Keith Pitt (Hinkler, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to place on the Hansardmy thanks to the Deputy Prime Minister, Warren Truss, and his wife, Lyn. They have been incredibly supportive of the new people on the backbench. I would like to relay a short story about the Deputy Prime Minister and I certainly wish him a speedy recovery.

As a new backbencher, having only been here for about three months, I received a call from the Deputy Prime Minister to advise me that he would be in Hervey Bay, which is in my electorate, for a week. It was actually a holiday, probably the last time he had one! But that is the type of leader that Warren Truss, the Deputy Prime Minister of this country, is. He thought enough of one of his backbenchers to ring them, to let them know that he would in fact be in their electorate, even though it was not on business.

He is a fantastic Leader of the Nationals. He is calm, cool, collected and experienced. He is well needed by our party. I wish him a speedy recovery in his current circumstances.

However, Hervey Bay is the place to go to recuperate. It is a wonderful part of my electorate and I expect everyone in Australia is aware of the great and outstanding values of Hervey Bay, the things that you can see and do. You can walk along the esplanade in the mornings where it is beautiful and cool. You can eat as many Hervey Bay sea scallops as you would like. It is a fantastic region. Not only that, you can duck up to the Bundaberg rum factory and have a look at the tourism that is on offer there. And, right now, it is turtle season at Mon Repos, with the world-famous and renowned loggerhead turtles that nest only there. Come and see them as soon as you can! (Time expired)