Richard Di Natale (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I'll be very brief. It has been an incredible year—a tough year. Personally, I feel like I'm limping towards the finish line, both literally and metaphorically. I want to thank, most importantly, all the people who make the building tick. They've all been mentioned, but we can't mention them enough: the cleaners, the security staff, the catering staff, the maintenance staff, the gardeners who make this place look incredible, the DPS staff who have helped us with all sorts of odd jobs—and thank you for the loan of the electric buggy—the committee staff and the procedures and drafting teams. We've pushed you hard, and I want to thank you so much for what you've done for us. The Parliamentary Budget Office, in a difficult year, were pushed hard. Their analysis and professionalism was greatly welcomed, and I think we've raised the standard of debate in this country. I thank the COMCAR drivers—some of them are of a certain age, and it's been good to get some advice on what to do with my knee replacement, many of them having gone through that themselves.

Obviously I thank the President of the Senate, Senator Cormann and Senator Wong, and both sides of the chamber. It's good to see some new faces, particularly in the Liberal Party, not the least of which because of some of the people they've actually replaced.