Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

He is a good man, isn’t he? Amber and Isabell talked about good and bad aid and concluded that microcredit is an excellent form of aid. Students Samantha Royce, Justine Glover and teacher Mr Grant Nichol from Upwey High School also actively participated in group discussions and debate.

I was delighted to be able to inform the forum of aid initiatives the government has recently announced to make poverty history. Overall, this was a fantastic occasion. Again I congratulate World Vision VGen on their great work and their participation. The way they have dealt with me has been exceptional. They are very young, passionate people—very persuasive too. I congratulate all those participants from all the schools and the teachers on making this a fantastic day.

I have made many speeches now on Make Poverty History and I fully support the MDGs. I congratulate our federal government on the recent announcement which the Treasurer made in South Africa. Australia made a commitment of $136 million to the World Bank to relieve debts of some of the world’s poorest countries. This payment was in addition to the $12 million which Australia has already provided to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund for debt relief. Again, this is a big issue and I congratulate all those young people involved. They have my full support. Keep up the great work.

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