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

I start my speech on the address-in-reply by congratulating the member for Charlton and all the new members of parliament. It is truly a great honour to be elected to this place. I also congratulate you, Mr Speaker, on your elevation. It is a great honour for you. I know you personally and I know your integrity. I also rise today in this new parliament delighted to have been re-elected as the representative for the seat of La Trobe. My first task is to thank the voters in La Trobe for re-electing me and giving me the honour and privilege of being the federal member for La Trobe. It is a great honour for me. I again thank my supporters and all those who voted for me for their support.

I am determined to work harder than ever before, to ensure that the newly elected Rudd Labor government keeps to its promises in La Trobe. I recognise that in La Trobe a number of people voted for the Liberal Party for the first time and gave me personal recognition from my position on issues such as supporting the Kyoto protocol, opposing the pulp mill in Tasmania and opposing nuclear reactors. The Liberal Party have learnt a lot from this election and I know we will go into the future learning from our mistakes.

There are many people that I would like to express my thanks to for their dedication to my campaign and for their tireless commitment to ensuring my re-election. It takes a team effort and I would not be here today without support from a number of people. First of all, I must thank my parents, Bob and Jan. They are not traditional Liberal supporters, but they have actually come on board. It is really good to see my parents do that. I thank them, because, as a member of parliament, it is actually your family who cop a fair bit of the burden for your decisions and your policies. I also have to get the name of my dog, Moejoe, into Hansard. Moejoe was a great support for me after hours.

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