Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

All of us know here in the House of Representatives that to do our job to the best of our ability we work in partnership with our local community. In that vein, I want to thank in this speech so many members of the local community who have worked so hard in partnership with me in a range of areas. I have spoken previously of my local apprentice and trainee of the year awards and the members who judged those awards over a long period of time. I wanted today to thank those members of the local community who volunteered their time to judge my annual Anzac schools essay writing prize: Anthony McAleer, Roger Boness, Ray Yates, Otis Heffernan-Wooden, Caroline Evans, the late Don Parson—a dear friend of mine—and his daughter, Talia Parsons, as well.

As we know, we also have a number of local grants programs, where we consult with community members on assessing those applications and receive their advice. I want to thank those people who have given their time in assessing those over a long period of time. In the Local Sporting Champions program, I want to thank Lee Nolan, Julia McDonald, Randall Bourchier and Beck Mitchell. For the Anzac Centenary Grants and Armistice Centenary program—obviously a few years back—I thank Ray Yates, Brigadier Michael Phillips (retired), Councillor Jim Charles, Anthony McAleer, Margi Sank, Bob Gannaway and Sue Thompson. I thank those who have assessed the Stronger Communities grants, volunteer grants and Powering Communities program: Brett Whelan, Caroline Evans, Toni Madden, Chris Dowling, and Debbie Sadlier. For the community environment grants program I want to thank Malcolm Calder, Morris Maxwell, the late Maureen Bond and Melissa Carmody, who represented the Yarra Ranges Council. Finally, for the Local Schools Community Fund, I thank the former principals and current principals—Ray Yates, Peter Leonard, Sally Broadly, Stewart Miller and John Faulkner—and other people who were prepared to volunteer their time. They have done a magnificent job in volunteering their time to ensure that our community can be the best it can be.

As their federal member of parliament, I just wanted to take the time to thank them individually here today for everything that they have done. They have gone about their business, often meeting in my office late in the afternoon or early evening, to really make their contribution to the Yarra Valley and the Dandenong Ranges. So here in the Federation Chamber of the House, I want to thank them so much for all they have done, over so many years in many cases.