A SPECIAL economic case for the Far North will be put to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Treasurer Wayne Swan next week as the unemployment rate in Cairns rose to a record 13.8 per cent, the highest in Australia.

Member for Leichhardt Jim Turnour yesterday acknowledged that unemployment in Cairns had reached a "crisis" point and it was time for Canberra to act.

"I will be talking to the Prime Minister and the Treasurer next week and will look at ensuring that Cairns is given special consideration in future stimulus package funding," he said.

"A special effort needs to be put into this region and I will be banging on doors in Canberra."

In other aspects of the September job figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics:

* Seasonally adjusted the figure is 14.4 per cent.

* The estimated number of unemployed is 20,200.

* One in seven people are looking for work.

* People are leaving Cairns to look for work.

* The figure will continue to rise.

Mr Turnour said the Government would not allocate more money unless specific areas were identified.

"We really need to identify what can be done rather than pour more money into the economy," he said.

Mr Turnour said a lot of the stimulus projects had yet to start but would begin soon and create jobs.

He said he would continue to lobby to make it easier for international airlines to fly into Cairns and to have Air Services Australia charges reduced at Cairns airport to help the tourism industry.

State Member for Cairns Desley Boyle said she suspected the 13.8 per cent was not a true figure of the real situation.

"People are leaving Cairns to search for work and we are losing population," she said.

Ms Boyle said she was "worried and frustrated" that the State Government could not do anything in the short term to create 400-500 jobs.

"If Premier Anna Bligh, Treasurer Andrew Fraser and Desley Boyle could, we would do it, but it isn’t that easy," she said.

She said there were long-term job creating projects but nothing in the short term.

Ms Boyle said most of the jobs were being lost in the private sector while jobs growth in the public sector had actually increased.

Cairns Chamber of Commerce president Jeremy Blockey said it was time for the Federal Government to wind up stimulus package funding in metropolitan areas which were recovering and spend more of it in regional areas such as Cairns.

"The time is past talking about a local employment co-ordinator and Centrelink 1300 numbers and provide some very specific target measures to assist this region," he said.

Mr Blockey said the Government needed to change the regulations to allow more international carriers to fly into Cairns and then on to other capital cities and to cut the air services charges at the city’s airport.

"It will be of no cost to the Government and a win-win situation for everybody," he said. Advance Cairns chairman Russell Beer said Cairns deserved special attention.

"We need the Government’s help. In the past we preferred to do it ourselves but our two major industries of tourism and construction are hurting badly," he said.

Herron Todd White research director Rick Carr said the figure was grim.

He said the effects of the collapse of Hedley and CMC construction companies and the loss of jobs at shipbuilders NQEA-Aimtek were starting to flow through.

"Still, business confidence is improving. We are still seeing job advertisements but there are just not enough job advertisements to soak up the job losses," he said.

Meanwhile, Townsville’s unemployment rate is 5 per cent, the Gold Coast’s 6.4, the Sunshine Coast’s 7 per cent and Brisbane’s 3.6 per cent.

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