Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I have great pleasure in joining the member for Canberra, who was the leader of this delegation to Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian territories in October and November of last year, in this debate. As the member for Canberra outlined in her comments, the object of the delegation was to renew and strengthen our relationships with these countries. It is a very important part of the world, and I believe that we as a delegation were well received and welcomed wherever we went. It was important for us as a delegation to gain an understanding of the relationship between Australia and Egypt and Israel and to gain an understanding of the issues surrounding the Palestinian territories, particularly Gaza. There were also domestic issues that were important for us to gain an understanding of, particularly, for me, in Egypt, a very large, important and influential Arab state.

The commemorative activities that we participated in as an Australian parliamentary delegation were also important. The first commemoration was in Egypt, regarding the Second World War Battle of El Alamein. In 1942, Australians troops were pivotal in beating Rommel and the Afrika Korps. We went to the Commonwealth war graves at El Alamein and, as the sun went down, it reminded us all of how our Australian troops, along with other Allied forces, suffered in a most difficult semidesert environment. As a former veterans’ affairs minister, I was interested to visit the 9th Division memorial just outside the Commonwealth war graves at El Alamein, which has only recently been established. It recognises the 9th Division of the Australian Army and its pivotal role in the Battle of El Alamein.

In Israel it was wonderful to visit the Park of the Australian Soldier at Be’er Sheva, which was established last year, and to talk to the local people about the sense of pride that they have in that park and the peace and serenity that it provides for the people of Be’er Sheva, particularly as some rockets from Gaza had recently landed in Be’er Sheva. The leader of the delegation, the member for Canberra, laid a wreath at Be’er Sheva and I had the great honour of reciting the ode, which is something I will never forget. We all took time during the minute’s silence to reflect on the sacrifice that was made by Australians for peace and the way of life that we have in this country today.

In the battle for Be’er Sheva, Australia’s 4th Light Horse made a historic charge which still stands as the last successful ‘cavalry’ charge in history, although they were called the Australian Mounted Infantry. It was typical of how the Australian Light Horse, and the men and women in the Australian Defence Force even today, put convention aside. They did not dismount in that charge towards the wells of Be’er Sheva but just kept going. That was why they succeeded in gaining those wells, which were so important for water for the horses and the troops. They then went on, through Be’er Sheva, up into Damascus.

I have strayed a little from where I wanted to go in my limited time. We had a discussion in Egypt about Australia’s relationship with Egypt and the export of Australian wheat to Egypt. A pivotal part and a cornerstone of our relationship to Egypt are our wheat exports. The Egyptian representatives highlighted to us the importance of wheat in feeding their population and complained to us that the price of wheat this year was a little high. I said, ‘That’s the world market,’ but was able to confirm, at least, the prospect of a very good harvest. We also discussed the live export of cattle, which was suspended on 26 February 2006 and recommenced by Minister Burke in 2008. It was great to visit the feedlot and see Halal cattle being processed in accordance with our regulations. (Time expired)

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