John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am delighted in this chamber to talk about Bennelong's wonderful local Asian community. 2016 is the Year of the Money and, like every year, it will be met with celebrations throughout our region. My electorate of Bennelong is fortunate to be home to one of the most multicultural areas in the country, with especially large Chinese and Korean-speaking communities. Over the past few weeks these communities have turned the suburbs into a sea of festivities as they welcomed in the lunar new year—kung hei fat choy.

Eastwood is the heart of Bennelong and was home to many of these festivities. Last weekend saw thousands of people come to Eastwood for an extravaganza of Asian cultures, with food, music, sports, fireworks, dancing and merriment everywhere. This year, as every year, the lion dancers were a highlight with feats of incredible athleticism thrilling the crowds. Rowe Street also saw the annual lunar new year cooking competition which again saw competitors from across the community cook some incredible creations delighting those who were lucky enough to taste.

All of these celebrations were organised by the incredible hand of Hugh Lee and his team. Hugh has been a stalwart of the community for decades, founding the Australian Asian Association of Bennelong, leading the Eastwood Chinese Senior Citizens Club, and chairing the Eastwood lunar new year celebration committee. Every year Hugh pulls out all the stops to create some of the best community celebrations that Sydney has to offer, for which all of Bennelong is incredibly grateful. Our community's strength is its diversity. I am always proud to see the large numbers of people from all ethnicities who turn out to see this wonderful display of Chinese and Korean cultures. This fusion of cultures is what makes our part of Sydney great and what makes me so proud to be its representative.

Now to a topic of interest to my local community, especially the excellent pharmaceutical companies and the many people suffering from hepatitis C. I am delighted to inform the chamber that from this week, new hepatitis C treatments will be available on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. It is estimated that 230,000 Australians are living with hepatitis C. If left untreated, hepatitis C can cause serious liver disease, and there are approximately 700 deaths attributable to this chronic condition in Australia each year. Thousands more suffer a variety of serious liver diseases and conditions.

In a first for the treatment of hepatitis in Australia, both specialists and GPs will be able to prescribe treatments. GPs will be able to prescribe these medicines following consultation with a specialist physician experienced in the treatment of hepatitis C.

I would like to thank health minister Susan Ley and her department, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and the Therapeutic Goods Administration for granting access to these medicines for all Australians living with hepatitis C. I would like to recognise Hepatitis Australia, patients, physicians and all those who have worked tirelessly to allow broad access to these medicines. Most importantly, I would like to pay tribute to the pharmaceutical companies that have worked so hard to get these medicines from R&D through the clinical trials and now to the patients. There are three companies behind these hep C drugs. I would like to thank and congratulate everyone from Gilead, Bristol-Myers Squibb and AbbVie.

These therapies have an incredible cure rate of 90 per cent and work faster, with fewer side effects, than anything else previously funded through PBS. This is a giant leap in the treatment of this condition. All the people and companies that have enabled this medicine to reach this stage and help so many people deserve our sincere thanks. These break-through medicines are a game-changer for millions of hep C sufferers worldwide.

None of this would be possible were it not for the huge investment, long-term commitment and dedication to positive health outcomes embraced by our innovative medicines sector. As member for Bennelong I am proud that my community is home to so many of these companies that create thousands of highly skilled jobs for local residents and beyond.