WATT A BOM

ANGIE BELL MP

SHADOW MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

SHADOW MINISTER FOR YOUTH

FEDERAL MEMBER FOR MONCRIEFF

MEDIA STATEMENT

29 October 2025

WATT A BOM

Queenslanders are known for their resilience, especially when damaging and unpredictable weather hits our great state.

That’s why it’s questionable timing for the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) to launch a brand-new website a week before the start of storm season.

It’s worth noting, the Minister for the Environment, that oversees this agency, is a Queenslander and he should know better than anyone that the worst possible time for this website transition was last week.

I’ve heard from my colleagues, constituents and local communities that they felt unprepared due to the changes made to the BOM’s $4.1 million new website.

Keeping up with the latest innovation and modernisation is, of course welcome and needed in the digital age, but what isn’t welcome is the removal of easy to use and recognisable functionality features.

We know that during storm season preparedness is paramount and when preparedness is comprised, the worst can and does happen.

But that preparedness depends on the readily and accessible information available to us.

These new website changes are making it harder to access information, which is unacceptable.

[ENDS]