moreton Bay from evicting anyone from the park while an application challenging the council's homelessness policies continues. 'If shelter was to be taken away, the applicants would be placed at serious risk of harm from being exposed to the elements,' Smith said. sign up: au breaking news email The council changed its local laws to ban homelessness in February. In April, it started evicting residents of several homeless shelters with the aid of police, council rangers, a bulldozer and an excavator. Law firms Hall & Wilcox and Basic Rights Queensland challenged the practice under Queensland's Human Rights Act. Many of the residents of Goodfellows Road previously resided in Eddie Hyland Park in Lawnton, before they were moved on from there in April. They were then issued notices ordering them to move on from the new park in June. Smith said he was persuaded that there was a prima facie case suggesting the council had failed to make proper consideration of potential breaches of the Human Rights Act before enacting its new local laws. Under Queensland law, human rights may be limited by government action but only after consideration and where doing so is proportionate. 'I find there is a reasonable argument on the part of the applicants that the relevant decisions infringe these particular rights and insufficient considerations given to those rights before the decisions were made,' he said. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Smith found the council would be harmed less by his granting the injunction than those sleeping rough would be if he did not grant it. 'I can understand that some of the community might complain about homeless people living in their midst in tents,' he said. 'On the other hand, the Human Rights Act provides protections to all citizens, including the homeless, and I consider it to be wrong not to protect vulnerable applicants from the potential loss of their homes in the midst of winter. 'There is a risk in my mind that the applicants may lose their homes'. The council's lawyer, Scott McCleod, argued that the City of Moreton Bay had promised in correspondence to the court not to enforce the notices. However, Smith said it had not made a formal undertaking to allow the applicants to stay. Barrister Matthew Hickey, acting for the applicants, argued they were vulnerable people who had nowhere else to go if evicted again. Under the order, the council is still permitted to enforce local laws intended to ensure public health and safety that existed before it banned homelessness. The injunction will apply until the case is heard in full in November. The court heard the government may request a later date.
ABC News
6 days ago
- Climate
- ABC News
Scattered showers with possible small hail on the horizon for South-East Queensland
The potential for more small hail is on the horizon for South-East Queensland on Thursday, prompting one council to issue an alert to residents. The City of Moreton Bay issued the 'Stay Informed' alert to its residents via SMS on Wednesday, advising of an increased risk of severe weather, including the likelihood of hail. However, the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said the risk of hail was minimal. "[We're] forecasting just small hailstones, nothing big or damaging, and fairly spread apart as well," senior meteorologist Angus Hines said. He said the areas potentially at risk of hail stretched from the eastern downs around Dalby, Toowoomba and Warwick, to the Gold Coast and southern Capricornia, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. "It's not a high-end risk and I think most people won't see any hail at all," Mr Hines said. On Wednesday afternoon, BOM meteorologist Daniel Hayes noted there had been "fingernail-sized" hail confirmed at Yarrabilba in Logan. He said there were also storms passing over Gympie and the Sunshine Coast's Glasshouse Mountains that had the potential to deliver very small hail. A City of Moreton Bay spokesperson said the council received daily weather forecasts from a professional meteorological service, which is what its severe weather notifications were based on. "The forecast for the city indicated that storm activity on Thursday is likely to produce hail, which may be small in size but has the potential to result in large accumulations," they said. "Noting the experience of residents and businesses in and around Morayfield when significant impacts were experienced from large accumulations of small hail in early October 2024, City of Moreton Bay decided to provide residents with advanced warning of the potential." While hail and thunderstorms were normally associated with summer and warmer weather, Mr Hines said it could happen any time of the year. Showers are forecast around the south east, including Brisbane, on Thursday, along with the "outside chance" of a thunderstorm. In the north and west of Queensland, Mr Hines said Thursday would be "pretty fine". "Lots of sunshine, reasonable temperatures, pretty much bang on average [temperatures] for this time of year," he said. Mr Hines said clear and dry conditions were expected to dominate much of the state over the weekend. "Heading into Friday and the weekend, those last showers across the south east pull away from the country out onto the water, and we head into a fine weather pattern statewide," he said. "Everywhere should see some sunshine during Friday and Saturday." Mr Hines said the fine weather would continue into next week. "Early next week, no big rain or anything like that, but we are seeing a change in wind direction, which is going to bring some cooler temperatures on Monday and Tuesday, in particular, so a return of those cold nights and cold mornings across the state."
The Guardian
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Queensland police issue eviction notices to 'tent city' residents in homelessness crackdown
Three Queensland councils have begun crackdowns on homeless camps across the state's south-east. Residents of tent cities in Brisbane's Musgrave Park and Carey Park on the Gold Coast are facing eviction after being issued notices this week, while people in Morton Bay's Eddie Hyland Park were cleared out for the third time in a month. The three local governments – the Brisbane city council, the City of Moreton Bay and the Gold Coast city council – all deny coordination between them
