Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I began my contribution to the address-in-reply debate just before question time last Thursday and I will continue where I left off. I referred to the emergency situation in many communities in Queensland and particularly the great local leadership that is being shown by local communities and councils in areas where the floods have occurred. I said that in Charleville the mayor was working with his councillors and the local SES—in many cases these volunteer SES people are council workers—and I stressed the importance of local government at a local level. Unfortunately, what we are going to see—and we may already have witnessed this in Queensland—is an arrogant state Labor government that is prepared to trample on democracy in Queensland and is not prepared to listen to the results of the plebiscite that was funded by the previous coalition government in Canberra. We are going to see the forcing of amalgamation of councils against the will of the people and against an overwhelming no vote on amalgamation in so many local council areas.

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members opposite perhaps do not want to listen, but I ask them to consider the examples that I put forward. Emerald has had unprecedented rain recently. Over 3,000 people have been displaced from their homes because of the emergency that arose with flooding in that area. Who was at the forefront of the organisation of the safe movement of people and their goods and chattels from their homes? It was the local council, led by local leadership—because the council is local. We did not hear much about the Bauhinia Shire Council, but that is the neighbouring shire in Central Queensland. It is suffering just as much devastation from the flooding and the water coming over the Fairbairn Dam—as we saw on television and heard on the radio in Emerald. Once again, at a time of national emergency, local leadership and the local council were leading the community and being there—because they are the local council.

On 15 March this year we are going to see the amalgamation of those shires. The local government elections will be held on that date and the councils will be forced together. The Bauhinia Shire will lose its CEO and its representation at a local level. Should we have another emergency—which is inevitable—the local councils, the local representatives in those communities, will not be able to show leadership in times of emergency. The headquarters will be in Emerald, some 60 kilometres away. Jericho Shire is about 150 kilometres away. It has been forced to amalgamate with the Barcaldine Shire Council. They have had emergencies because of the flooding that is occurring in Central Queensland and have been able to respond. The local people in the region have been moved safely out of their homes because a local council understands their needs. The equipment is available locally and the local council area is able to respond and ensure the safety of its residents. The headquarters of Jericho Shire will move to Barcaldine, as will the Aramac Shire. Aramac Shire is about 150 kilometres north of Barcaldine. It is going to be forced to amalgamate by an arrogant Labor government in Queensland that did not listen to the people of Queensland in the recent plebiscite. I think in the Aramac Shire the plebiscite recorded a 96 per cent no vote on the stupidity of forcing amalgamation against the will of the people. Eighteen months ago in Aramac a minicyclone went through the town. Many houses were unroofed. Working families were without a roof on their house. Who dealt with that situation immediately? It was the local council—a mayor, councillors and workers of the council. In so many of these smaller communities the workers are also the SES, the local volunteer State Emergency Service people. That council will be forced to amalgamate with the Barcaldine Shire Council, along with the Jericho Shire Council. We are going to lose all this local leadership has been so important and effective and that has been with these communities for more than 100 years.

We heard during the election campaign that the present Prime Minister was very concerned about this matter. I welcome the member for Flynn. I know he cannot interject and this may be an unfair attack on him—he has not made his maiden speech—but we saw these great advertisements in Emerald in the Courier-Mail saying that Kevin Rudd, the member for Griffith and current Prime Minister—he was Leader of the Opposition at the time—did not like it; he thought it was dreadful and he said so. He went to see Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensland. We thought: ‘Here’s a breakthrough. He’ll be able to convince Anna Bligh. He’s running for the office of Prime Minister of this country; he’ll have some influence over the Labor Party in Queensland. After all, he is a Queenslander.’ Of course, the people of the electorate of Flynn thought: ‘Okay, perhaps we should vote for the Labor Party because they will listen. They’ll listen to the plebiscite results.’ In the shire of Aramac, 96 per cent of people said, ‘No, we do not want this madness to occur in our community.’ But where is the Prime Minister on this now that he is the Prime Minister? He is nowhere to be seen. He is silent on the issue. Against the will of the people he is forcing this madness of amalgamation of shires with no net benefit to the community.

Local government is more than just roads, rubbish and rates. In these country shires it is not only about the leadership they have shown in times of national emergency; the council workers in some of these towns are also the volunteer SES people and the volunteer fire men and women. So, when there is a fire in the town, who comes to the fore? The local council workers. If you take the council out of the town and put the central office 100 kilometres away, what is going to happen in those communities where you do not have those volunteers any longer and you have to respond to a fire or another emergency? Some of these councils in these areas in rural Queensland also provide childcare facilities; they are also the local undertaker. I will never forget the big rally that we had in the now electorate of Flynn. In Barcaldine last year a lady from one of the western shires came up to me and told me she was very upset, as most Queenslanders still are, at this forced amalgamation. She said, ‘Who’s going to bury me when we don’t have a local council in the area?’—because they are also the local undertakers. So councils are more than roads, rates and rubbish.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I think they voted Labor, didn’t they?

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I hear the other side interjecting, but these are members of parliament, recently elected, who are in safe Labor seats and live in metropolitan Australia and obviously take a very citycentric view of the needs of rural and regional Australia.

We heard the Prime Minister, prior to his being elected Prime Minister, say: ‘I’m going to be a Prime Minister for all Australians.’ I am sure the member for Flynn, possibly in his maiden speech when he makes it in this House, will get up and say, ‘I’ve been to see the Prime Minister and I have urged him to go and see Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensland, before 15 March and say, “Call off this local government election because it is going to hurt me in my own constituency of Flynn.”’ I urge him to do so and I will be right behind him, as will be the majority of those councillors in Queensland who have said they would like to have an opportunity to decide and have input into the size, shape and sustainability of their local council. They are not opposed to some form of amalgamation or sharing of services between councils. They are very happy to do that, but they want to have a say in how it occurs, the size that they could manage and the shape that it should be, rather than this madness that we have in Queensland. All I say to the Prime Minister is: ‘Listen to the people of Queensland. Use your influence and authority as the Prime Minister to stop this madness in Queensland before it is too late.’ What we have seen is this Labor government demonstrating that it is uncaring, ignorant and arrogant when it comes to the situation of local government elections and the forced amalgamation in Queensland.

I want to talk a bit about the issue of economic management. We have heard a lot from the Treasurer and the Minister for Finance and Deregulation that they believe there has to be pain in the community and pain for working families because there is this inflation bubble that is coming at us all. I say to the Treasurer, to the finance minister and to the Prime Minister, that I well remember the pain that the Labor Party last inflicted on working families in Australia when Paul Keating, the Labor Treasurer at the time, said, ‘This is the recession we had to have.’ That is the sort of pain that the Labor Party knows—‘this is the recession we had to have.’ What working family will ever forget the interest rates that were inflicted by a previous Labor government? Let us look at the comparison between the numbers that the Labor Party inherited from the good economic management of the coalition when we were on the Treasury benches and what we inherited when we came to government in 1996. Let us look at the current inflation rate as opposed to the inflation rate in 1996. Inflation in 1996 was 3.7 per cent; today it is 2.96 per cent. That is what they inherited: a better inflation number than when we came to government.

Let us look at the current unemployment rate—another economic measure of importance for us all. When we came to government in March 1996, unemployment was 8.2 per cent; today it is 4.1 per cent. I will never forget the spectacle as, prior to the 1996 election, I was going to high school speech days and looking at all those young Australians leaving school for the first time with the hope of a job or of going on to further education. Youth unemployment when we came to government was 30 per cent. In other words, in 1996 the prospect for 30 per cent of young people was to join a dole queue. Today we do not have enough young people to fill the job opportunities that are out there. That is what we inherited when we came to government in 1996 as opposed to what the Labor Party—Kevin Rudd, the Treasurer and the finance minister—have inherited from the good economic management under a coalition government.

The Treasurer and the Prime Minister are now trying to blame the US subprime market as part of the problem. I have news for the government: we went through the SARS crisis, and we managed the economy—we continued to grow it. We went through the 9-11 period, when thousands of people worldwide in tourism, the finance market and the aviation industry lost their jobs. We continued to manage the economy well. We went through the Asian meltdown, and we continued to manage the economy well and deliver budget surplus after budget surplus. When we came to government in 1996 we had a $96 billion deficit that we had to deal with. The Labor Party, the new Prime Minister and the new Treasurer—what did they inherit? No debt and $60 billion in savings that is putting downward pressure on interest rates.

So when they come into this place or do media conferences and say, ‘We’ve got to have pain,’ I ask the Treasurer and I ask the Prime Minister: do you want to inflict pain on working families like you did when Paul Keating said that this country must have a recession, and we saw a million people out of work? Is this the sort of pain we are going to see because they have an inability and a lack of experience to manage this complex economy? Don’t they want the challenge? Are they shifting the blame to the coalition for our economic management? Is that what they are doing? Are they shifting the blame because they do not know how to handle it? I rather liked the cartoon the other day of the Treasurer standing there with half-a-dozen levers in front of him and not knowing which one to pull. I think that is what we are seeing—this blame game where it is always someone else’s problem. They were elected on 24 November; they have the power to make sure that the economy continues to grow, that interest rates are kept low and, importantly, that unemployment is kept low. But will they take it up? Will they deliver? It is a great challenge. It looks like the blame game is going to continue. It is always going to be our problem. Notwithstanding the state of the economy that we delivered to the Labor Party, they do not appear to want to have that responsibility because they do not know how to handle it.

Another economic measure of the real strength of the economy and our economic management is real wages growth whilst we were in government as compared with the period when the Labor Party were in government, from 1983 to 1996. Real wages growth for working families in that 13 years of ‘hard Labor’ in this country was minus 0.2 per cent. Yet under our term in government real wages growth over the 11-year period from 1996 to 2007 was 16.4 per cent. That meant families were better off, working people were better off and people were sharing the wealth of the country and getting more reward for their hard work and their effort. Compare that with 13 years of ‘hard Labor’; there was no real wages growth in that 13 years. That is another measure of the competence of the coalition government as compared to the incompetence of the Labor government when it comes to economic management.

Let us also see how we shared the benefits with people on fixed pensions. We provided a 25 per cent of male total average weekly earnings measure on top of the CPI—whichever was the greater—so those on pensions, veterans and war widows had the benefit of sharing in some of the wealth and prosperity of our nation. We had not only the CPI increases twice a year but also the other measure of 25 per cent of male total average weekly earnings—whichever was the greater. They would benefit from that measure as well. I will continue to take the fight up to the Labor Party on their style of economic management. It is about time they realised that they are the government and that they have to stop the blame game. If they got out of their little ivory towers—(Time expired)

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Before I call the honourable member for Bass, I remind the House that this is the honourable member’s first speech. I ask the House to extend to her the usual courtesies.

Jodie Campbell (Bass, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker and members. Mr Speaker, I too wish to congratulate you on your elevation to Speaker of this House. Already you have displayed what fine skills you bring to this place. I rise for the first time in this place to speak on the address-in-reply to the Governor- General’s speech, in which His Excellency outlined the Rudd Labor government’s positive plans for the future of Australia. I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land we are meeting on. I also wish to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we now call Northern Tasmania. I respect their continuing culture and the unique contribution they make to the life of our nation. It is therefore both an honour and a privilege for me to wear traditional shell necklaces handmade by Dulcie and Lola Greeno and to wear a piece of Tasmanian Aboriginal culture into the chamber. These necklaces are made of black crow and maireener shells collected on Flinders Island and at Low Head. The necklaces took six weeks to create from shells which were collected during the spring tide and then cleaned, dried and finally threaded. For both these incredible women I have the utmost respect and once again thank them.

I would also like to say at the outset that it is an immense privilege to speak in this place today. Putting oneself forward for public service is a challenge and a great honour, and regardless of where we sit in the House I extend my congratulations to all new members of this House. I am very humbled that the people of Bass have sent me here as their representative. It is truly an honour. I would also like to acknowledge my predecessor, Michael Ferguson, and thank him for his service to the community over the past three years. I wish Michael and his family all the best for the future.

The electorate of Bass is in many ways a microcosm of Australia. Ours is a hardworking, innovative and resilient community involved in traditional pursuits, such as farming and sustainable forestry, as well as new and emerging industries, such as tourism, winemaking, engineering and information based industries. Bass is also a tolerant community. It is a diverse, multicultural society. The oldest continuing culture in the world exists peacefully side by side with the culture of those who are freshly arrived from such places as Sudan, Sierra Leone and Liberia. The beauty of the landscape and the strength of our community make Northern Tasmania simply the best place in the world to live. While I am sure many members will make that claim of their homes, it is only in this instance that it is true.

On 24 November 2007 it became evident that the people of Bass were indeed an excellent barometer for the mood of the country. On that day the people of Bass, like the people of the nation, determined to forge a new future for our country and our local communities. They said yes to proper funding for health care and proper investment in the education of our young people; they said yes to ensuring our innovative, local business operators will have access to the skilled workforce they will require to continue to grow; they said yes to Australia reclaiming its place at the forefront of the fight against global warming—a fight in which Tasmania has long led the way as a generator of clean, renewable energy; and they said yes to a fair go for the first Australians and for refugees. In so doing, the people of Bass demonstrated their decency and their belief in a fair go—not just for themselves but for all Australians. Mr Speaker, it is therefore truly an honour to take my place on your right and behind a Prime Minister and Australia’s first female Deputy Prime Minister, who are listening to the people of Bass and who are already delivering for them.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s first act after taking his oath of office was to sign the instrument of ratification for Kyoto and attend the Bali conference on climate change. How proud we are for our country to be so ably represented on this global stage. This new Labor government has dismantled the so-called Pacific solution, which sent a message to the world that Australians do not care about people fleeing persecution for political, religious or social reasons—a message which, of course, misrepresented the view of the vast majority of Australians. The Prime Minister has already delivered on Labor’s commitment to recognise the damage done and apologise for the destroyed childhoods of the stolen generations. And the first piece of legislation to be introduced into this place since the election of the Rudd Labor government has begun the work of meeting Labor’s commitment to restore fairness to the workplace without removing flexibility. These are the acts of a government which is intent on keeping its bond with the people of Bass and the people of Australia. It is a government of which I am proud to be part as we deliver on each and every commitment we made to the people of Bass during the last election.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. Put another way, I suppose, we are all products of those who surround us—our parents, siblings, friends and those in our community. In the time remaining to me today I would like to pay tribute to some of the very important people who have shaped me and helped me along the journey here and whose wise counsel I will seek as I strive to be an effective advocate for the community of Northern Tasmania. I pay tribute to my mother, Patricia, who raised me, along with my three sisters, Vicki, Julie and Diane. From my mum, who did shift work at Coats Patons wool mill in Launceston, I learned of the resilience of working people. As she struggled in her desire to provide for those she loved, her daughters, I also saw just how important it is that workers and their families are offered not an iron fist but instead a helping hand. My sisters showed me unconditional love as a child, as they still do, and I draw inspiration from them each and every day.

Also in the village that raised me were my grandmother and my grandfather. When I was 13 years of age my grandparents moved in with my mum and me—my eldest sisters had already left home. Mum took on looking after them in their old age, along with everything else. At the time I thought it was socially inappropriate to be living with my grandparents. Only in adulthood does one realise what a privilege it actually was. Because of my extended family experience, I learnt a great deal.

My grandfather was a returned soldier. He was a veteran of the Second World War and a survivor of the Changi Japanese prisoner of war camp. He went to war full of youth and with a sense of duty and left behind a young bride and four children. That bride, my grandmother, and those children, my mother and uncles, did not see or hear from him again for four years. Only occasionally, mostly on Anzac Day, did my grandfather allow me the tiniest glimpse of what he had seen and experienced in captivity as a kid barely out of his teens. As a child I sat wide eyed and open mouthed at my grandfather’s recollections. Unfortunately, they were the all-too-familiar horrific stories we have come to know.

Understanding how my grandmother felt took a little more time. It is only as we grow up that we realise that the effect of war goes deep behind the front line. It deeply affected in the most part women, children and the old. I wonder what it was like for my grandmother to not know for four years whether her husband was alive or dead and to wonder what the future without him might hold, and then learning to build a life with the man who eventually returned—a man as loving and seemingly unaffected as he was. This was the part of the story only my grandmother could share with me. In both their cases it is a story of duty, sacrifice and determination. It is a story I have dwelt upon in the past and from which I will draw strength when, from time to time, the duty and responsibility of representing the people of Bass and the inevitable attacks from my political opponents will seem overwhelming.

Beyond one’s family, of course, there are the inspirational people whom fortune conspires that you should meet. In my case they include educators such as Roger Francis, who taught me at Ravenswood High School and who nurtured my love of music, and my Ravenswood High School principal, Rodney O’Rourke. He led while staying on the same level as his staff and students, never looking down upon his students, and was a man who did his utmost to help the school community. Other educators, such as Phyllis Robinson and Tex Austin, also supported my development at Ravenswood High School. In my political campaign, another educator, Elizabeth Daly, a Northern Tasmanian education superintendent, believed in me enough to authorise all of my election material. I sincerely appreciate her support.

I am also fortunate to have been mentored by strong and intelligent women who were also previous federal members for Bass—Sylvia Smith and Michelle O’Byrne. I would like to acknowledge the support of the only remaining chapter of the Australian Labor Party Sisterhood, the ALPS, which was established by Margaret Whitlam. I would also like to recognise the support of EMILY’s List, who merely want our parliament to more accurately reflect Australian society.

In the time remaining I must thank as many of those who contributed to Labor’s campaign in Bass as I possibly can. I sincerely thank David O’Byrne and the LHMU team, who, together with other committed volunteers, doorknocked around 18,000 homes. They did this in all temperatures and conditions. As the member for Bass, I will do my utmost to be worthy of their efforts.

In the end, I cannot thank my mother, Patricia Crooks, and my sisters, Vicki, Julie and Diane, enough for their support. My young daughters, Sommer and Izabella, have also shared with me in this immense political struggle. As members with children will well know, children have an amazing knack of not too subtly bringing us back to earth whenever we become a little bit too full of ourselves. Mine are experts in that art and I love them deeply for it.

There are so many other people I would particularly like to thank. I would like to acknowledge Cindy O’Connor and the Your Rights at Work team, who, over the last three years, committed their time and energy with one single goal in sight—to put fairness back into the workplace. I, together with working families in Bass, congratulate them on this. I thank the many volunteers who staffed my campaign office and worked so tirelessly. I thank the LHMU, HACSU, MUA, CFMEU, SDA, NUW, AWU, ANF, CPSU and all unions who showed their support. I thank Carol Brown; Mick Leppard; Betty Grey; Mike Howe; Sophie, Matt and Ava Wheatley; Kate and Simon Brown; Michelle Cripps; Adam Clarke; the sartorially superior Mr Rick Youseff; Matthew Jose; Jack Lake; Ross, Annie and Peter Hart; Alex Cramb; Sharyn and Dean Lahey; Sue and Mike Walley; Maria Mischis; Debbie, Thomas, Joseph and Michael Kindermann for loaning their husband and father, Paul, to my campaign for the best part of three months without complaint and, best of all, without charge; and, of course, Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, to whom I offer not only my thanks but my congratulations.

I am here today because I want to serve my community and because my community has honoured me and selected me to do so. When Ansett collapsed in 2001, my immediate thoughts were for my 400 fellow workers. What had they lost? We did not know. But, as Disraeli said, ‘There is no education like adversity,’ and I learned from the adversity we faced at that time. Stung by that crisis, and with the help of the labour movement, I was given the opportunity to join a team which fought for the entitlements of 400 northern Tasmanian workers who had lost their jobs that day.

Over the past 11 years those opposite, when in government, laid many charges against the labour movement, against unions who were trying to protect workers and their conditions. What a pity they have not experienced what I and so many other working people have experienced. In my case, the union movement gave me the opportunity to help secure the entitlements of others. It also taught me that individuals can make a difference and made me proud to be part of any organisation that will fight to improve the lives of workers and their families—organisations such as the union movement and the Labor Party.

If I could borrow some words from one of Australia’s greatest treasurers and prime ministers, Ben Chifley:

I try to think of the Labor movement not as putting an extra sixpence into somebody’s pocket, or making somebody prime minister or premier, but as a movement bringing something better to the people, better standards of living, greater happiness to the mass of the people.

We have a great objective - the light on the hill - which we aim to reach by working for the betterment of mankind, not only here but anywhere we may give a helping hand. If it were not for that, the Labor movement would not be worth fighting for.

If the movement can make someone more comfortable, give to some father or mother a greater feeling of security for their children, a feeling that if a depression comes there will be work, that the government is striving its hardest to do its best, then the Labor movement will be completely justified.

Although uttered 60-odd years ago by the great Ben Chifley, these words ring true today. I can attest firsthand that the labour movement is still about putting the extra sixpence in the pockets of workers. Ask the 400 former Ansett employees in Launceston. Ask the thousands of low-paid workers freed from the burden of Work Choices. But ask also those who have benefited from universal education and health care. Ask those who have seen the environment made into a mainstream issue by the Whitlam, Hawke, Keating and now Rudd Labor governments whether the labour movement limits itself to the sixpence. It does not—and nor do I. I look forward to representing the needs of the people of Bass in this place over the next three years and I will do so with all the energy, patience, skill and compassion I possess.

Peter Lindsay (Herbert, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a number of issues I would like to raise with the parliament this afternoon. They are wide ranging and relate to my electorate in North Queensland. I represent Herbert, which is the city of Townsville, the largest tropical city in this nation and a city that is going absolutely gangbusters. We have recently had an election and I want to thank all of those who supported me in my re-election to the parliament. Seats either side of me had swings of 14 per cent, and we have new government members as members for those seats, but I survived with the confidence of the people of Townsville and I very much appreciate their confidence in me.

It was a very interesting election. I give a commitment today to the people of Townsville that I will work to ensure that all of the promises that were made by the government are delivered. I am sure that I will be able to work with the government to ensure that that happens. I will go a step further than that: I will work very hard with the government to make sure that all of the promises that I made to the electorate are delivered as well. They included things like the on-off ramps on the Douglas arterial in Riverside Gardens. I congratulate my colleague from North Queensland, the member for Leichhardt, who knows the importance of Townsville—in relation to Cairns—as the capital city of Northern Australia. I am glad to have that recognition. In relation to the roundabouts on the Douglas arterial, currently residents of Riverside Gardens have to do a round trip of six kilometres to get onto North Queensland’s only motorway. That is unacceptable. We should be able to move people on and off that motorway with on-off ramps in a strategic location.

I also intend to make sure that the Upper Ross community centre is delivered. It will use $6 million worth of funding from the better regions program. In addition, the three-laning of the Mount Low Parkway is very important to the residents of the northern beaches. Currently there is a very significant safety problem on that road, where vehicles wanting to turn into private driveways are being involved in rear-end collisions on that very busy road. That is why we need that particular road to be three-laned.

Mr Speaker, it will not have escaped your attention that we have had a bit of rain in North Queensland. In fact, we have finally had a pretty decent wet season. North Queenslanders will remember wet seasons of decades ago, and the traditional wet season has come back. It has rained with some ferocity in the north and right down the coastal strip. That has been good; the underground aquifers have been recharged. But people in Mackay have suffered very significantly. Places have been flooded that have never really been flooded before.

You have to feel for the people whose homes were inundated and whose property was destroyed. It has been heartbreaking for some. It floods and rains in North Queensland—and one of the issues relating to that is the fact that communications are affected, particularly in relation to the roads. We have to redouble our efforts under the former government’s AusLink program, which the current government has embraced, to make sure that we do as much as we can to flood-proof the Bruce Highway, because these days, with just-in-time delivery mechanisms for supermarkets, you need the roads to be open 24/7. That is how the supply chains work these days. It is unacceptable for supermarkets to run out of bread or milk, and that is what has been happening. We will redouble our efforts to make sure that we are able to continue the supply of goods throughout the coastal area of North Queensland.

There are some other very significant promises which I want to touch on in relation to the election last year. In the area of road funding, the current Australian government has announced that it will provide $100 million to four-lane the seven-kilometre stretch from Cluden through to Vantassel Street on the Bruce Highway. That includes widening a bridge over Stewart Creek and building a rail overpass. That will be very welcome. It is a part of the highway that is currently very congested. I am pleased that the Labor government took up my commitments to duplicate the five-kilometre portion of the Douglas arterial from University Drive to Upper Ross River Road.

For members of parliament one of the joys of this job is that you can argue and fight for projects for your electorate, and, when you get them and you see the results that they bring, it gives you great pleasure. The Douglas arterial road was a project that did not exist, and I certainly went in to bat for it. It was built after a lot of argy-bargy with the state government. It has been the most successful new road project in the north. It has been so successful that we are now going to have to duplicate it. That is the vote of confidence that the people of Townsville-Thuringowa have placed in that particular project.

I also arranged for the Townsville ring road, which connects to the Douglas arterial road, to be completed. That, too, will be built to motorway standard and it will be opened by the end of this year. That will provide terrific access from the northern beaches through to the university, the hospital and Australia’s largest defence base at Lavarack Barracks. Australia’s largest defence base, incidentally, is shortly going to become even larger. The 3rd Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment is going to move from Holsworthy to Townsville. That means we will have to spend $350 million on new working accommodation at Lavarack Barracks, build a significant number of Defence Housing homes and provide all sorts of new infrastructure in the north. This will be a big boost to the economy.

Townsville is known throughout the Defence Force, and throughout our community, as Australia’s garrison city, and it well deserves that reputation. It shows that, with our military presence—and I also note that there is a large presence of the Royal Australian Air Force in Townsville—we support our nation and the parliament. In relation to RAAF Townsville, we have all the Caribous being transferred to Townsville from Amberley. About eight of them have already arrived; there are still six to come, and that will mean that all of Australia’s Caribous are based in Townsville. More base infrastructure will be built to look after them. We do, however, need more hardstand at Townsville Airport, and I encourage defence planners to get that project underway, because when it gets busy at RAAF Townsville it gets really busy. It is nothing to see a couple of C17s and a raft of FA18s and the like present and trying to find space to park.

Over the road from RAAF Townsville, at the same airport, is 5th Aviation Regiment, arguably the second busiest unit in the Defence Force, with its Chinook helicopters, CH47s and Black Hawks, which will soon be replaced by the MRH90s. They will be a welcome addition. There will be, perhaps, another $40 million spent on that. The centre of gravity for defence in Townsville is certainly building.

I digressed there for a minute but I now go back to road funding. We also need to ensure that the $60 million pledge to build 30 new overtaking lanes between Sarina and Cairns is spent quickly. Overtaking lanes, in my view, are the best short-term fix for the problems of the highway that we currently have. $105 million has been allocated to build 30 new overtaking lanes between Sarina and Cairns, where there are the top 10 black spots.

But it is disappointing that currently none of that road building will actually start until at least mid-2009 and may not be completed until 2014. There is a real bottleneck there in road construction, and we hope that we can fast-track that to get the benefits to the users of the highway. An interesting promise that both the government and the opposition made in the election was to bring V8 supercars to Townsville. Mr Speaker, I do not know whether you are a supporter of V8 supercars—perhaps you are a petrolhead; I do not know—but what you would probably argue is that a V8 supercar race is a great family day. In every city which has an event like that, it would be enjoyed by the majority of the city. Some people say, ‘Look, it’s an environmental disaster.’ Well, it is not. Some people say, ‘It closes roads.’ Yes, it does, but only for a short while. The V8 supercars are much more than cars, and the focus that their presence puts on the cities where they race is nothing short of extraordinary. People all around the world see the images of Australian cities running V8 supercar races. Some $10 million from the current Australian government will see V8 supercars come to Townsville mid next year, and I will be very pleased to be there for the first race.

We are also looking for $3.4 million that has been pledged for the Townsville International Sports Centre. That will enable the Murray Sports Complex, which is used by every child in Townsville at some point in their life, to be upgraded. Under the leadership of Mayor Tony Mooney, the Townsville City Council is pushing that program through. There is also funding from the state government.

I want to move now to something that is rather concerning—that is, this letter I received last week from Anthony Wemm. He has given me his okay to use his name. He is a front-line paramedic in the Queensland Ambulance Service. This will concern all members, as it concerns me. It would not surprise me if this issue is the same in every electorate in Australia. It is an emerging issue in relation to what happens when a paramedic attends an incident to help people—there are physical attacks that occur. It is anathema to all of us. You do not call an ambulance to attack the paramedics or to physically injure them; normally you call an ambulance so you can be taken to hospital and get some medical attention. But Anthony says:

During my 3 years of employment as a Paramedic stationed in the Townsville region, some memorable instances have been being chased to my ambulance by a patient with a large butcher’s knife, blood thrown and spat on myself, kicked in the head by a patient in the rear of the ambulance and recently, set upon by two bystanders attempting to kill a patient in my care and/or myself resulting in physical injuries.

On an averaging weekly basis, I get verbally abused and/or threatened of violence to myself and/or threats of taking my life.

That is extraordinary, and I think that all of us have to make sure that our ambulance officers—and indeed our police—are kept as safe as possible. Anthony observes:

Furthermore, our current court system and given punishments are seriously flawed at deterring this violence towards our frontline Paramedics. Offenders are acutely aware that if they do get caught, that they will receive little if not no punishment under the current Queensland Criminal Code.

That is very sad. Anthony says:

Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics have a saying that I wish to share: ‘Police have Pepper spray, Batons, Bullet Proof Vests and Guns for protection, Paramedics only have a cheap plastic Mag torch and their mouth so I hope you’re a good runner or can fight.’

If that is the situation, that is terrible. Anthony and his wife believe that the Queensland Ambulance Service cannot provide a reasonable and safe working environment to practise in as front-line paramedics and save lives. He says:

Although the Queensland Ambulance Service and Queensland Government Politicians do publicly comment that there is zero tolerance towards violence on Paramedics but with the current attitudes displayed in our court system, I believe that this zero tolerance is not being taken seriously.

I ask my colleagues in the parliament today to reflect on that, and I ask the community and the Queensland government to reflect on that, because our people who give front-line service saving lives should not be subjected to that kind of abuse.

Mr Speaker, I draw your attention to a very recent article in the Townsville Bulletin entitled ‘Boom: we’re hot’. It basically says, as I would like to advise the parliament today, that more than $14 billion worth of major projects are on the drawing board for my region. We have been named as the hottest property investment location in the country, and we certainly deserve that. The cranes on the skyline have multiplied, and building is going on at great pace. That is good for our economy. It is good for our city. It ensures that all the services that we as a city that has a great lifestyle need are provided. Certainly Townsville is currently undiscovered except by the property developers. We welcome them and we certainly want to see that continue.

I would like to finish with an issue that I have raised with the state government in relation to Jezzine Barracks. Jezzine Barracks has a long history with the Australian Defence Force—in particular, the Army. The Army currently has the 11th Brigade based at Jezzine Barracks. It is a premier seaside location. The 11th Brigade are moving out to Lavarack Barracks to be with the Australian Regular Army. I negotiated, through the former Prime Minister, the gifting of the land to the Townsville community because of its importance to our community and its importance to military history. Defence of course wanted to sell it off. I was not having a bar of that. We were able to give $25 million worth of prime land to the community.

However, the deal was this: the Australian government would match, dollar for dollar, a $10 million contribution from the Townsville City Council to do the redevelopment. That gave us $20 million. But, in addition to that, the Australian government said that they would match a similar contribution from the state government, which would give us $40 million. Our problem as a community is that the state government will not commit to their $10 million, which means we lose $10 million of the Commonwealth’s contribution. The state government have written to me. Andrew McNamara, the Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation, said:

I can confirm the former Premier’s agreement that the gifting of the site to the Townsville City Council is likely to be of great benefit to the region and the state as a whole.

So they understand the importance of it. But he then goes on to say:

Once the proposal has evolved to the master plan stage, the Queensland government would be pleased to consider options for a contribution.

Thank you, Minister. That means that the trust who are developing the master plan do not know how much effort they should put into it. They do not know if they are going to get the money. They do not know how much effort they should put into developing that master plan. The current chair, John Bearne, would find this a very difficult situation to be in. I can understand the Queensland government wanting to have some control or some sort of say over what happens, because they are putting money in. We have arranged for two of their representatives to be on the trust so they do have that input. The trust is also working in a bipartisan way.

It does not matter whether it is the Australian government, the state government or the local authority; we are all working together to get the best outcome for the community because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to develop such a magnificent piece of real estate for the benefit of Townsville’s citizens. Those of you who have been to Townsville and seen the Strand know that it is magnificent—as opposed to the mudflats in Cairns. We are very proud of what we do and we want to add to that by developing Jezzine Barracks. I certainly ask that the Queensland government make an early commitment to Jezzine Barracks for the sake of our city and our community.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Before I call the member for Petrie, I remind the House that this is the honourable member’s first speech. I ask the House to extend to her the usual courtesies.

Yvette D'Ath (Petrie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise to speak for the first time in this chamber. I do so extremely proud of the fact that the people of Petrie have chosen to put their faith in me to represent their interests. I am also humbled by the people who have come before me into this chamber wanting to serve their community and their country. I would like to extend my congratulations to the Speaker and his deputies on their election to the most esteemed positions in this parliament. I also congratulate all of the government’s new ministers and parliamentary secretaries on their important roles; I intend to have much interaction with them during my term of office to ensure the utmost local input from my community to the most important decision makers of this country. I would like to also acknowledge on this important occasion of my first speech my gratitude to the Prime Minister for the formal apology to the Indigenous communities of Australia on 13 February 2008. This will be a day forever remembered in the hearts and minds of those who suffered in the past and will forever form part of tomorrow’s history. My local Indigenous communities, along with many other people in the community, welcomed the apology.

Petrie is a vibrant electorate and one of the fastest-growing areas in south-east Queensland. The electorate stretches from the outer metropolitan northern Brisbane suburbs of Stafford Heights and Everton Park to the Redcliffe Peninsula. The peninsula runs along beautiful Moreton Bay. Through the redistribution in 2006, North Lakes moved into the seat of Longman, and areas of Everton Park, McDowall and Aspley moved into Petrie. I welcome all of those new constituents into the area and look forward to the opportunity to represent them over the coming years. The electorate stretches over six state electorates and three councils, including parts of Brisbane City Council and Pine Rivers Shire Council and the whole of the Redcliffe City Council. With the amalgamation of councils in Queensland, we will now see the northern end of the electorate become part of the new Moreton Bay Regional Council, the result of the Pine Rivers Shire Council, the Redcliffe City Council and the Caboolture Shire Council being amalgamated.

With a new council—which will bring a new mayor and new councillors, in addition to those that make up the Brisbane City Council wards—six state members and me as a new federal member, there is much need for cooperation between the three levels of government locally. I look forward to taking a lead role in this cooperative working relationship by inviting all representatives after the council elections to hold regular meetings each year to discuss the long-term plans for managing the future growth of our communities.

I would like to acknowledge the service of the previous member for Petrie, Teresa Gambaro. Ms Gambaro gave 11 years of service to the electorate as an MP. I wish her and her family the very best for the future. In 2007, the people of Petrie made a choice for change. I am grateful for the opportunity provided to me by the community. I intend, through my passion, enthusiasm, commitment and dedication, to show the people that I am their local voice, their local advocate, and that I will work for a better future for the whole community.

My path here has been from a simple home life where politics was never discussed. My father was a carpenter and my mother was a secretary. Many years were spent moving between rental properties. I watched as my parents, never complaining, worked to put food on the table and a roof over our heads for me and my brother and sister. I left school and went into the full-time workforce when I was 15 years old. I have cleaned tables; I have worked as a receptionist; I have worked in a bearing company, spending many long nights doing stocktakes of O-rings. It was in my early 20s that I realised the importance of an education; so, while continuing to work full time, I commenced my education at night school. I continued to study for the next 14 years, finishing as a qualified lawyer.

Aside from my decision to further my education, the path that my life has taken has been directed by certain events that I consider turning points in my life. The first was meeting my husband, George, who once again is here today to support me. George encouraged and supported me through all of my career choices, studies and political involvement. Most of all, he has been not just a supportive husband but also, as a father, the most dedicated parent I know. We have two beautiful children: my son, Cameron, who is five, and my daughter, Emma, who is seven. George’s commitment in supporting me has not altered the fact that he himself has contributed significantly to society through his work as a police officer.

Having said that my personal support came from my family, I will say that my inspiration and passion has blossomed from other events. In 1989 I commenced work at the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission, as a typist in the typing pool. In 1992 I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to work as an associate to then Commissioner Deirdre Swan. I have much to thank the now Deputy President for. Deputy President Swan gave me a chance. She treated me more like a peer than an employee. I am truly grateful for the knowledge that she imparted to me and feel privileged to have worked with her.

Working within the commission fuelled my interest and enthusiasm for ensuring that there is fairness in Australia’s workplaces. However, the significant change in my career came when I went to work for the Australian Workers Union. The AWU is the external force through which my true passion to help people and my belief in social justice were discovered and nurtured. Opportunities to continually expand my knowledge and experience were invaluable, and the support and encouragement provided to me by the likes of Bill Ludwig, Joe Ludwig and Bill Shorten have been, and will always be, appreciated in whichever course my future takes. I would like to thank each of those people for their friendship, support and encouragement. I would also like to thank Paul Howes, the new National Secretary of the AWU, and his wife, Lucy, for their support and friendship. A special thank you also goes to all AWU members, who work every day to improve their working conditions and support their fellow workers.

In 1996 I chose to join the Labor Party. Through this great party, I broadened my experience beyond just workplace relations and was able to contribute to many policy debates.

I spent over 13 years working for a union that chose to put workers first. It was an organisation that was pragmatic about its objectives and its broader social responsibility, always recognising that growth in business means growth in jobs and opportunities for workers. The AWU has always sought to balance obligations to job security and improved wages with the sometimes conflicting need to see that businesses and the economy remain strong. These philosophies were instilled in me during this time and continue with me today in my new role. I have had the opportunity to work with employees and employers from small businesses through to multinationals; and from retail, health and hospitality through to construction and local government all over Queensland and across Australia. Few people get the opportunity to have such diverse interaction with so many people in so many industries across such a large geographic area. Having the ability to listen and negotiate with such diverse interests gave me a greater understanding of working with people and a willingness not to judge people but to be forgiving, tolerant and accepting.

As part of my journey of development, I was given the privilege of participating in an exchange program with the United Steelworkers. This occurred in late 2005, when my family and I travelled to Canada and the United States to work for three months. America is a great country; it has many ordinary, everyday people who do extraordinary things for their fellow Americans. But it also has many things that, as a nation, Australia should not seek to replicate, for it is not the future that we should seek. Unfortunately, in 2005 that appeared to be exactly what we were doing with our health system, our welfare system and our labour laws. We were following a path that would lead only to placing a burden on the people of Australia. It was about governing for some, not for all. It was about destroying what Australia knew to be Australian values of fairness and equity.

It was at this time that Work Choices was introduced. These laws went against all the basic values of fairness in the workplace and in society. The future implications for people’s living standards and the social fabric of our society were under threat. This was not just a theory but what I had witnessed in the United States and what I saw as Australia’s future. This experience permanently moved me to want to make a bigger contribution, a personal contribution, by fighting for a change in the direction of our country’s policies through a change of government. I knew that, as a Labor candidate, I could help make this change.

I have also been given great hope and inspiration, great strength and energy over the past 18 months. That momentum has come about through the amazing efforts of businesses, community groups and individuals whom I met while campaigning. They make my heart swell with pride and with an overwhelming desire to work not for the people of Petrie but with them. While we go about our business as local members of parliament, the people throughout the communities go about their business, helping, healing, educating, training, employing and conserving. During 2006, 18,091 people volunteered their time to help others across the electorate of Petrie. These people neither ask for recognition nor expect thanks, but are certainly deserving of it. To ensure that I am their voice in government and that they are being listened to, we as a government must forever educate ourselves and inform ourselves, as their local representatives, about the needs of the communities we serve. We need to genuinely listen.

As a 37-year-old mother, as a wife and as a working woman, I am proud of what I have achieved so far in my life. It gives me pride to know that what I have achieved may give others inspiration to follow their dreams and goals in life. That is why it is a pleasure now to be representing an electorate that includes my old high school, Redcliffe State High. I hope that my contribution in the future, both in the electorate and in the parliament, will inspire future school students and my own children to achieve their goals. Having children has changed my life. They give me another dimension, which provides me with a much better understanding of working parents—those seeking to juggle life’s commitments and striving to achieve a work and family balance. I want for my children what many parents want: to instil in our children an understanding of the differences in cultures, beliefs and opportunities across countries and within countries; and to teach them values and the importance of tolerance, acceptance and empathy. Our children are the future, and there is nothing more important than looking after that future for the greater good of this nation.

Of course, on a much more basic level, what parents like me and many others I have met throughout the community of Petrie want is a good quality of life, good health, opportunities for ourselves and our children, and to ensure that we leave behind a better future for all. Now that I have been fortunate enough to have the faith of the electorate placed in me, my job is to ensure that ‘fairness’ is not just a term thrown around from time to time, but something that we all strive to achieve in the way we treat others and the way we wish to be treated in our daily lives. My concern is that this fairness has been eroding over recent years.

It is important that we focus on the future prosperity of the country as a whole, not just on sectors of the community. My role and our government’s vision cannot be short term. Our communities and our country deserve more. We need to be looking to the future, planning long term for our economy, our environment, our education and our infrastructure to deal with the growth in population. The ideas, desires, abilities and potential are already in the people of Petrie, young and old. I have seen much ingenuity and entrepreneurship occurring on a daily basis. I have seen a lot of determination and commitment to providing necessary community services, which have been able to prevail despite rising costs, regulation and demand. My responsibility is to help bring inclusiveness and collectivism to our levels of government and to have a genuine working relationship with all levels of government and with the broader community. This is essential, because there are a lot of practical measures that need to be taken to ensure that, as a government, we are ensuring long-term prosperity for our society.

My aim through government is to ensure that children are given the best education, irrespective of whether they attend government, non-government, independent, religious or secular schools. Our youth and adults should have access to training opportunities to advance their educational qualifications and gain skills that lead to fulfilling employment. We need to ensure that training opportunities are available locally and that long-term, secure employment is also available locally. This will take commitment from the business community, training organisations and education and parliamentary representatives. I see the future of our economy, our communities and our families being driven by education and training.

These areas obviously need to be supported with necessary infrastructure and social support, but for a community to be strong and provide opportunities we must get back to the basics. We must re-educate our youth, teachers, parents and adults who want a better future for themselves that education and training is paramount. Whether you are a cleaner, a child carer, a plumber, a chef, a teacher, a lawyer or a doctor, training is important. I look forward to the opportunity of working with my local schools to implement our education revolution, of watching our young children thrive on early childhood education, to seeing our national literacy and numeracy programs provide much needed support for future learning and to seeing our trade training centres provide young people with opportunities outside of university studies to gain self-esteem and confidence and to have a career path by the time they leave secondary education.

We once again need to have pride in obtaining a trade. From an employer perspective they will have the opportunity to have workers who have already shown commitment to training of a trade, who have shown competency in the field, who have completed their schooling education and who have shown ability in time management. These are the types of workers that businesses of today are looking for in the future. Our obligation is to deliver this workforce for the betterment of the local communities and the economy.

We also need to ensure that those on dental and hospital waiting lists in Petrie are provided with the necessary medical treatment within the recommended treatment times. With a 20 per cent decline in bulk-billing services over the past 10 years, and a waiting list for the Redcliffe and Caboolture district alone of 7,000 people for dental treatment, these services cannot be addressed quickly enough. The establishment of a new GP superclinic in Redcliffe is a positive move forward in improving our health services in the area. With more than 28,000 people in the electorate over the age of 65 the areas of health, dental treatment and housing affordability are crucial. It is equally important that we do more as a society to recognise the contribution that our older Australians have made and continue to make in so many areas of their lives. That is why I am excited about Labor’s plans for addressing the needs of Australia’s ageing population. I know that my community will benefit from this important policy.

Many people on the Redcliffe Peninsula have to wait six or seven years for public housing and this is not uncommon in other areas of the electorate as well. There is, of course, also limited public housing for those people with disabilities. On the issue of rental strain, approximately 30 per cent of our pensioners in north Brisbane are in the rental market. These people have limited ability to supplement their income when rental prices increase. At the other end of the scale we have only two youth shelters, with a total capacity of six beds each, which are currently not used to capacity because of budget restrictions.

With rental and house prices rising faster than household income, the issue of housing affordability, including rental, home ownership, emergency shelter and public housing, is one that cannot be pushed into the background any longer. I have already commenced discussions with local groups about the demand in the area for emergency shelter, and during the campaign I participated in a workshop organised by local housing groups where we discussed different ideas to address the problem. I also conducted a forum with the then shadow minister, Tanya Plibersek, on housing affordability to ensure that this issue is at the forefront of the community strategy for long-term solutions. When a caravan park closes in the area—which has been occurring—approximately 60 people can need urgent low-cost rental or emergency accommodation, neither of which is readily available.

Although these are all national issues, there is nothing more local than not being able to get access to a local GP or getting your teeth fixed or worrying whether your children are going to get the best education depending on the school you choose or wondering whether you can go to work without the fear of being sacked without any recourse. Older Australians are expressing concerns not just about the impact of increasing cost of living pressure for themselves but also about whether their children and grandchildren will ever be able to afford a home. These are the things that concern my local community and are being played out in people’s homes and workplaces on a day-to-day basis.

Aside from the important issues that I have highlighted, there is of course the global problem that is impacting locally—and that is climate change. The environment and climate change are very much on the minds of the people in my community. Having an electorate with such beauty brings with it a responsibility to ensure the ecosystem around the bay and in the bay is protected. It also takes in the responsibilities of the river systems. The electorate has very devoted groups and initiatives to educate and protect our local area. The Mountain to Mangroves Festival is a wonderful initiative that runs each year. The various catchment groups, the Redcliffe and District Wildlife Rescue, the Dugongs, the Redcliffe Environmental Forum and the Australian Conservation Foundation are just some of the groups that I have got to know over the past 1½ years. These and many more are amongst the wonderful groups that already perform exceptional work in the community. However, at a local level there is more to be done between the local, state and federal representatives in conjunction with the local environmental groups. Through the ideas of these groups and the support of the governments, improvements can be made. I look forward to the opportunity of working closely with these groups. I also believe that we must continue the work already started in our schools to educate our children on the issue of the environment and climate change, as we need to ensure not only that they understand the issue’s importance but that they get to contribute to the future of the community and country in which they will be growing up and raising their families.

There is, of course, one further issue that the people of Petrie not only expect but demand be addressed by the federal Labor government and for me to advocate on their behalf. This is, of course, the abolition of the Work Choices laws. The government now has the opportunity to deliver a balanced industrial relations system for the 21st century and beyond. I personally saw and heard during the campaign many heartbreaking stories of the effects of these laws. I am enthusiastic at the opportunity to be part of a government that will bring fairness back into the workplace.

Of course, I have many people to thank for Labor’s success in Petrie. On a personal note I would like to thank my family: George, Emma and Cameron. Thank you, George, for your words of wisdom and for being a great sounding board even when I did not make any sense. To my children, thank you for all the handmade notes, signs, flags and chants that you created during the campaign to support me. It just goes to show that the simplest things, having come from the heart, do truly inspire and encourage you to go on. To my broader family, Anna and Mike, my father Bob, my sister Cherie and brother Brett, their partners and my nieces and nephews, thank you—even though at times you did not necessarily understand why I would want to take on such a challenge. To my mother, who passed away two years ago, there is so much that I have missed sharing with you. I can only hope that you would have been proud of my achievements. To my friends, thank you for the brief relief of laughter and enjoyment with our families that reminded me of the importance of good friends around you in life.

To the AWU, thank you for all the support you have shown me. I also thank the other unions who have supported me and whom I have worked beside over many years. To the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister and all Labor members, thank you for your support and encouragement during the campaign. Watching your efforts and commitment during the past year has been an inspiration.

Specifically to the Hon. Wayne Swan—who not only will be a great Treasurer for this nation but is also an amazing local member for the seat of Lilley, a neighbouring seat to Petrie—I thank you and Kim for your support. I have had the benefit of observing Wayne’s commitment locally over the years and have aimed to live up to his standards during the campaign and beyond. I look forward to continuing our close working relationship for the seats of Lilley and Petrie.

To Tim Gartrell, Milton Dick, Anthony Chisholm and all other staff at the ALP both nationally and in Queensland, thank you. To my campaign manager Jimmy Sullivan, Laura Gowdie, Dave Mortleman and family, and to all of the Labor state members and councillors across Petrie, thank you for your support. I look forward to us working together in the future.

Of course, the campaign would not have achieved the result that it did without the commitment and dedication of branch members and volunteers. A special mention must also go to Troy Fernandez, Bradley Heilbronn, Gavin Brady, Rosemary Hume, Winston Harris, Terry Sullivan, Phil Hay and Mick Carey. Thank you all for your support.

Time does not allow me to convey all that I wish to achieve for my local community. Many other issues need to be addressed by government and many other wonderful ideas need to be supported and encouraged. This I give a commitment to do. The issues I have spoken about today are not insurmountable but are nonetheless a monumental task ahead for us all to tackle over the coming years. As a member of the new Rudd Labor government, I embrace the task ahead and welcome this opportunity.

Russell Broadbent (McMillan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On hearing the speeches from the members for Bass and Petrie—as they throw themselves into each other’s arms—we should never forget what an honour it is to be in this House as members representing the communities that sent us here. I note that both members spoke about the influence of teachers on their life’s activity, their work, their families and their having arrived in this place. For me it brings back memories of teachers—who have had an influence at one time or another on all of us in this place. Obviously, the member for Bass and the member for Petrie were very proud of the teachers in their respective high schools.

I was recently trying to complete two outdoor chairs that I have been building at Phillip Island, and I remembered Brian Jones, my woodwork teacher in forms 1 and 2 at Koo Wee Rup. Because I was struggling to get the chairs made in the way I wanted them made, I was thinking, ‘Where’s Brian Jones when you need him?’ Brian, I do not know whether you are still out there today teaching woodwork somewhere and looking after incapable students like me, but I send you my best regards—as the members for Bass and Petrie did for their teachers.

I enjoyed the member for Petrie’s address and the inspirational enthusiasm that comes from a new member of parliament. I also noted her list of requests for the government as to what she intends to achieve in this place. I wish her all the best in her inspired enthusiasm and I hope that she will achieve for her community a lot of the aims she has set before the parliament today. As a member who came here in 1990, came back in 1996, went out in 1998 and came back in 2004, I have heard many new addresses—and I remember back to my own first address, which I will get to in a minute.

I want to say how important the role of teachers in our community is. I raise this today in response to the two maiden addresses because teachers change students lives. In my own electorate of McMillan, on a weekly or daily basis I see the inspiration that students in my schools get from the teachers who are investing in their lives. That is all I want to say. They do a great job and we should never forget just how important they are to the life of our country, the lives of our families and the activity they bring.

Sadly, there are more people on the other side of the House than on this side of the House. That means some people decided how they would vote before the election. Some thought the government of the day was not listening, others were concerned about our IR changes—that was reflected across the nation—and others just thought it was time for change.

The member for Petrie said the simplest things come from the heart. I missed the next little bit, but I think she was talking about her kids. There are those in my electorate who have talked to me since the election and have said there was not enough heart. It is great to have a very strong economy, as the member for Brand talked about in his maiden address. It is great to have policies on the environment but it is very hard to be green if you are broke. That is why a strong economy is extremely important.

I want to say something to the people who are listening to this broadcast today. They are listening to the first speeches and to what I have to say. They are all over the country. They are in trucks and they are in sheds. Some are in schools today. Some are ladies at home who are listening to what is going on as they go about their daily activity looking after the kids—and I will come to that in a moment. Some are sitting in the gallery, interested in what is happening in the democratic centre of this nation. But they are all listening. I want to say to them that I recognise that you have had a say. As member for McMillan and as a part of the previous government, I recognise that you have spoken and that you decided to change the government.

When I was in Leongatha on Australia Day, I was talking about how democracy can work at a local level, going up to state level, and how it can work at a federal level given the input of the people that are there. But I could feel people wanting to say to me, ‘Yes, but, Russell, your mob’s just been thrown out acrimoniously.’ I said to the gathering—and there were a lot of people in Leongatha: ‘Yes, the system works. Yes, the people have spoken. Yes, my people were thrown out. However, in my view the system worked without a shot being fired in anger.’ Ours is a great and safe democratic nation. One of the reasons so many people want to come to this nation, to live here and be a part of it, is its stability of government. In any newspaper you pick up you can see instability right across the world, but not here, whatever the criticisms of what we do—and there are many. We should never forget in the prosperous times those people who fall through the cracks and are missing out. I believe, given my endeavours in this House, we have always looked at those people who have fallen through the cracks, those who just do not fit and might need a little bit more help, and at how government can address providing that help.

I come to where we are today. We are in opposition. I have a voice, and I intend to use that voice strongly on behalf of not only the people of McMillan but people right across this nation, from Launceston to Lang Lang and from my beloved Geraldton—of course, it is not part of my electorate but it is a place of great favour to me—right across to the suburbs of Brisbane. I have to mention here the former member for Petrie, Teresa Gambaro. A friend of mine, she was a great servant of this parliament and of the people of Australia while she was the member for Petrie. There is absolutely no doubt about that; that is my experience of her. I sat with her, during the last parliament, in our party room and I know from my conversations with her that the seat of Petrie was never far from her mind. Even when she had the added responsibilities given to her by the Prime Minister, the former member for Petrie never took her eye off the welfare of the people of her electorate. She was an electorate server. She cared deeply for her area.

I say today to the former member for Petrie: remember that when the swing is on, the swing is on. Someone once said to me—and this was on the second time that I was defeated: ‘Russell, don’t take this personally. I didn’t vote against you. It wasn’t personal. It was just about your government. It was just about the times.’ I said: ‘Well, I have personally lost my job. My staff have personally lost their jobs. I do take it personally.’ Anybody here who does not think they take their job seriously and personally should not be in this place. It is a place all about your personal relationship with the people of Australia, in particular the people of your electorate.

So all those are important issues that you have to deal with in change—and I have referred to the mighty change that there will be. It will involve changes that this government wants to implement and that we, as an opposition, will have to look closely at. If those changes are IR changes, we will need to be diligent in our approach to make sure that the changes that the new government will make will not wind back the clock so far as to damage the strong economy that Australia has today, one that has been bequeathed to the government.

We made some promises during the election campaign. One of the most important ones that Labor committed to as well is for a new Trucks In Action pavilion through the Regional Partnerships scheme. I was at Trucks In Action at the weekend, having been invited by Robbie Radford, the Lardner Park events chairman. It was exceptionally well run by Mark Cockerell and his team. I had the great experience at the time of meeting Max Luff and his wife, Max being the founder and chairman of the Border Express transport firm, and hearing his story of how he changed his life at 50, went into business and made a great success of the business that was there. I mentioned trucks before. I mentioned someone who might be in a truck listening to this speech today. I was in awe of the way the Trucks In Action people go about their business and of the sorts of equipment that we have in this country. It reminds me, given all the activity in my electorate of McMillan, that nothing would be moved without trucks and without the expertise of their drivers, the controllers, the dispatchers and all the people that are involved in the trucking industry. So I am pleased to have them gather in my electorate at Lardner Park—and this involves no personal claim by me as it is all done by the people behind Trucks In Action, a great show and a national event. I recognise the industry today. I recognise Stuart St Clair’s organisational body and I recognise that there are truck drivers—and their families—out there doing it hard and doing the hours, that there will be changes that the government will be making to transport regulations and that the drivers will have to learn to deal with those and all the difficulties. It was good to hear that there are success stories in the trucking industry, as there are in lots of other businesses. I wish Trucks In Action and Max Luff in particular all the best.

What was the election campaign about? What people talked to me about were petrol prices, groceries and interest rates. Going back, I am known as a workplace flexibility advocate. I cannot walk away from what I have said about that before, what I have said about that in the past, because I believe it is best for business. I believe the legislation that was put in place created a whole lot of jobs—some 300,000 jobs—right along the south-east seaboard of Australia. This has a lot to do with the unfair dismissal laws rather than the generality of the IR laws, but they are very important and we must keep tabs on this government as to what it intends to do with the IR laws. That is not on the table yet. I look forward to that being on the table and to being able to understand that. Today we have an unemployment level of 4.1 per cent, a figure that has never been dreamed of and never been thought possible during the time that I have been in this House. This parliament thought it could only ever get to five or six per cent, as the lowest, yet here it is at 4.1 per cent.

I come from a time back in the early nineties when I know that we had 22 per cent unemployment amongst young people and we had up to 16 per cent unemployment in the general population. Our interest rates today are hovering around eight per cent but have in the past been up to 22 per cent for small businesses—they had a tough time—and up to 18 per cent for householders, and inflation was around three per cent. I can remember inflation doubling and tripling in one year into double figures.

So I hope that in its efforts as a new government, and because there was so much emphasis on Work Choices, the government does not stretch that elastic band too far and that it actually has regard for the people on the lowest level in our society, the unskilled. Whilst it may introduce laws that will protect the skilled and the unionists, it must have regard for people who are unskilled. I would expect new members of this House in particular, without naming anybody, to have regard for this when those on the government side are framing those new laws. We as a community have to look after the unskilled and the less able. They might not quite have the skills—and for no reason other than their life and the shoes that they have walked in. They may be as bright as anybody else, but the shoes that they have walked in have not allowed them to have the skills that others might have. I think we have brought 170,000 skilled workers into this country just to fill the gaps, and I know the government today is looking at other ways to change the 457 visa so that it will become more acceptable to the community and allow more people in to fill those skills gaps. Accept that, in a strong economy, you are going to have gaps. But I would plead with the government to make sure that in its approach to its legislation the least able, the unskilled and the lowest paid are not further cut out of the employment section. That is very important.

Where are we today? I received an email today from someone who I would say would be a typical lady with kids. I will call her Dianne to get right away from her name. She says that she is a constituent of mine and that she writes to me through much frustration and angst regarding the current childcare policies in place with council run family day schemes which she finds incredibly unfair to working families who choose this style of child care mostly because they cannot afford the private sector. In my electorate, quite often the private sector does not even exist in certain areas. She says that she has four children and that they have progressively been part of the family day care system for the past 11 years. She goes on to say:

I find myself currently dumbfounded at the situation I find myself in.

I will not say where she is from or where she is going. She tells me:

With a family of six to feed, clothe and educate, a mortgage, interest rates continually rising, petrol costs going through the roof, and the day to day cost of living more than doubling in the past 10 years (although wages have NOT), and myself only recently returning to work after three years of having no income, we now find ourselves in a fair degree of financial hardship (as are millions of other low income families).

This lady is typical of ladies not just in my electorate but in your electorate, Madam Deputy Speaker Burke, and in every electorate across the nation. She continues:

I returned to work, not because I wanted to, as I would rather have continued looking after my two youngest children until they reached school age, but because if I didn’t find a job we were risking the roof over our heads and the food on our table. Apparently however, trying to do the right thing to make things easier, such as returning to work, may not necessarily be the right thing to do after all.

Firstly, we immediately find the costs of childcare and petrol to get to and from work, almost outweigh any financial benefit I receive from working—no real encouragement to stay in employment, is it?

It is that encouragement to stay in employment that we have got to look at. She goes on at quite some length here in her letter and she says:

Unfortunately, because my husband and myself both work we do not meet the criteria for so much as a health care card or any assistance in any way, shape or form to help meet these costs. On top of this, another interest rate rise this week (plus the extra one OUR lender put on last week as well) and another one on the way means I need to find even MORE money each month to keep us afloat. Where is it supposed to come from? How poor do you have to be to qualify as ‘poor’?

She finishes by saying:

This may just be the thing that will give me no choice but to stop working again and go back to being paid to stay home, becoming a burden on the taxpayer again and taking advantage of all the benefits available.

There are lots of issues that we need to look at in that group of people who are on the edge. They are on the edge even though they are working. We have got to find ways to encourage families like that. The benefits we give them now are important. There is no doubt that we have got to look at establishing ourselves as a parliament that addresses the issue of mums like this who want to work. They want the socialisation of work and they want the opportunity to work, but particularly in country areas we have found that matching work opportunities with childcare arrangements is very difficult. Even the Welfare to Work program can be very difficult, and I am talking to the Minister for Employment Participation, Brendan O’Connor, at the moment about how we are going to get the appropriate flexibility into child care in rural Australia. The women in rural Australia know what it is like to try to milk a shed full of cows at the same time as they have got babies and kids in the home.

Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to address the House today. There are many issues that the new government will face. I hope, like the members for Bass and Petrie, that the whole-of-government approach reflects the same enthusiastic energy and inspiration as those two members. In his address the member for Brand talked about family, a strong economy and the importance of those things to him in his participation in this place. We need to drive our strong economy with the emphasis on those who are least able to look after themselves being protected by our investment in our communities.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Before I call the honourable member for Port Adelaide, I remind the House that this is his first speech. I ask the House to extend to him the usual courtesies.

Mark Butler (Port Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am honoured to rise today to address the House as the new member for Port Adelaide. While doubtless some of my colleagues, including the member for Bass, will feel obliged to protest, the simple, objective truth of the matter is that there is no better electorate in the country for a Labor Party MP to represent. The community of Port Adelaide is a fiercely proud and tribal group, characteristics best epitomised by our famous football teams. As with all other major port communities in the nation, its history is built heavily on the struggles and achievements that took place on the waterfront and in the families which supported those workers. The local Aboriginal people, the Kaurna people, continue to have a strong attachment to the area and I pay respect to their elders and that continuing attachment.

I also have the honour today of formally taking over the reins from Rod Sawford in representing Port Adelaide. Rod’s passionate style of representation of his community and of his favourite policy area, education, was a credit to him. I wish him, Aldona and their family all the best for the future. It is impossible to take this mantle without feeling the heavy presence of Mick Young standing over your shoulder. Twenty years on from Mick’s retirement as the member for Port Adelaide, his name is still recalled with deep affection and respect at almost every meeting and event that I attend. I am acutely aware that I have big shoes to fill.

This House sits at a time of significant economic challenge. It is timely, therefore, to say something about the former government’s economic management credentials. One of the most exciting things about 2007 was the way in which our party reclaimed its economic management mantle, a mantle earned through the hard work of economic reform through the Hawke and Keating years. Those were serious reforms and set the nation up for the 16 years of uninterrupted growth that we have experienced to date. By contrast, the former government assessed that it was simply able to surf the wave of the best terms of trade our nation has enjoyed in decades and a once in a generation mining boom. Even with those blessings, however, the former government oversaw a profound unbalancing of the economy. Australia is now one of the most heavily indebted nations in the developed world. The member for Higgins yielded the economic reins with foreign debt tipping around $600 billion—or about 60 per cent—of GDP, a percentage matched by only one or two developed countries in the world.

The current account deficit remains stuck at six per cent of GDP. Without the amazing terms of trade we currently enjoy, it would be much higher. It is interesting to compare that record with a similar economy, Canada, which 10 years ago, had a current account deficit stuck at around three per cent. By contrast with Australia, Canada has, through the resources boom, been able to turn that deficit into a surplus.

The former government leaves a legacy to Australia of a $5 billion deficit every month, which we are forced to service through one of the highest interest rate regimes in the developed world and a seemingly ever-appreciating dollar. Fortunately, this sloppy approach by the former government to our long-term economic health is salvaged somewhat by the national savings base of more than $1 trillion underwritten by the Hawke-Keating decision to create compulsory occupational superannuation.

Our current inflationary pressures are a further legacy of the former government. For some time now, the quarterly CPI figures have masked a two-tiered dynamic at play with consumer prices. While the prices of essential items were increasing by four per cent to six per cent per year, the member for Higgins hid behind a CPI figure that has been depressed by a continuing decline in the price of many discretionary items such as new cars, consumer electronics and the like. While that is a boon for consumers with spare dollars in their pockets, pensioners and low-paid workers must spend their money on the essentials of life.

The ABS figures for calendar year 2007 reveal how difficult that is. During those 12 months, rents rose by 6.4 per cent, health costs by over four per cent, vegetables by 8.6 per cent, bread by 8.8 per cent, milk by 10.1 per cent, education costs by over four per cent and transportation costs by 5.6 per cent. The former government also fiddled while Australia slipped into one of the worst housing affordability crises in the developed world. From 2000 to 2005, residential property prices in the developed world rose by over US$30 trillion. That increase, equivalent to about 100 per cent of the combined GDP of those countries, represents the biggest asset bubble in human history. Australia’s price increases were right at the top of that table. By 2005, Australia’s price-rent ratio was 70 per cent higher than the 25-year average to 2000, an increase in the ratio that far outstripped other overheated property markets such as the UK and the US. Logic and experience dictate that a price-rent ratio so far removed from the historical average will see rents rise, prices fall, the market stagnate or a combination of all three. Other than periodically injecting a bit more froth into the housing bubble, the former government did nothing to confront this looming crisis. The Rudd Labor government, by contrast, has a plan to make housing more affordable for all Australians.

The inflationary pressures now buffeting Australian households are, as the Reserve Bank has reminded us time and time again, a product of well-known capacity constraints in the economy. In spite of swimming in the highest tax receipts in Australia’s history, the member for Higgins will be written into the history books as the Treasurer who neglected to renew Australia’s infrastructure. Instead of putting together a serious plan to deal with skills shortages, the former government played games and squandered scarce training dollars in the pursuit of ideological dogma. It is well known that increases in labour supply in recent decades have overwhelmingly come from increases in female work participation rates.

Under the Howard-Costello government, Australia’s female participation rate became stuck at levels 10 per cent lower than those seen in Canada and Britain and 15 per cent lower than those seen in Scandinavia. Government has a leading role to play in lifting the participation rate by those extra percentage points. Instead, we remain one of only two OECD countries without paid maternity leave. The last decade saw us fall to the back of the pack whereas we once led the way in providing high-quality, affordable child care for working families.

The former government continually ignored community calls for a better balance in this country between work and the other parts of our lives. I was privileged in recent years to chair Barbara Pocock’s Centre for Work and Life at the University of South Australia. The work of that centre, and others like it, clearly shows that there is a way we can continue to have a productive economy while still allowing Australians to enjoy family and leisure time. The Rudd Labor government’s commitment to these issues will help bring more women into the workforce and help clear one of the key capacity constraints driving inflation and restraining growth.

Many of the sins of the former government I have described were sins of laziness. More egregious a sin, however, was the steps taken by the former government to exacerbate a creeping growth in economic inequality in this country. The long boom has seen an explosion of low-paid jobs. About half of all new jobs created in the 1990s paid less than $300 per week gross and almost 90 per cent paid less than $500. In the same period, the real weekly earnings of the lower paid ABS occupational categories—for example, sales and clerical workers and elementary service workers—declined by 14 per cent.

In their submissions to the annual national wage case, the former government tried to depress the wages of low-paid workers even further. In the decade to 2006, the minimum wage moved by an average of $14.70 each year before tax if you were full time. The former government submissions, if successful, would have seen those modest increases limited to $9.70. Combined with the now repudiated Work Choices laws, this represented a fundamental challenge to the postwar economic consensus that guaranteed all Australians a fair share of the nation’s growing productivity and wealth, a consensus enshrined not so much in the tax transfer system, as was the case in Europe and the UK, but in the wages system—a compact described by academics as ‘the workers’ welfare state’.

The implication by the former government that low-paid workers were somehow not contributing to the nation’s growing productivity was an insult. In the early 1990s, for example, a typical commercial cleaner in the Adelaide CBD would have been allocated a three-hour shift to clean one floor of a major building. Now that same cleaner will probably be required to clean two floors and would be lucky if their shift had not been reduced to two hours.

Although paid work had come to be taken in the postwar period as a guarantee against poverty, the Howard years saw the re-emergence of sizeable numbers of wage workers officially classified as living in poverty. NATSEM has estimated that 27 per cent of adults who now live in poverty earn a wage. The Smith Family has reported that fully 45 per cent of Australians living in poverty live in a household that includes a wage earner. If there is one thing only that I could do in my time in this place it would be to get a better deal for low-paid workers in Australia.

While the former government provided no leadership in this area, there are exciting examples available from the Blair and Clinton governments. Those governments deployed a mix of modest increases to the minimum wage combined with significant tax credits. An overemphasis on tax credits, however, involves an effective subsidy to employers who continue to pay low wages. I believe that we should reassert the right of workers in Australia to receive a wage that enables them to live in modest comfort. That wage should be benchmarked to the needs of an individual, with the family tax benefit system left to deal with the needs of dependants.

I was privileged to serve over the past several years as a member of the South Australian Social Inclusion Board. While the concept of social inclusion has existed in Europe for a few decades, it is relatively new to politics in the English-speaking world. Tony Blair established the Social Exclusion Unit early in his prime ministership, and Mike Rann led the way in importing the approach to Australia. As is the case with so many cutting edge global policy innovations, the idea of a multidimensional approach to serious disadvantage completely eluded the former government. The results of such an approach, however, are on the record.

South Australia’s Social Inclusion Initiative has seen our state reduce its homeless numbers—the only jurisdiction to do so. I chaired significant parts of our state’s review of our mental health system. The resulting report by the Social Inclusion Board has been overwhelmingly adopted by the Rann government and will see the most sweeping changes in our treatment of mental health issues in a generation. As well as the capacity to deal with seemingly intractable issues of disadvantage, the social inclusion model brings a new approach to government policy development and service delivery. Our experience shows that solutions to serious disadvantage usually cross departmental and ministerial boundaries—boundaries that are too often jealously guarded. The Social Inclusion Initiative has made steady progress to a model of joined up policy development and service delivery, and I am tremendously excited by the commitment of the Deputy Prime Minister to take this initiative to a national level.

The election of a new government also brings an opportunity for Australia to reposition itself within the international community. Labor’s approach to international relations rests on the three pillars of our alliance with the United States, our engagement with Asia and our participation in the forums of the United Nations. This approach reflects a rationalist concept of international relations which I strongly support: a middle ground between the realism of bilateral relations with great powers and the liberal internationalism enshrined in the UN. In an increasingly globalised international environment, the time of the English school of rationalist thinking on international relations has come—the thinking of writers such as Hedley Bull and Martin Wight. The rationalists recognised the reality that ours is a system of autonomous states that pursue their own interests. They also saw, however, that an international community of those states had emerged which could, in many instances, be reconciled with those interests.

I am a strong believer in an activist international community that is willing to exercise influence and, if need be, power to prevent systematic abuses of human rights. As the son of someone sent to Vietnam at a young age to fight in a highly contested example of such intervention, I am acutely aware of the dangers of that approach. Such interventions must be supported by a consensus of the international community and not just a few powerful players, and the intervention must be based on a plan that is achievable and time-bound and that is not simply likely to create different problems.

A well-known South Australian sports commentator once said, ‘Fortune favours the lucky,’ and I have certainly had my share of luck over the years. I will never forget the opportunities I received in working for the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union for the past 15 years. I got to work with some of the hardest working but most poorly rewarded members of our community: cleaners, hospital workers, childcare workers, workers in aged care and disabilities, hospitality and tourism workers and people working in a range of manufacturing sectors.

At 26 I withdrew my candidacy for a traditional Labor seat in the state parliament to take on the role of Secretary of the LHMU, a decision I have not once regretted. As well as the opportunity to continue to work daily with those workers, I was given the experience of managing a budget of $7 million to $8 million and 60 staff and dealing with employers that ranged from small community based childcare centres to some of the biggest companies operating in this country. To all those South Australians who have been a part of the LHMU in those years, and particularly to the delegates, staff and officials, I say my first thanks. They are noble and brave people.

For their mentoring and support, I thank Jeff Lawrence, who will be a great ACTU secretary, and his inspirational successor, Louise Tarrant. At a national level I would also like to thank Brian Daley, Helen Creed and Michael Crosby for their advice and friendship. Locally, I made too many friends at the ‘Misos’ to name, but I would like to mention my most recent leadership group of Chris Field, Sharon Holmes and David Di Troia, who I am very pleased to have succeed me as secretary, as well as my friend and PA for 14 years, Katerina Mesidis, who I will miss terribly.

I also received great support from many different unions in South Australia, none more so than from the Australian Services Union, with which I enjoyed a close friendship for all that time. My oldest friend in the party is Patrick Conlon, who has one of the sharpest minds I have ever encountered and without whom I would likely not have taken this rather challenging, and some might say questionable, lifestyle choice. I have also benefited from the close support over many years of Penny Wong and Jay Weatherill, among many others, and all of us learned about national politics if not quite at the knee of Nick Bolkus then at the barbecues of Nick Bolkus. I have learned an enormous amount from Don Farrell, who is soon to join us elsewhere in this building. His dignified and strategic approach to politics is an asset to our party.

One is nothing in this place without great staff. Already I have wonderful support from Julie, Lisa, Christine, Dung and Tim; but I would like particularly to thank David Gray, who has long been something of an adviser to me and who I am glad has joined me in my new career. I have also been lucky to have a wonderfully supportive family. My late grandmother knew my great-grandfather and my great-great-grandfather, who were both Tory premiers of South Australia. I think she had resolved that it was time for a change in our family’s political leanings. My mother raised my brother and me, and I never ceased to be amazed at her capacity to show us such unending love while having to keep all those balls in the air. I have enjoyed a great friendship with my father, David, and my siblings, Dan, Victoria, Rowan and Lydia, and have greatly appreciated the advice and companionship of my stepfather, Kevin.

The most important people in my life, though, are my wife, Suzanne, and my two gorgeous children, Ellie and Isaac. Suzanne and I have been best friends since we were teenagers, and I cannot imagine, and dread, what type of person I would be without us having been side by side all those years. While I have great hopes for what I can achieve in this place, my heart will always be back in Adelaide with them. I thank the House for its attention.

Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Housing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a pleasure to speak to the address-in-reply motion on day 4 of the 42nd Parliament. It is an immense privilege to represent the people of Farrer in this place. To represent my constituents well and with energy is my No. 1 wish for the term of this parliament. I thank the people of Albury, Deniliquin, Broken Hill, Hay and Menindee for their trust. May I also thank the residents of the local government areas of Greater Hume, Corowa, Balranald, Wakool, Wentworth, Urana, Berrigan, Murray, Jerilderie and the unincorporated area of far west New South Wales. Thank you for the faith you have shown in re-electing me to this place to be your voice, in many cases so very far from where you live. As your local member I will do my best to bring your issues, your concerns and your fears to the attention of the government.

There will be big-picture items such as what is happening with water. There will also be important matters brought to me by people who have, in many cases, reached the end of the line and for whom the parliament is the place of last resort. Often these are the people in our society whom we rarely encounter in our everyday lives until they feel there is no-one else to turn to but their elected representative. I am sure many members of parliament would agree that the assistance we provide in these cases gives us the greatest sense of satisfaction—for example, helping a person in their 50s gain early access to their superannuation because of a terminal illness; cutting through the misunderstandings and red tape to help families and individuals receive emergency payments; finding a way for a Vietnam veteran to get tertiary studies paid for by the government of the nation that sent him to war; or negotiating an act of grace payment so that a separated father who inadvertently gave incorrect details to the Child Support Agency gets a refund. Often as I sit listening to these stories and knowing that I cannot help I feel disappointed and frustrated. I recall mentioning this to Bishop George Browning, recently retired as the Anglican Bishop of Canberra-Goulburn. He said to me, ‘You absorb their pain.’ It is true. By hearing, understanding and empathising, we do play a part. And, although we cannot always wave a magic wand there and then, as policy is developed over the years it is the marginalised that we often have in our thoughts—it is their hardships and stories and the anecdotes from their lives that come to mind. And, in thinking about how a particular proposal would affect them, we often test it in the real world better than a pile of position and discussion papers ever would.

I thank my office staff most sincerely for the part they play in providing a sympathetic and understanding face and voice to all who come to call. I also thank the liaison officers from all our government departments, especially Centrelink. We contact them with our constituents’ problems and they act on them swiftly and positively. I also thank the local staff of Telstra Country Wide. The relationship between governments, oppositions and Telstra is somewhat problematic. Indeed, it can be good one day and not so good the next. But our local contacts are always there to listen to complaints and try to fix them. I really appreciate this.

The electorate of Farrer has now doubled in size. It stretches from the edge of the Greater Hume Shire, east of Albury along the Murray to Wentworth and the South Australian border, up to Broken Hill and beyond to Tibooburra and Cameron’s Corner—nearly 200,000 square kilometres, influenced by three time zones, from the dog fence in the far north-west of New South Wales to Lake Hume, which is the largest water storage on the Murray River, at Albury, with six times the holding capacity of Sydney Harbour and 370 kilometres of shoreline. It is defined by the Murray River and the Darling River, by both irrigated and dryland agriculture and horticultures, by the important mining town of Broken Hill, by the regional city of Albury and by the smaller towns and villages in between.

People often express surprise at the size and shape of my electorate and what they perceive to be an impossible task in representing such a diverse community, across an area that is slightly more than three times the size of Tasmania and nearly nine-tenths the size of Victoria. I do not mind the size, the distances I travel or the fact that I seem to be constantly on the road or in the air. I have great affection for western New South Wales and a great passion for its people. I wish I could do more, see more and learn more, but there are not enough hours in the day. I appreciate that all federal electorates must contain the same number of voters, but country people are disadvantaged. It is one of the reasons why the PM’s new sitting timetable is flawed. A ‘Rudd day off’ in parliament on Fridays: government ministers shoot through, government backbenchers talk to empty benches and the opposition is not able to do its fundamental job of holding the government to account. For me, my time here is never wasted, but, if the Friday sitting day is going to be devoid of ministerial accountability and question time, I would prefer to spend it in my electorate.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! It being 2 pm, the debate is interrupted in accordance with standing order 97. The debate may be resumed at a later hour. The member for Farrer will have leave to continue speaking when the debate is resumed.