Every five years regional Queensland has the opportunity to stand and be counted as part of the national Census, this time round regional MPs are calling to make sure their population is registered.
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KAP Member for Mount Isa Rob Katter said his electorate which often suffers under-counting, needs to participate or risk missing out.
"At the last Census there was an under-count of 12 percent of the population," Mr Katter said.
"If we want appropriate representation and funding for our areas we need to make sure our residents are counted."
The regional MP said when it comes to planning and the allocation of services, funding and resources, the details collected during Census are what guides the process.
“It’s important to recognise that Census collects five years’ worth of information which will directly guide the future of our regional electorates," Mr Katter said.
"Our resources have to support both our local population and the pressure of FIFO workers, and itinerants in the riverbed, who are unfortunately not counted as locals, so accurate statistics are vital to support our argument for more funding."
“These anomalies in the population due to grey nomads, FIFO and shift workers are all the more reason to have this data to secure the resources we deserve," he said.
"This will allow a snapshot of regional Queensland as it stands today, help illustrate it current condition and assist the causes we have been fighting for.”
The compulsory survey is set to take place this evening to provide an up-to-date snapshot of the nation to provide assistance for future planning.
