Kay Elson (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Recently I was part of an official delegation, along with the Speaker of the House, to Canada and Germany. In the week before the delegation commenced, I decided that I would take the opportunity to conduct a study tour of the United States to examine two crucial issues that I have been, and will continue to be, actively involved in: water management and infrastructure, and planning and counselling support services for the families of those suffering from drug addiction. I knew that both of these issues had been dealt with on a much larger scale and over a longer period of time in the US than they have been here, largely due to the size of their population. I learned some very interesting things which will help inform my continuing contribution to these two issues. I will be outlining my findings more comprehensively in my official report, and I shall table that in this place shortly.

I want to spend a few minutes today talking about America and the American people. Having never visited the US, I did not know what to expect. A lot of people like to be critical and derogatory about the US as the world’s most powerful nation, but I personally have always respected and supported the close ties our two nations share. That respect and support have been greatly strengthened by my visit. I was amazed by the warmth of the American people, how friendly and helpful everyone is, their pride, and the way in which they go about their daily lives. It was an incredible experience for me. I have to wonder whether those who like to be so critical of US culture and the US as a nation have ever taken the time to visit it and see firsthand what a diverse and awe-inspiring nation it is.

I want to say thank you to the many people who helped to make my study tour so informative, interesting and enjoyable. I sincerely thank Andrea Klein and Monya Hudsick, from an organisation called Meridian International. My staff contacted them with a view to contracting their services to help with organising appointments and so forth. We heard that they were the best in the business and they certainly proved to be. In the end, we were unable to contract their services as this was not covered under the study tour budget, but they were incredibly helpful and offered their services to me without cost. I would thoroughly recommend them to any minister, department or organisation that might be planning a delegation to the US. Thank you to Andrea and Monya for their kindness in assisting me to contact so many incredible people.

I would also like to thank John Gordon and his lovely wife, Annette, from the Los Angeles Republican Coalition, who went out of their way to make me feel welcome and arranged a special speaking engagement for me at the Hollywood Congress of Republicans. The evening was fantastic—thanks to the president of the congress, Mark Vafiades—and again, we met some incredible, enthusiastic and energetic people who have the utmost respect for Australians. One of the things I loved about the US was how passionate people are about their politics. Here in Australia we tend to take a fairly relaxed approach, as we do with most things, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It was wonderful, for example, to attend an event at George Washington University in Washington and to see many hundreds of young people who were so enthusiastic about the role of politics and who wanted to be involved. I want to thank Sergio Gor, Political Director for the College of Republicans at George Washington University, for being so hospitable on such a busy night.

There were so many professional people who gave their time to help enhance my study. I want to particularly mention Melissa Trammell from the Las Vegas Valley Water District of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, who was a delightful person and spent a lot of time ensuring we met with the right people, including a tour of the incredible Springs Preserve Eco-project; Bob Walsh, from the Bureau of Reclamation, who gave us an informative tour of the Hoover Dam and a great discussion on many of the water management problems, which are very similar to the state that I live in; Jerry Fischer from the Department of Agriculture; Richard Ives from the Bureau of Reclamation in Washington; Adam Englander from the Las Vegas Recovery Centre; and Peter Turchiano from the Hazelden Drug Rehabilitation Centre in New York. There were many more people and groups that I had contact with but I do not have the time to list them all here today. I would also like to thank Elizabeth Willis and all of the friendly staff at the Australian Embassy in Washington, who were absolutely fantastic.

Following my trip to the US, I want to reaffirm how important our close ties with the American people are and how much I respect and admire their great nation. As proud Australians, we all know how fortunate we are to live in this amazing nation, but there is also much we can do to learn from the US. They certainly run a very close second as one of the greatest countries in the world.