FNQ Regional Plan & Infrastructure Plan

The Queensland Government has released the final Far North Queensland Regional Plan 2026 — and Palm Cove Alliance has reviewed it carefully against the submission we lodged in January 2026

Here's what you need to know.

A SIGNIFICANT OUTCOME FOR PALM COVE / NORTHERN BEACHES

The final plan includes a significant new update that directly reflects the core recommendation of our submission.

Strategy 1.11 (Cairns LGA) now states:

"Enhance the role and function of tourism villages along the Northern Beaches by ensuring that new development protects and enhances the destination performance."

This language did not exist in the draft plan. It is now statutory policy — meaning it must be considered in the assessment of any new development in Palm Cove and other Northern Beaches locations. If a development proposal cannot demonstrate that it protects and enhances these destinations' performance, it conflicts with the regional plan.

 WHAT ELSE CHANGED?

The final plan also:

• Explicitly names the Cairns northern beaches as a key driver of the tourism economy (new addition to the Cairns narrative)

• Expands tourism sector recognition to all eight LGAs across FNQ — not just Cairns as in the draft

• Adds new infrastructure policy language supporting tourism transport routes and accessibility

 WHERE THE JOB ISN'T FINISHED

We're pleased with this outcome, but we want to be honest with our community about what wasn't achieved.

Our submission called for Palm Cove to be formally mapped as a Strategic Tourism Precinct — a spatial designation that would give planning decisions about our village a clear, enforceable framework equivalent to the protections that exist for agricultural land.

That precinct overlay was not adopted in the final plan. It remains our most important ongoing advocacy objective.

We also note that the plan still encourages infill development across the northern beaches, including Palm Cove. The good news: Strategy 1.11 now requires any such development to prove it supports our tourism village character — not erodes it. That's a meaningful qualification that didn't exist before.

 WHAT COMES NEXT?

The next stage is the review of the Cairns Regional Council Planning Scheme. This is where Strategy 1.11 becomes the foundation — we will be pushing for:

• Local Tourism Precinct provisions for Palm Cove

• Character and height overlays protecting village scale and amenity

• Palm Cove's priority infrastructure projects formally recognised

Palm Cove Alliance will continue to advocate, and we'll keep our community informed every step of the way.

Thank you to everyone who has supported this work. Our submission, the supporting context paper, and our full analysis of the final plan are available on our website.