Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is an interesting campaign at the moment involving one of the world’s best known board games—Monopoly. Hasbro, the company that will make the Australian Monopoly, will launch an updated version of the board game in June. The new board design will see the coveted blue-ribbon sites of Mayfair and Park Lane replaced by some of Australia’s most popular locations. I think the traditional Monopoly is a wonderful game and I hope that it continues to be available, but it is also a tremendous idea to invite Australians to vote for the locations that they want to be placed on the Monopoly board. Everyone is allowed to vote once a day. I must confess that I have been regularly voting for the Sunshine Coast and Australia Zoo. For a while, as far as Queensland was concerned, the Great Barrier Reef and the Sunshine Coast were vying for top position and then the Sunshine Coast pipped the Great Barrier Reef. It is interesting that the Gold Coast was a very poor third, right down the bottom of the list.

Gary Hardgrave (Moreton, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Hardgrave interjecting

Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Gold Coast is a wonderful place to go for a weekend, but I have to say that the Sunshine Coast is a tremendous place in which to live and bring up families. The Sunshine Coast, led by the iconic tourist attraction Australia Zoo, is battling certain other locations for prime spots on the board. I want to encourage all Sunshine Coast residents, and indeed all other residents, to vote for the Sunshine Coast and for Australia Zoo. This is a truly democratic process. Australians have the chance to cast their vote on the internet as to which regional cities get the best spots on the board. They can vote at the website www.monopoly.com.au. It is no secret to people that the Sunshine Coast is the best part of Australia to live in and it is only fitting that we should have the best position on the Monopoly board. We now have the opportunity to eject some has-beens from supplanting us on the new Australian board and make sure that we receive the recognition that the Sunshine Coast is certainly entitled to.

Other areas that have been nominated include the Great Barrier Reef, Byron Bay, Broken Hill, the Snowy Mountains, the Great Ocean Road, Phillip Island, Melbourne, the Barossa Valley, Flinders Ranges, Kalgoorlie, Broome, Alice Springs, Uluru, the Devil’s Marbles and more. While at least three locations from each state will be included on the new board, the numbers of votes will help to determine their position. I am pleased that, as of Monday this week, the Sunshine Coast was well ahead in the Queensland division of the campaign, with 30.5 per cent of votes. The Great Barrier Reef was second, with 21.1 per cent of votes. Longreach was third, with 18.6 per cent of votes. I am not quite sure where the Gold Coast was but it was somewhere further down the list.

Gary Hardgrave (Moreton, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sunnybank is going to have a late surge.

Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sunnybank certainly ought to be entitled to a place, particularly while you are the member. The member for Moreton has done a wonderful job since 1996 as the representative for that area, but I do want everyone to vote for the Sunshine Coast so that we get the best spot on the new Australian Monopoly board. I thank the House. (Time expired)