Stuart Henry (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to recognise the efforts of some outstanding young people in my electorate of Hasluck, and I would like to acknowledge the presence of three very special young people in the House tonight. These students have been chosen as the Hasluck Leadership Award winners for 2007. They are: Arielle Cooper, from La Salle College, Midland; Jarrod Lomas, from Lumen Christi College, Gosnells; and Matthew French, from Kalamunda Senior High School. I welcome them to Canberra, to Parliament House and to the House of Representatives. As the member for Hasluck, I wanted to provide an opportunity for high school students to better understand the parliamentary process and our system of democracy, to see firsthand our national capital and to discover national politics in an environment in which they are free to form their own impressions. This led to the establishment of the Hasluck Leadership Award, with the kind permission of the Hasluck family. Sir Paul and Dame Alexandra Hasluck are both distinguished Australians and much-respected Western Australians. Sir Paul Hasluck, a well-respected politician, was the first Western Australian-born Governor-General. He commenced his education at Guildford Primary School in my electorate. His wife, Dame Alexandra, was a distinguished writer and historian.

It is important for young people to appreciate the democratic principles and institutions which are the foundation of our society, and I believe that promoting and encouraging leadership qualities in our youth is an important task for all of us. The Hasluck Leadership Award satisfies both of these objectives, and I am proud to contribute to such a worthwhile endeavour. I thank those of my staff and others from my electorate who have made a significant contribution to it. I am pleased with the fantastic outcomes this award has provided to date. It has clearly demonstrated to the electorate of Hasluck how talented, how committed, how responsible and how vibrant so many of our young Australians are in our community and in our schools. There are 12 high schools located within the electorate of Hasluck and each school is asked to nominate one year 11 student who most closely matches the leadership criteria set out by the award.

I am very pleased to name and recognise each of these talented students who were nominated by their schools this year for the 2007 Hasluck Leadership Award. They are: Sarah Foster, from Lesmurdie Senior High School; Tom Wale, from Guilford Grammar School; Philip Beckett, from Governor Stirling Senior High School; Marina Maclean, from Thornlie Senior High School; Matthew French, from Kalamunda Senior High School; Ariell Cooper, from La Salle College; Kirsten Kamperman, from St Brigids College, Lesmurdie; Jarrod Lomas, from Lumen Christi College; Jessica Allerdrige, from Southern River College; and Joshua Oorshot, from Mazenod College.

This year the assessment of each of the nominees was carried out by a panel of four drawn from the Hasluck community. The members of the panel were Helen Dullard, Pat Morris, Andy Farrant and Scott Hollier. I would like to recognise and commend each of them on their contribution to this year’s awards. Councillor Helen Dullard is the Chief Executive Officer of the Hills Community Support Group. She is also a councillor and Deputy President of the Shire of Mundaring. Councillor Pat Morris is the first ever female Mayor of the City of Gosnells. She has served that city very well for over 20 years, including 10 years as mayor. Two years ago Pat was bestowed the title of Honorary Freeman of the City of Gosnells in light of her outstanding and meritorious services to the community throughout the past 20 years. Mr Andy Farrant is the Chief Executive Officer of Country Arts WA, which is the leading regional arts organisation in WA. He has been instrumental in bringing forward and meeting the needs and aspirations of country communities in terms of their cultural pursuits. Dr Scott Hollier is a very special person. He was the chair of this year’s selection panel. He is legally blind. He is the Principal Consultant, Corporate Development and Innovation, at the Association for the Blind of Western Australia. He is a published author and recently completed a PhD thesis entitled The Disability Divide. I would also like to thank the Minister for Education, Science and Training, the Hon. Julie Bishop MP. She kindly agreed to officiate at the awards presentation night, which was very well attended by parents, family, friends and representatives from each of the high schools. I thank them all, along with our generous sponsors, for their wonderful support.