Rob Mitchell
McEwen · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“As family, friends and our community gather at Hidden Valley right now, I rise to acknowledge the passing of my dear friend Jeremy Scrivens, co-founder of Love in Action in Wallan.”
“Through Love in Action, Jeremy and Sue quietly and humbly supported those facing hardship across the community. His loss will be felt by many. His family—Sue, Sarah, Michael and Ruby—have all lost a devoted husband, father and grandfather.”
“Don was a founding member of the committee for the Woodend Winter Arts Festival and played an essential role in the establishment of the words and ideas event, attracting big thinkers like Barry Jones, Don Watson and David Marr. Let me tell you, it was always a challenge to speak after one of those three.”
“I rise today to acknowledge the passing of a remarkable member of our community, Mr Don Drummond of Woodend. Don and his late wife, Sheila, were founding members of the re-established Woodend ALP branch in 2004. They welcomed members into their home with great hospitality, mulled wine and lively conversation.”
“But sadly this behaviour was becoming increasingly widespread, in part because DVA's allied health arrangements were uncapped, which allowed these businesses to claim much more for services that some veterans didn't need. So the government is making an adjustment to a $5,000 amount rather than a visit based calculation.”
“Those who need the care will get the care. It is very simple. By removing overservicing, we are restoring integrity to the system. Importantly, by doing this we increase the fees that will be paid to allied health professionals by $169 million. That means it's easier for veterans to access health care without being taken advantage of.”
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“Through Love in Action, Jeremy and Sue quietly and humbly supported those facing hardship across the community. His loss will be felt by many. His family—Sue, Sarah, Michael and Ruby—have all lost a devoted husband, father and grandfather. The Love in Action family has lost their inspiring founder, our community has lost one of its most generous servants and I have lost a cherished friend. I extend my deepest condolences to his family, friends and all those who loved him. His legacy will live on in the countless acts of kindness that he inspired. I want to say thank you, Jeremy, for your friendship and your unwavering commitment to serving others. We could all learn from it, and our community is a lot better for having you.”
“As family, friends and our community gather at Hidden Valley right now, I rise to acknowledge the passing of my dear friend Jeremy Scrivens, co-founder of Love in Action in Wallan. He was a man whose compassion, faith and commitment to helping others transformed countless lives across our community, a gentleman of humility and wisdom, someone whose deep thinking was only matched by his generosity, compassion and human spirit. Jeremy was a rare gift to this world. He inspired, uplifted and set challenges for everyone around him. To me, he was a friend and a mentor. Over many years, I've had the absolute privilege of learning from his example. He had an extraordinary ability to see the good in people and to bring people together in service of a common purpose.”
“He's out the door. The member might want to remember it was his government that refused to pay veterans for three years. It was his government that said there was no value in supporting veterans. So you're a moron.”
“Don was a founding member of the committee for the Woodend Winter Arts Festival and played an essential role in the establishment of the words and ideas event, attracting big thinkers like Barry Jones, Don Watson and David Marr. Let me tell you, it was always a challenge to speak after one of those three. Those who knew Don remember not only his vast knowledge but his kindness, humility and willingness to help others. He understood that life is about people, their stories and their connections. That's what binds us together. Our community will sadly miss Don, and I know that they share their condolences with Don's family and friends and all those who loved him. Don was a truly great man and a great friend. He will be greatly missed. Vale Don Drummond.”
“I rise today to acknowledge the passing of a remarkable member of our community, Mr Don Drummond of Woodend. Don and his late wife, Sheila, were founding members of the re-established Woodend ALP branch in 2004. They welcomed members into their home with great hospitality, mulled wine and lively conversation. He was a staunch and loyal supporter of the area's elected representatives and the first to volunteer his time. I remember him as a charismatic man of integrity and loyalty with an encyclopaedic knowledge of Labor policy and history. Even in his 90s and in care, he would still let me know what he thought via email.”
“Labor is committed to providing the support our veterans need, and it's in the nation's interests. It's our duty and our honour to provide that support. The House of Representatives transcript was published up to 20:00 . The remainder of the transcript will be published progressively as it is completed. The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Ms Aldred ) took the chair at 09:30.”
“But that's not all. It's not just about funding better veterans support. We've made once-in-a-century changes to simplify veterans entitlements. From July 2026, all veterans' claims will be assessed under one piece of legislation, making it simpler to use and faster to process. This was a recommendation of the royal commission, which associated the complexity of the current system with suicidality. The Veteran and Family Wellbeing Agency will be up and running next month. This will support veterans and their families as they transition from service. What's more, it will provide a new focus on wellbeing across the veterans ecosystem. The difference is night and day. The coalition can play grievance politics all they like, but it's disingenuous to the Australian people, most of all to veterans.”
“Those who need the care will get the care. It is very simple. By removing overservicing, we are restoring integrity to the system. Importantly, by doing this we increase the fees that will be paid to allied health professionals by $169 million. That means it's easier for veterans to access health care without being taken advantage of. From July 2027, veterans will have improved access to allied health support services including physiotherapy, psychology, occupational therapy, podiatry and more. Examples of funding increases are that physiotherapy and exercise in physiological standard consultations, which are now $75, will increase to $110; a standard podiatry consultation will increase to $110; and a 50-minute psychology consultation that's currently $160 will increase to $260. This means our veterans can access the support they need.”
“But sadly this behaviour was becoming increasingly widespread, in part because DVA's allied health arrangements were uncapped, which allowed these businesses to claim much more for services that some veterans didn't need. So the government is making an adjustment to a $5,000 amount rather than a visit based calculation. But what seems to have been ignored—and, I would say, almost deliberately—by those on the other side is that that is well above what the vast majority of veterans will ever actually access. On average, this support will exceed that of the 12-session model under the previous coalition governments. Additionally, let's be really clear, allied health services above $5,000, where needed, where there is a valid clinical reason, will be paid for. Veterans are not going to be left out in the street without the service they need.”
“Sadly, though, there's been a degree of overservicing in the system, where practitioners took advantage of our veterans. This is an unfortunate legacy of the status quo that we inherited in 2022. The previous system constrained access to allied health services, so veterans had to keep going back to GPs every 12 sessions. A portion of allied health businesses hiked prices, taking advantage of the taxpayer dollar that was put there by all Australians to support veterans. They took that opportunity to increase their profits but not address the clinical needs of the veterans in front of them. There are always going to be a few bad eggs out there, even in health care.”
“To compare, in our first three years in government we spent $37.9 billion on veterans compensation and treatment, nearly $7 billion more than in the last three financial years of the coalition. On 12 May, the Treasurer handed down a budget that builds upon the ongoing and essential support for veterans. We're implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide—a royal commission that many on the other side ducked and weaved and tried to avoid—including, last year, 32 of the recommendations, with two-thirds implemented in total by the end of 2026. In the 2026 budget alone, more than $770 million was allocated to specifically address the royal commission recommendations. We've improved the claims system. More people have been able to get access to the health care they need.”
“The Albanese Labor government understands the grave responsibility of respecting and supporting those who serve our nation. We don't wrap ourselves in flags and go out with a bit of faux patriotism. We actually get things done. We know our veterans put their lives on the line to protect our way of life, and many come home with serious injuries, both seen and unseen. When we came to office, the Department of Veterans' Affairs had been underfunded and underresourced. Almost 42,000 claims sat unresponded to as well. Veterans were left waiting for too long for the support they deserved. In fact, the previous secretary of DVA, Major General Liz Cosson, said that, under the resourcing of the previous government, the backlog would never be cleared.”
“My question is to the Treasurer. What does today's national accounts data tell us about the resilience of Australia's economy, and how does the government's economic agenda compare to other approaches?”
“In this parliament, we have already weathered global headwinds outside the control of one government. But, with this budget, we can improve the lives of Australians even in the face of international challenges.”
“These changes build on the work done in our previous budgets to help actually make life better for small businesses in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. We've also been working every day since we came to government to help with the cost of living, with, already, three rounds of tax cuts, more bulk-billing, cheaper medicines, free TAFE, cheaper child care, more support for parents—all these things. In an uncertain world, we're making sure Australia is prepared for whatever comes next. And it's not just members of the government praising the budget. I'm constantly hearing from locals, especially young people, that we are doing the right thing by them. Whether it's in Woodend, Wallan, Doreen or Diamond Creek, McEwen residents are in a better position for growth.”
“The recent reform direction set by the Treasurer's Economic Reform Roundtable will deliver a significant package of practical reforms that will meaningfully boost productivity growth. The $20,000 instant asset write-off will be permanent from next year. That is so important. It was a great Labor policy that we kept on to make sure that we help supported small businesses, to give them a fair go and the confidence they need to invest. We're sending a message: we will give you a fair go. We're cutting red tape by reducing financial sector compliance costs by $780 million a year by progressing 14 legislative reforms; reforming the research and development tax incentive to unlock $400 million per year in additional R&D by young firms; and expanding tax incentives for venture capital.”
“We're not saying we're going to do it; we're actually getting on with the job and getting it done. You can actually see it in the ground now. When we think about the nine years of the previous government, there was not one drop, not 1c, of infrastructure funding going into our region. So with over a billion dollars in roads, we're getting on with something else that's been neglected for a long, long time—the old Sydney Road promise. We've got bulk-billing rates going up far in excess of what they were even during the COVID period, when bulk-billing rates went up and people could go and get their vaccination for nothing. But we're also backing small businesses because we know the importance of that.”
“The Watson Street upgrade completes the diamond interchange for Watson Street and Hume Freeway, with new ramps giving drivers direct access to Wallan north and south on the freeway, ending congestion, improving traffic flow. We've got the duplication of Yan Yean Road commitment at stage 2 as well. These are the important arterial roads that carry us around. The Hume Highway carries people not only to Melbourne but across Victoria and across regional communities. It's also where we've delivered the Cameron's Lane Interchange, nearly $1 billion in investment to build the Beveridge Intermodal Precinct. That's the Melbourne end of the Inland Rail, the rail that was multibillions of dollars overdue, multiyears behind. We fixed that, got it back on track. We've got shovels in the ground actually delivering it.”
“With our state government's $7.7 million, the much-needed upgrades will make a real difference to the people who live in those communities, who have to suffer every day with the traffic. Our minister for infrastructure put it best: it's an upgrade people living in Melbourne's outer north have called for and deserve. We're a peri urban electorate. We're situated on the city's biggest growth corridor. We are growing like topsy. It's clear investment in McEwen is investment in our future. It doesn't end there. In Wallan, we took on the Watson Street interchange, the one that was promised and never delivered. The Northern Highway intersection is now going ahead at stage 2 of those three-stage projects.”
“We saw with Black Spot programs three major things: rural and regional areas, being prone to major disaster and new transport routes. Somehow the 'One Neurone' member got 28 towers in their electorate of New England, but the seat of McEwen, which had about 83 per cent of it burnt out in the last few decades—200 lives lost during fires—and has the Calder and the Hume freeways, got 1½. You would have to say that was not a program that was treated fairly and equally and based on the criteria. We have also delivered roads, and delivering roads is something I'm very proud to see us doing. We are delivering Donnybrook Road, which was neglected since 2004, with not a piece of road work being done. We're also delivering $175 million into a new overpass on the Hume Freeway and the first stages of the duplication. We couldn't be prouder of this.”
“Charitable donations and other non-work related reductions will continue to be claimed on top of the instant tax deduction, as will union and other trade or business or professional association membership. It's simple: with Labor, Australian workers can earn more and keep more of what they earn. In total, the average Australian average worker should benefit by about $3,000 in their pockets by 2028. Let's be clear, it's about helping everyday Australians. We on this side look at local investments in our community. While listening to the tirade about investments in infrastructure and Black Spot programs, I was shocked because we know that, under the previous system, they were set up in such a way that a fair go was not a fair go.”
“From these reforms we'll get 75,000 extra homes on the market. I want to emphasise the scale of that assistance. That's 75,000 families, in their own home, who can feel secure and realise an Australian dream. Labor is leading from the front by putting money back in the pockets of regular working people. A total of 3.5 million Victorians will benefit from our new $250 working Australians tax offset. That's just the latest step in Labor's track record of tax relief. We're not the party of vested interests; we are the party of the fair go. On top of that, the Albanese Labor government will introduce a $1,000 instant tax deduction next financial year, with around 6.2 million workers set to benefit directly from that.”
“Why should aspiration be limited to people who can afford to trade assets? Aspiration should extend to a childcare worker, a nurse or a teacher who's working hard and trying to get ahead. We know this. That's why these landmark reforms to capital gains tax and negative gearing are being introduced. I'm happy to be on the record, even as late as last year, saying that I had discussed with the Treasurer my support for restricting tax breaks for housing investors to brand new properties and for grandfathering the current arrangements for existing landlords. I was clear that I'd certainly support changes to capital gains tax and I would support changes to negative gearing. Now budget night has come and gone and we are getting on with the job, cleaning up the mess that was left to us by those opposite.”
“These are investments that add to housing supply, rather than increasing prices on existing homes. Four years ago, we inherited a broken taxation system, and we've been focused and determined to fix it. The concessions favour those who produce in our economy, and they couldn't come at a better time, with a global oil shock and a housing crisis. We are delivering tax relief. We are building an economy that works for people. An economy begins with homeownership. A dream of homeownership is part of the Australian story. Sadly, as I said, right now it's just too hard for many Australians to get into their own home and get ahead. A decade of coalition government let these conditions take root. In recent weeks, the opposition has made much of the 'aspirational Australians' budget, but it's a very narrow and limited view of the world.”
“Right now first home buyers are being priced out of the market—no ifs and buts—but the tax reforms are all about reducing the gap between how Australia taxes income from work and income from wealth or investment. If we think about a worker who's earning $120,000 in wages, they're generally paying the full marginal income tax on every dollar earned, while investors are able to reduce tax through concessions like negative gearing and the 50 per cent capital gains discount. The reforms aim to narrow down that difference, so workers are not, effectively, shouldering the load and subsidising the investment losses of others. Redirecting tax incentives for investors towards newly built homes, as I said, is the way forward, and that's what we're doing.”
“Having a government focused on getting homes built—places for people to settle down—and increasing stock is the way forward, not giving tax breaks to people who have 10, 20, 30 or 40 properties to be able to work off, not leaving the people that go to work every day to carry the burden of the tax system. We had a visit from Joe Hockey this week. Remember Joe Hockey, who stood in this parliament and said, 'We've got lifters and leaners.' The people that are doing the hard work of the lifting are those that come to work and use manual labour to get things done. They're the ones carrying the burden of the system. Those that are able to sit at home and invest in properties, because they've had the opportunity to build wealth—it's about time they chipped in a bit. It's about time the tax system worked for people trying to get ahead.”
“All they're worried about is a taxation break. You can still do that, and I think the decision that was made on housing and homes has been sensational. If you want to use negative gearing, then go out there and buy a new home. Get a new house built. Put one into the country's stock to help the biggest issue we have. You'll see a lot of deflection from those opposite about what's happening in the housing market. They'll try and blame every migrant, with every excuse under the sun, but you look at any major piece of work that's been done on housing and shortage is the No. 1 issue.”
“But, right now, first home buyers have been priced out of property by investors, where the tax department is on their side. We are on the side of Australians. We want to see people in their own homes. No more will you go to an auction and see investor versus investor because they can use tax breaks to get through. We want to make sure that the families that are working hard, trying to build their foundation and get somewhere to settle down, have the opportunity to buy a home. That's the distinction between us and those opposite. We talk about housing and homes. We talk about putting people into homes—people fleeing domestic violence, people on low incomes, first responders, healthcare workers. It's about getting them a home to live in, whereas when you listen to the language of those opposite it's about houses being an asset.”
“That's a 10th of what they gave the Great Barrier Reef Foundation in a promise made to them that they didn't even know about. That was a government that could not deliver a pizza, let alone a road project, a hospital, bulk-billing—anything. But when our government came to power, we had to turn that around. And we're playing catch-up. Do you remember Victoria? It only received $7 out of every $100 in road infrastructure funding across the nation under the former government. But we're addressing that. Our budget is about delivering for families, for young people, for working people and for those who rely on our safety net. It's a fair budget. It's a budget that faces the challenges we face today. When you work hard and save, you should be able to buy your own home.”
“They came out and celebrated, standing there next to the brass plaque that said, 'This footbridge was opened by Fran Bailey and John Howard in 2003.' Imagine coming out to a marginal seat, the seat that you went to the election saying, 'This is our No. 1 target,' and the only thing you could celebrate was something that happened 22 years ago. In fact, over the nine years of the Liberal-National coalition, not one dollar was spent on road projects. There were lots of press releases. Damian Drum was out there flicking press releases saying, 'We're going to do this;' 'We're going to that.' Apparently, they were going to duplicate 20 kilometres of the Hume Freeway—both sides, under bridges, over roads—at a cost of $50 million.”
“We were told we would have a budget surplus in each and every year. We were told we were going to have debt cut, but it went to $1.2 trillion. We've paid down debt, with billions of dollars saved in interest. Billions of dollars saved means that we can put it into the things that matter, such as housing, education, health and investment in roads. At the last election we had a Liberal candidate get stuck into us because we hadn't finished building a road project that had been on the cards for 10 years. In those 10 years that it hadn't been built, we were actually in there doing it, standing knee-deep in mud. It was great fun.”
“In a calm, measured response, I'll just repeat these words: no cuts to education, no cuts to health, no cuts to SBS—and every single one broken. There's the carbon tax. We all remember that great lie, and that can be said a lie, because the then chief of staff to Prime Minister Abbott, Peta Credlin—that great lefty—got up and admitted on Sky TV that their whole campaign was a lie, an absolute lie. But it was put on the Australian people. So you can't take the words of those opposite to be genuine and fair dinkum when they come in here with probably the greatest hypocrisy of events that we've seen in a long, long time. It's just not right. But I'll tell you what is right. What is right is building a budget and building a nation's future. It's about picking up the pieces after nine long years.”
“The Albanese Labor government has listened, and now we are turning what we've been told into action. We are enhancing consumer safeguards and delivering on our promises, and I commend this bill to the House.”
“You don't need to take it from us; you can listen to the Australian Telecommunications Alliance, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network and the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. All were consulted on this bill before it was introduced. To conclude—I think it's important to recognise the sliding-doors moment that Australia is facing right now. We are seeing great developments in online communication and generative AI technology that improve quality of life. The future is exciting, and it's full of promise. But, as we reach forward for tomorrow, we must also make sure that no-one is stuck with the problems of the past—the problems created under nine years of mismanagement.”
“In round 3 of the Regional Connectivity Program, we have awarded $115 million to 74 projects that will respond to local priorities. These initiatives will deliver economic opportunities and social benefits for regional, rural and remote communities. Through the On Farm Connectivity Program, the government has allocated $43 million across three rounds to enable primary producers in agriculture, forestry and fisheries to extend connectivity in their fields and take advantage of connected machinery and sensor technology. The amendment carries with it principles of connection, assistance and justice. These were the ideals that were written into the original bill back in 1997, and we're bringing things up to date because of the dodgy operators out there.”
“We deserve a telecommunications system that is fair, accountable and built on trust. We're not seeking radical change here. This is fixing a framework so that it is consistent with Australian consumer law. It's also consistent with this government's push for a more connected Australia. Outer metropolitan and regional communities have suffered for too long. We're making the big changes, investing $55 million into round 8 of the Mobile Black Spot Program. This will go a long way to filling the cracks left by the previous pork-barrelling government. We are putting $50 million towards the Regional Roads Australia Mobile Program. Funding here will go towards testing new and innovative solutions for increasing mobile coverage on regional highways and major roads.”
“The government will stop providers from taking advantage of Australians by hitting them where it hurts: their bottom line. I also want to take note of the protection this bill will provide for consumers experiencing various forms of hardship. Since coming to office, the Albanese government has delivered two new industry standards. One is the requirement that the telecommunications company provide adequate support to customers experiencing financial hardship. The second requirement is that the telecommunications company support and assist consumers experiencing domestic, sexual and family violence. This is so important for people. Our government, the Albanese Labor government, recognises that we rely on telecommunications connectivity to support our families, our businesses and our communities.”
“Given these providers essentially have a monopoly in particular areas, it is up to the government to step in. We need better enforcement capacity, and that is what we will deliver. Thirdly, we are increasing the penalty for breaches, and modernising the civil penalties framework will make a big difference. It will deter providers from factoring the cost of noncompliance into their profit margins. Under these amendments, we will increase the civil penalties that the Federal Court can issue for breaches of industry codes and industry standards from $250,000 to nearly $10 million. These new laws will also give the court the option to issue fines for regulatory breaches, which can include $10 million, three times the benefit gained for the regulatory breach or 30 per cent of turnover.”
“It's not our issue.' The customer calls the internet service provider, and the ISP says: 'Ask Opticomm to get a technician out.' Finally, Opticomm sends a technician out, who can't fix the problem; apparently, they've got to get the more specialised technician required. This happened to a customer three times—three separate technicians over the course of three weeks. The first two came and left without figuring out the problem. It is just not good enough. After the third visit, the technician finally said the issue might be with the fibre cables in the street and that that might be affecting the neighbours too. Opticomm said, 'Well, it might be a couple of days and it might be a couple of weeks to fix.' This tale is told far too often in communities.”
“It can direct companies to comply and issue a formal warning. Big deal! Clearly they take no notice of that. And ACMA can only take stronger measures if the provider continues in its noncompliance. This gives carriage service providers the ability to break whatever code they want, as long as they don't break it for too long. They rinse and repeat, to cut corners, while they protect profits and customers suffer. Let's look at another local example. And—surprise, surprise!—again it's with Opticomm. At Lorimer, Opticomm bought connections previously owned by Telstra. Where, beforehand, there had been no connectivity issues, all of a sudden the internet stopped working. Cue the following process. A customer attempts to contact Opticomm and is told: 'Call your internet provider.”
“What is fair for the customer is often the last thing that comes to mind for some of these companies, which is why these laws are important. So what does this bill do to fix these things? Firstly, it establishes a carriage service provider registration scheme. The message is clear: if you're selling a service to people, you must be able to be seen and contacted by them. We are stopping the operation of dodgy service providers. With the passage of this bill, you can't just disappear into the shadows once you've been paid. Now, visibility requirements will prompt CSPs to deliver messaging to people affected by outages. Secondly, it updates enforcement action. As I said before, ACMA is the regulator for carriage service providers. Currently, it cannot take direct enforcement action for breaches of the industry codes, no matter how egregious.”
“With large new estates, growth has underlined the urgent need for customer support. Recent outages—again, with Opticomm—occurred, along with radio silence from the company. Residents had no indication of the status of the outage or when it would end. This lack of communication and support was both disappointing and stressful for members of those communities. It hampered their daily lives. It hindered their ability to work from home and to complete essential tasks and even school assignments. Stories like this are as uniform as they are clear. If anything happens to go wrong on the customer's side then it's an extra charge, but if something goes wrong on the operator's side then it's working to their terms, their timelines, their conditions.”
“He told the customer he couldn't get it working due to a 'blockage' and that he would need a civil engineer first. Opticomm took the money, as if they had completed the job, and left this customer hanging. He couldn't get anyone, and he couldn't get his money back. It's not good enough. Customers deserve better than this. The experience ended with a generic email telling the customer, 'Take the matter up with your builder or your internet service provider'—anyone but the people responsible: Opticomm. Like most people, he didn't have a builder on call; and he couldn't blame the service provider, since he, appropriately, had booked the installation with Opticomm directly. The whole experience left him out of pocket and feeling scammed. In developing communities like Beveridge, problems with wholesalers and providers need to be tackled.”
“Weekends were worse, particularly with the surge of visitors coming into our beautiful part of the world, and businesses had problems relying on 4G EFTPOS facilities that were often unusable, causing major frustrations for traders and visitors alike. However, the most consistent message I received was this: 'My telecommunications provider has failed me and I can't get them to fix it.' There are countless examples. One constituent had no choice but to have their service with Opticomm, a wholesale provider that operates in many estates in our area. The customer wanted just a simple, stock, standard job: the delivery of fibre to the premises—a pretty basic task, provided daily in homes right across our nation. They were charged $550 for the service. The technician arrived, stayed for 10 minutes and then shot through.”
“While they spent their time feathering the nest for the member for New England, who has since deserted them—he's run away—the rest of Australia was left in a lurch. In McEwen, we were constantly ignored. We were punished because we weren't a National or Liberal seat. Places like Gisborne South and Woodend felt the brunt of it. Communities across McEwen were left out of funding rounds for mobile towers. We're one of the most fire-prone areas in the country—74 per cent of our electorate has been burnt out in the last 25 years with fires—but we could not get towers under the program. I saw the damage firsthand. Telecommunications barriers shifted the playing field, making it harder for people to live and work in our towns and suburbs. Over those nine long years, I heard from countless frustrated constituents who faced mobile phone problems.”
“I'm proud to rise to support the Telecommunications Amendment (Enhancing Consumer Safeguards) Bill 2025, and I'm proud to be part of a party that is committed to keeping Australians connected, no matter where they live. This bill will give the telecommunications industry regulator, ACMA, the tools and the powers it needs to be effective. It displays this government's commitment to protecting Australian consumers from poor and harmful practices in the telecommunications industry—and it's high time, too. For nine long years, out-of-metro and regional communities were sorely neglected under successive coalition governments. Australians watched as they delivered the dodgy Mobile Black Spot Program funding only to Liberal and National seats.”
“His wife, Robyn, is also an exceptional member of the Whittlesea Club. Jim, as I said, is an amazing man. He's been a fantastic stalwart for the Whittlesea community. He's there at the Whittlesea Show when we're selling our tickets to raise money for our community. What it shows is that people who dedicate their time and energy across our communities are the backbone of what makes communities great. It's fantastic to be able to live in Whittlesea and know that Jim's around the corner and that he's always going to be available to help our community whenever he's needed, whether it's working up money for defibrillators or cleaning barbecues. Jim France, well done. Mate, you're an absolute star.”
“Jim's not a Rotarian, but that shows the respect that he has earned over his 30 years of service to our community, where he's been helping anyone at any time. It just shows the character of the man that Jim is—an amazing person. When you read the Lions Code of Ethics, it says: TO HOLD friendship as an end and not a means. To hold that true friendship exists not on account of the service performed by one to another, but that true friendship demands nothing but accepts service in the spirit in which it is given. When you read this code of ethics, Jim espouses that absolutely sensationally. He is not a person who is there for the glory. He gets in there. He's there for the right reasons. We know that, when they do these things, people often lose their passion for glory, but Jim is one who does it.”
“But he was there all the time. He was there for the running of the golf day that we do in conjunction with the Rotary Club. He was also involved in the famous Whittlesea Country Music Festival and has done the hard yards. He's one of those fellows that will get up, go down and volunteer to clean the community barbecues to make sure that, when people come to our town, there's somewhere nice and clean to eat at the Lions Park. Jim received his James D Richardson Award, his Melvin Jones Fellowship and life membership. But what was great also was to see the community come together, with the Rotary Club Of Whittlesea attending—including Zach, Des and an old mate of mine, Lex de Man—and awarding the Paul Harris Fellow award to Jim.”
“I think the member for Grey should join the Lions Club, because we really could do with more people in Lions. It's a great thing, which is why I'm rising today to talk about a local legend, Jim France, Jim France joined the Lions back in 1996. Wherever there is a community need for volunteers, you will find Jim there without fail, an amazing human being—a good Carlton supporter, but we'll skip that one for the minute! Recently, there was a great event held in Whittlesea where Jim France received a new award from Lions. He's been the president of Lions four times. He's been the club secretary six times, the club membership chair twice, the club service chair once and a director four times. Jim was instrumental in helping out during the bushfires after Black Saturday, when we received the most devastating news across our community.”