Roger Price (Chifley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tonight I want to add my congratulations and best wishes to those of lots of my constituents and students at Doonside Technology High School for Jayme Paris, who is in Beijing competing in the Paralympic Games. She suffers from cerebella ataxia due to birth asphyxiation. She competed in the cerebral palsy division 3 cycling. The cycling competition started on 7 September and finished on 14 September. She competed in the 500-metre time trial, the women’s individual time trial and the women’s individual pursuit. She came third in the women’s 500-metre time trial, fourth in the women’s individual pursuit and eighth in the women’s individual time trial. What a magnificent performance. Currently ranked second in the world rankings, she does not believe in the word ‘can’t’. She competed for the first time in sport in 2006 and for the first time for Australia in 2007. Jayme was named 2008 Blacktown City Young Citizen of the Year at the mayoral Australia Day Luncheon earlier this year. I know when she returns that she will return to much joy and celebration from all her fellow students at Doonside Technology High School and her legion of fans.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank the more than 500 pensioners who attended the Positive Living and Lifestyle forum for seniors that we held on 20 August 2008 at Blacktown RSL. It was a magnificent roll-up. I do apologise because we were totally unprepared for such overwhelming numbers. It made interaction somewhat difficult. Whilst I am pledged to continue to hold these forums I can assure those who attended, and who might like to attend again, and the many who rang to apologise that they could not attend that we will perhaps aim to have a tad smaller audience. I would particularly like to thank the Sydney West Area Health team—Dr Janet Sheridan, Dr John Obed, Mr Mark Kearin and Mr Dominic Dawson; the presenter from the Mount Druitt Community Legal Centre, principal solicitor Robert Stoyef; from Blacktown Centrelink, Eleanor Dasco; from Legal Aid New South Wales, Lee Critchley; from the Cancer Council, Margaret Bunting; and from the Blacktown police, Constable Shaun Collings and Inspector Paul Glinn. Obviously, such a non-political forum would not have been possible without these very distinguished presenters.

I must say that the event was well received by all who attended. There was, as I said, many requests to hold future forums, and I am committed to doing that. Some of the subject areas that we covered at that forum included the demographics and the health of the Blacktown and Mount Druitt communities; healthy ageing; and various lifestyle factors that affect health including—I am a bit embarrassed to repeat these, and I am not making any personal explanations, Mr Speaker—obesity, alcohol consumption, smoking and risk-taking behaviour. I think I will deny the latter! The forum also covered wills, mortgages and property distribution—key issues for seniors; legal entitlements; Centrelink entitlements such as carer entitlements; the role of the aged pension as a safety net, and how rates are calculated and assessed, including your rights and obligations as seniors; local transport in the Mount Druitt and Blacktown areas; home and personal safety, and what to do in dangerous situations such as a home invasion; and breast cancer. Over 4,000 women each year are diagnosed with breast cancer. All women aged 50 and over should have a mammogram every two years to screen for breast cancer.

These subject matters were keenly listened to by more than 500 seniors, and there were questions. Unfortunately, because of timing schedules and the size of the audience not too many people got to ask a question, but it was thoroughly worth while. And, as I say, I intend to repeat the exercise.

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

Order! It being 10.00 pm, the debate is interrupted.