Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's always great to rise in this place and speak about the terrific community groups that are in our various electorates, and even better when we can stand in this place and say that we have funded and supported some of these terrific groups. One of the reasons we can fund and support some of these terrific organisations and groups is this government is managing the budget well, and we've got an economy that, as a result, is providing the resources to the government to fund these organisations. It is a dividend to our communities as a result of their hard work and enterprise that this government has encouraged.

I'd like to take this opportunity to single out a couple of groups which we have made some announcements for recently. The first one I'd like to acknowledge is Logan Basketball; I acknowledge the terrific work done by the team there. Logan Basketball look after some 3,000 players across five clubs at the Cornubia Park Sports Centre and they do an outstanding job, led by Sandra and Joshua in particular. I'm pleased to say that the government has invested $264,000 as part of the Move It AUS Community Sport Infrastructure grant—

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 11:08 to 11:27

As I was saying before we were so rudely interrupted, one of the great clubs in my electorate is Logan Basketball. We've had the pleasure of providing them with an additional $264,000 of funding under the community sport infrastructure grant program. This funding will got to building new change room facilities at Logan Basketball. This means a lot to the club because the club is continuing to grow. Funding these new change rooms will see increased participation and the club continue to grow, particularly the women's section of the club. The change rooms are currently in poor condition, particularly for the women. During this period of growth we're seeing enormous growth in women's participation. Separating the change rooms will give added incentive for women to come back and play basketball.

Logan Basketball was formed 21 years ago. It was the first basketball club formed in Logan. I'm proud to say that this government is prioritising investment in grassroots local sporting clubs because it recognises the wider health, social and community benefits that come from greater activity and participation in sport.

Another terrific community organisation in my electorate—and it also covers areas of Rankin—is the Street Doctor, which a Logan City medical service provider set up to provide further help and support to the homeless, those suffering domestic violence, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged. It has been operating for over four years. The Street Doctor delivers after-hours bulk-billed and accessible care in a secure environment for those living rough on the streets. It was interesting talking to them about the services they provide and the people that they see. This terrific service fulfils a great need in our community, as, sadly, there are a number of people in our community who are disconnected and, for whatever reason, don't have the connections and support mechanisms necessary to engage more fully in society.

Last week we announced $600,000 worth of funding to Street Doctor, for them to extend their service and to better help those most disadvantaged; that's $200,000 a year over the next three years. In addition, we provided $600,000 to Pharmaceutical Rehabilitation Services in my electorate. This is a targeted program with a focus on drug and alcohol treatment, preventing primary disease, chronic disease management and mental health. PRS engages with local GPs to assist them with patients who have drug and alcohol dependency, and also to help with hep-C treatment methods.

This support to these organisations across our community is designed to help support those most in need. I'm very proud to say that this government, through its prudent budget management, has the funds to support these great local organisations, and I thank them for the work they do.