Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to talk about a local sports club in my electorate, Redcliffe's Dolphins. They have a proud history on the Redcliffe peninsula and employ more than 200 people locally. The Redcliffe Leagues Club has almost 30,000 members and continues to support the local community by providing function rooms, restaurants and a health precinct. It has even opened a new local shopping centre. The club also supports the personal development of more than 800 junior Rugby League players, as well as other sports like netball, cricket, Dolphins hockey, and soccer. I would like to thank the club CEO, Tony Murphy, and the Dolphins staff for the great work that they do locally.

Thanks also to the hundreds of local people in my electorate who signed my petition for an upgrade to the Dolphins stadium. An upgrade will mean not just an increase in seating capacity but also larger events and more sports being played in Redcliffe. It will mean more local jobs and more local tourism and it will, in turn, benefit other small businesses. I would like to see federal funding contributed to the $12 million project. Whilst it did not receive Stronger Regions Fund money, I will continue to advocate for this project. I want to thank the local council for contributing. Unfortunately, the state government have said no. But as the local federal member I will continue to advocate strongly for this project.