Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Hansard source

Allow me to take this opportunity, Madam Speaker, to congratulate you upon your election to high office. I also thank the former Prime Minister, the Hon. Member for Griffith, for giving me his spot in the adjournment so that I am able to again raise the importance of the parliamentary Day for Daniel, which this year will be held tomorrow. For the first time, Bruce and Denise Morecombe, the parents of Daniel, who disappeared on 7 December 2003, will be present in the Speaker's Gallery. I ask all honourable members to wear an item of red to indicate their support for the important principle of child safety in Australia in 2012.

I had expected to be Speaker and presiding over the parliamentary Day for Daniel and this year I wrote as Speaker to all presiding officers of all houses of all parliaments in Australia and also to the Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives to try to encourage the spread of the message of child safety to be spread Australia and around Australasia. My intention was that we would endeavour to spread this message even further internationally in future years.

On 7 December 2003, every parent's nightmare came true for Bruce and Denise Morecombe when their son Daniel, who had gone to do Christmas shopping for his family, failed to return home. Daniel was an identical twin. Since that time Bruce and Denise have put their own grief aside and devoted their lives to making sure that as many Australian parents as possible do not suffer a similar situation.

Australia, in 2012, is supposed to be a civilised country. Sadly, many children are lost each year, and the message that Bruce and Denise have sent out to the community is that they have been prepared to put their own grief aside in the interests of making sure that Australian children do not suffer the sad fate that their son Daniel suffered. Daniel's bones and remains have now been discovered. Sadly, as yet, they have not been released to the family for a burial, and this is an extraordinarily long time given the fact that DNA testing has indicated that the remains that have been discovered are in fact those of Daniel Morcombe.

Bruce and Denise set up the Daniel Morcombe Foundation, and the minister for that area, Mr Garrett, has been prepared to meet with them. I also commend the Leader of the Opposition and the shadow minister for education for their preparedness to talk with the Morcombes.

But what is really important and different is the fact that the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum has now been set up and the first stage of the curriculum, Prep to Year 2 (Early Years Phase), is now available. The Middle Years (Year 3 to Year 6) and Junior Secondary (Year 7 to Year 9) phases will follow later on. What has been tremendous is that levels of government around Australia, regardless of the political allegiance of those governments, have been prepared to embrace the important message of child safety.

If Australia is in fact the civilised nation we believe it is, I think it is really important that all of us indicate our support for child safety. Most of us are privileged to be parents—I know you are, Madam Speaker, as are many members of this House. But whether or not we are parents I think it is important tomorrow, on the parliamentary day for Daniel, for all of us to wear an item of red to indicate our individual personal support for child safety in Australia in 2012. Last year we had a sea of red in the House of Representatives, and I am hoping that tomorrow we will replicate that and that all of us will either acquire an item from the Daniel Morcombe Foundation or will at least wear an item of red to make sure that we indicate our support for this very important principle.

See this speech in context