Tony Pasin (Barker, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mount Gambier was delighted to welcome Prime Minister Abbott to our city on Tuesday last, following an invitation extended to him jointly by Mayor Lee and me. This visit marks the third time that a sitting Prime Minister has visited South Australia's largest regional city during my lifetime and, proudly, all of them have been from the coalition.

Tuesday night was a magnificent showcase of the talents of students from the James Morrison Academy of Music as they and James Morrison played for 560 members of the local community at The Barn Palais. At the dinner the Prime Minister surprised everyone, including me, with his full-throated endorsement of our city's campaign for an MRI licence, as he observed that Mount Gambier deserves to have one, with the closest available MRI machine either in Adelaide to the east or across the border in Warrnambool to the west.

The following morning the Prime Minister and I visited the Mount Gambier saleyards to see the weekly cattle sales and to get a better understanding of the benefits that will flow from the successful conclusion of a trifecta of free trade agreements, not to mention the re-establishment of the live cattle trade that those opposite did so much damage to.

Later that morning, Prime Minister Abbott and I visited the offices of The Border Watch newspaper. It was the first prime ministerial visit to that proud paper over its 150-year history, following which we met with Father Paul Gardiner, Sister Sue McGuinness and Sister Loretto O'Connor, as well as volunteers from the Mary MacKillop Penola Centre, to discuss the inspirational life of Mother Mary MacKillop, Australia's first saint.

It was a fantastic visit and you are welcome to return.