John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Charities are an outward demonstration of the compassion in a society. No-one wants to rely on the charity of others, but when times get tough it is wonderful to know that there are selfless people out there offering a hand to those in need. And there have recently been more and more people who need that hand. The COVID pandemic has been accompanied by an economic downturn the like of which we haven't seen for over a decade. Indeed, judging by some of the metrics we are in an economic malaise worse than any since the Great Depression. As the queues snaked around the block outside Centrelink offices back in March, the number of people dependent not only on the government but on their family, neighbours and friends rose too.

With this need came the generosity of Australians to meet it. I have been fortunate to see this generosity personally. Early on in the health crisis, Parramatta Women's Shelter reached out to ask if they could use our offices as a drop-off point for food donations. I was more than happy to offer this, and over the past two months I've been absolutely astounded by the size and number of donations we've received from generous locals. When times get tough, it is abundantly clear that Australians don't leave people behind.

In Bennelong, we're so lucky to have a large number of wonderful charities that offer services and empathy across our community. They are doing extraordinary work but are stretched to their limit right now. As they have said to me, any new person they have to help is in addition to those they are already helping. The pie needs to be cut more finely, but the pie does not necessarily get bigger. That is why the government has needed to step up and help the sector, with fantastic news in the recent announcement of an additional $200 million as part of a new community support package to help vulnerable Australians who have been impacted by coronavirus. Bennelong has been fortunate enough to share in total additional funding of $959,000 over this year to support the work of these and other community organisations. The government is working closely with these groups, providing them with the additional support and finance they require to support our most vulnerable. Our excellent charities—including Christian Community Aid; North Ride Community Aid; and CatholicCare, Diocese of Broken Bay—are all receiving their share of this increase and using it to continue their wonderful work helping those who need it most.

I've also heard from Stryder, our wonderful local mobility volunteers, who are a critical service for sectors of the community that would otherwise not have the ability to get around. They have received word of a successful application for a 2020 Commonwealth volunteer grant. This will allow them to add to the generosity of their donors and, hopefully, grow their volunteer base. I'm looking forward to visiting these guys as soon as the COVID virus allows.

We really can't thank our local charities enough at this time. The work effort, dedication and resourcefulness that they have put into our communities are beyond what we could ever comprehend. Their successes are testament to the thousands of regular people in our community who are giving their time and care to those who desperately need help. We have strong communities that rally together in the face of an uncertain and dangerous future. It is because of our community spirit that we will endure this crisis and come out stronger on the other side. I often claim that Bennelong is the capital of innovation. We're also in the running for top orders for generosity and kindness.

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