Tim Watts
Gellibrand · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“Consider all of this growth that we've experienced: this happened after the previous government did nothing on EVs and left Australia's renewable energy policy empty, on a dead battery. Since 2022, the Albanese government has not only caught up, but has completely recharged renewable energy policy in Australia.”
“In my community, 1,600 households have already made the switch using the subsidy. Many of these households have slashed up to 90 per cent off their energy bills, and we've already had over 20,000 solar panel installations in my electorate, in Melbourne's west.”
“In this year's budget, we announced that we are supporting the single biggest boost to Australia's main energy grid, with new renewable energy projects, and by 2030 these projects will supply enough electricity for four million Australian households. We've also been delivering the Albanese government's Cheaper Home Batteries Program.”
“Four years later, our reforms mean that it's now cheaper than ever to make the switch to electric, and we're seeing the consequences of our reforms. When we came into office, Australians bought an electric vehicle once every 45 minutes; now it's once every two minutes.”
“On top of that, we've discounted EVs further by making them fully exempt from import tax. Our government's new vehicle efficiency standard incentivises car companies to supply more efficient vehicles, and this includes hybrid, plug-in hybrid and more-efficient petrol and diesel vehicles.”
“EV models available for under $40,000 have grown from just two in 2022 to more than 10 today. It's no wonder there's been this 2,482 per cent growth in EVs in my electorate in Melbourne's west—in an outer suburb in Melbourne's west—and it'll only go up from here.”
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“Our defence relationships in the Indian Ocean region are an important part of our regional engagement, and the gifting of the first Australian built Guardian class patrol boat to an Indian Ocean country, the Maldives, will enhance its capability to protect its sovereign waters. It will also contribute to collective maritime security in the Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean also saw in 2025 the largest ever participation in Exercise Talisman Sabre, with over 30,000 military personnel from 19 nations partaking and an additional three nations observing. Joint exercises like Talisman Sabre reflect the strength of Australia's alliance with the United States and demonstrate our commitment to working with like-minded partners in the region.”
“It's home to Fleet Base West, which is critical for Australia's capacity to deploy major fleet units for sustained operations off our west coast in the Indian Ocean. It's also home to Submarine Rotational Force - West. Submarine Rotational Force - West will help Australia build the necessary operational capabilities and skills to be sovereign ready. It will ensure Australia can safely and securely own, operate, maintain and regulate a fleet of nuclear powered submarines from the early 2030s. Submarine Rotational Force - West will accelerate our efforts to develop Australia's capability to safely and securely operate and sustain its future nuclear powered submarines. It's an investment in AUKUS and a significant contribution to the security and stability of the Indian Ocean region.”
“The 2024 National d efence strategy identified the north-east Indian Ocean region as an area of primary strategic interest that is critical to Australia's security. It was identified in the National defence strategy because the Indian Ocean matters to Australia. It's critical for our prosperity and security. It's home to the world's fastest growing economies. Around half of Australia's sea-bound exports set sail from Indian Ocean ports, and the shipping lanes of the Indian Ocean are vital to Australia and the broader global economy. More than a third of the world's bulk cargo traffic and two-thirds of global oil shipments travel through the Indian Ocean. It's critical for our Defence Force posture. Half of Australia's naval fleet is based in the Indian Ocean.”
“As outlined in the 2024 National d efence strategy our enhanced defence cooperation and activities with key partners 'build depth and trust in Australia's relationships, support collective deterrence and demonstrate Australia's value as a reliable partner'. In response to the more complex security environment facing the Indo-Pacific region, we have established upgraded bilateral defence arrangements with a number of partners. We've established upgraded defence agreements with partners including Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Japan, Korea, India and Indonesia. These agreements will facilitate deeper and more sophisticated practical cooperation between the ADF and our partners. In particular, we've been lifting our engagement with the Indian Ocean region.”
“The committee will be able to assess war, war-like and major non-conflict operations in the event of the executive deciding to enter into armed conflict. The establishment of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence is just one part of the government's strategy with regard to our defence and security. Greater oversight and transparency is necessary at a time when we have been lifting our defence engagement with regional partners in order to build the kind of region that we want to see—a region that's peaceful, prosperous, secure and stable, governed by rules, norms and international law, a region where sovereignty is respected and countries are free to make their own choices, where no country dominates and no country is dominated.”
“The PJCD will have oversight of the ADF, the Department of Defence, the Department of Veterans' Affairs and portfolio agencies, including the Australian Submarine Agency, Defence Housing Australia and the Australian War Memorial. It will also include the performance of key independent regulators, including the Inspector-General of the ADF and the Australian Naval Nuclear Power Safety Regulator. The committee's functions will include oversight of administration, expenditure and personnel matters, and it will have the ability to scrutinise Australia's defence capability development, including strategy, planning and acquisitions. The committee will also be responsible for monitoring and reviewing the findings of royal commission inquiries relating to defence.”
“The PJCD fills a gap in the current oversight framework by enabling scrutiny of classified matters in a secure setting. The bill gives the committee broad information-gathering powers. The committee's information-gathering powers include the ability to request a person to give evidence or to produce specified documents. The committee is empowered to receive and consider classified information subject to appropriate safeguards. These safeguards balance the government's commitment to greater public transparency with the necessity for the protection of information. These safeguards will ensure that information which maintains Australia's security and that of our international partners is protected and the arrangements for information handling will be closely modelled on those that apply to the PJCIS today.”
“He led the inquiry into international armed conflict decision-making which led to the bill before the House being with us today. The parliament plays a crucial role in scrutinising and debating decisions of the executive government and the implementation of those decisions by departments and agencies. The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence will provide oversight of all areas of our defence ecosystem. The circumstances demand a coordinated, whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach to our nation's defence. That's why this legislation is so important. The committee is modelled on the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security and provides a mechanism for classified parliamentary intelligence briefings and oversight of defence.”
“In a time of geostrategic uncertainty, it has never been more important to maintain independent oversight of our defence community. Engaging the parliament and the public in these matters is vital to the way that Australia responds to these challenges. The new Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence will enhance transparency, accountability and oversight of defence decisions. It will provide scrutiny to all parts of the defence ecosystem at a significant moment in Australia's history. I want to acknowledge at this point my colleague the member for Bruce, Assistant Minister Julian Hill. This bill would not be before the House but for the work of Minister Hill in chairing the Defence Subcommittee of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade in the previous parliament.”
“The Defence Amendment (Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence) Bill 2025 establishes the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence. There's never been a more important time for parliamentary accountability and oversight over defence decisions. The stakes are higher than at any time since the Second World War. As the 20 24 National defence strategy stated, Australia faces the most complex and challenging strategic environment since that time. Conflict has returned to Europe. Conflict has returned to the Middle East. We've also seen conflict in our own region in South-East Asia. We face evolving threats as well—cyber threats, grey zone tactics and foreign interference, as well as continuing threats like that of nuclear conflict.”
“My question is for the Minister for Housing, the Minister for Homelessness and the Minister for Cities. How is the Albanese Labor government delivering for first home buyers to help them to get into a home of their own? What other approaches are the government being asked to consider?”
“Terima kasih to Angus Baranikow and the Australia-Indonesia Youth Association, Victoria chapter, for supporting the program and putting on a barbie during the training run on the weekend. And finally, a shout-out to the founder and president of the Krakatoas, Iain Shearer, and the whole Krakatoas Football Club—or as they would say in Indonesia, 'Tim Krakatoa'—and thanks for the training run. And to all of the delegates, let me say this: selamat datang di Melbourne. Nikmati kesempatan luar biasa ini. Dan semoga sukses selalu! Terima kasih to everyone involved; congratulations to them.”
“I've learned so much during my time here already and I will always be grateful for these experiences. Thank you to the Australian and Indonesia government for providing this life-changing opportunity. There are plenty of people to thank for keeping a program like this operating for 40 years. Terima kasih to all the generous host families in both Australia and Indonesia, and a special shout-out to Kristy and Ryan Newham for hosting Petra in my community. Terima kasih to DFAT's Australia-Indonesia Institute and the Indonesian Ministry of Youth and Sports for their collaboration on funding and organising this program. Terima kasih to Value Learning for their expertise and dedication in delivering this program across Australia and Indonesia.”
“Given that the median age in Indonesia is just 30, this program is an important way to connect Australian and Indonesian leaders of the future. The 21 delegates from Indonesia are currently spending five weeks in Australia. This year's Indonesian delegates are hosted by generous host families and workplaces in Melbourne, and I'm delighted to be hosting one myself, in my electorate office in Melbourne, the lovely Petra. We've already learned so much from each other, and she has brought fantastic energy and enthusiasm to the office. Petra would like me to tell our parliament: I've really enjoyed living in Australia so far and the thing I love the most is living with my host family, sharing my Indonesian culture, and doing the internship at Tim Watts' Office in Melbourne.”
“With apologies to the Jakarta Bintangs, but the Krakatoas Football Club is the best named Aussie Rules team in the world. I was delighted to join them on a training run on the weekend with delegates from the Australia Indonesia Youth Exchange Program. AIYEP is more than 40 years old and connects Australian and Indonesian youth for social, professional and cultural exchange. Each year, 42 delegates from Australia and Indonesia become immersed in each other's countries. They grow their intercultural skills, international networks and professional capabilities, and we're very pleased to host it in Melbourne this year. All 21 delegates from Indonesia come from a different province, coming from as far west as Aceh to as far east as the Papuan provinces, reflecting the vast diversity of that country.”
“My question is to the Treasurer. What did Treasury's net zero modelling show about the Albanese Labor government's approach to the transformation to cleaner and cheaper energy? And what risks are there in other proposals?”
“It's understandable that a freakshow of Neo-Nazis, sovereign citizens and racists attracted significant media attention—freakshows generally do. But we shouldn't empower this fringe element by taking the lies that they tell about our country seriously.”
“We should choose to take the public presence of Neo-Nazis at these rallies seriously. All groups with hateful and violent ideologies need to be taken seriously by our law enforcement and security agencies. I have been increasingly concerned about the way these groups have intimidated people, including in my electorate, without law enforcement action. We should choose to make another choice, too, and that's to not empower these protesters by believing the lies they tell about our country. We shouldn't give the tiny number of people who turned out at these protests the unjustified power of wrongly believing that their views are widely shared by other Australians. These protests were sadder than they were scary.”
“We're proud of them because they are us—they're our family, our friends, our teammates, our work colleagues and our classmates. The tiny number of protesters on the weekend are scared of this. They want an Australia that's small and weak. They want an Australia that never grows or changes. They want an Australia that would be left behind in the modern world. They are so clearly wrong, and that's why the vast majority of Australians disagree with them. The Scanlon Foundation's M apping s ocial c ohesion r eport has consistently found that nine out of 10 Australians believe that multiculturalism has been good for our country. We should understand that, at most, the views of those protesters are one in 10 Australians. We have a choice about how to respond to these rallies.”
“We are a country that produced John Wing, a 10-year-old Chinese-Australian boy who suggested that, in the closing ceremony of the Melbourne Olympics, athletes march not as separate countries but together as friends. That is a unique, egalitarian, Australian Olympic innovation. We are a country that has produced two Fields Medal winners, Terence Tao and Akshay Venkatesh, a migrant and a child of a migrant. We are a country enriched by the diverse contributions of Australians like Sir Gustav Nossal, Harry Seidler, Harry Triguboff, Frank Lowy, Victor Chang, Gout Gout, Usman Khawaja, Sam Kerr, Jason Day, Melanie Perkins and Jack Zhang. We're proud that the Australians who work in our hospitals, care for our elderly, help our country grow and help our parliament govern have heritages from every corner of the globe.”
“Indigenous leader Noel Pearson has said that you can't tell the full story of Australia without telling three stories: the story of our oldest continuous culture on earth, the story of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders; the story of the Westminster institutions that followed, our rule of law and our democratic institutions; and the story of our multicultural migration, a migration that has built a country where half of us either are born overseas or have a parent born overseas—the most successful multicultural nation on earth. The marches against Australia we saw on the weekend were an insult to all three of these stories that make our country great. Australians are rightly proud of the diverse country that we have built here together.”
“We're investing in the workforce we need to build new homes, and we're fast-tracking the qualifications of experienced but unqualified tradies. This housing crisis has been decades in the making, but last weeks announcement of five per cent deposits for first home buyers is another plank in our Homes for Australia plan, a comprehensive plan that tackles every dimension of this crisis.”
“From 1 October, the days of 20 per cent deposits for first home buyers are over. We're bringing the dream of homeownership within reach of everyone in my community of Melbourne's west and across Australia. It's not just a policy change. It's a change which will support Australians to achieve their goals and dreams. We're removing barriers which hold Australians back from homeownership. We're building more rentals with stronger protections, and we're delivering more social and affordable homes for vulnerable Australians. We're working with states and territories to make renting fairer, and we're boosting rent assistance. We're offering a clear, fair pathway to homeownership for all Australians. We are investing in the future of housing. We're speeding up construction.”
“As my colleague, Minister O'Neil, told parliament last week, they built just 373 social and affordable homes in nine years. If that wasn't bad enough, they continue to oppose homeownership for Australians. They voted against Help to Buy; in fact, they promised to abolish the scheme entirely. They didn't support our policy to deliver 100,000 homes for first home buyers. Bizarrely, they are now trying to scrap 80,000 new rentals by raising taxes on builders. It's as if they've completely given up. On this side of the House, we haven't. Owning a home is a dream that should be available to all Australians—not just some. We're making that dream more achievable. The Albanese Labor government was elected with a clear mandate to support the aspirations and dreams of all Australians.”
“We're providing $120 million from the National Productivity Fund to incentivise states to remove red tape to help build houses faster, and we're leading efforts to speed up construction. We're delivering $54 million in investment in advanced manufacturing of prefab and modular homes. The Albanese Labor government is building new homes, supporting renters, ensuring we have a skilled workforce for our housing agenda, and cutting red tape. We're tackling this housing crisis from every angle. But, unfortunately, this crisis wasn't created overnight, and that means that it won't be fixed overnight. The crisis we're currently experiencing is a result of decades of underinvestment and neglect. We're working hard to undo this decade of neglect by the coalition, who didn't even have a housing minister for most of their time in office.”
“We're providing $10,000 incentive payments to apprentices in construction. We're investing $78 million to fast-track qualifications of 6,000 tradies, to help build more homes across Australia. The Advanced Entry Trades Training program will help experienced but unqualified workers get the qualifications and recognition they deserve for their work. The program will assess participants' skills by a recognition-of-prior-learning process and then fill in any gaps with individualised training delivered by TAFEs and other high-quality registered training organisations. The best bit is that if they need extra training, it will be free. We're also cutting red tape with our planning reforms.”
“Through programs like the Housing Australia Future Fund, we're reducing the social housing waiting list and delivering homes for vulnerable women, children, veterans and key workers. We're investing $1.2 billion in building new crisis and transitional accommodation. This investment will ensure at-risk groups like women, younger Australians and those fleeing domestic violence have access to safe and stable housing. Building more homes and supporting renters wouldn't be possible if we didn't invest in the people we need to build these homes. We're training more tradies through our fee-free TAFE program. The fee-free construction program will boost the number of skilled workers in the construction and housing sector. This will ensure that Australia has the skilled workers to build the houses that we need.”
“Renters are now guaranteed a baseline standard for their rental property, which wasn't guaranteed before, to ensure that their rental is actually habitable. Our reforms have also meant that most states have now banned no-grounds evictions. Stamping out no-grounds evictions provides renters with more certainty, stability and security. It also allows renters to establish a more stable home and better plan for the future of themselves and their families. We've delivered a 45 per cent increase in Commonwealth rental assistance, helping one million low-income Australians to pay the rent. We're delivering 55,000 social and affordable rental homes for the Australians that need them the most.”
“As part of our plan to build more homes, we're investing $10 billion to build 100,000 homes reserved for first home buyers. Our investments in Australians' aspirations to own a home are complemented by our commitments to make renting more secure. We're working with states and territories to make renting fairer. We've built more rentals with stronger protections. We've passed legislation to help deliver 80,000 new rentals across the country, and all rentals under this scheme will have five-year leases, which will provide renters with more certainty and more security. We're working with the states and territories to implement stronger protections for tenants and to ensure that renters can make their rental their own. Because of our reforms, most states have implemented minimum standards for rental properties.”
“That's a thousand families who now have a place to call their own and who have moved from renting to owning—from insecurity to stability. Under Labor, there have been 6,000 more first-home-buyer loans a year, compared to the coalition's previous period in office. Labor's shared-equity scheme, Help to Buy, will mean that the Commonwealth government pitches in up to 40 per cent of the upfront costs of a home, meaning first home buyers can purchase a home with a smaller mortgage. We're not just helping people buy homes, though; we're building more homes too, and building more homes means more affordable homes for everyone. We've started the biggest housing build in Australia's history, investing $43 billion in housing in pursuit of an ambitious target of the construction of 1.2 million homes over the next five years.”
“In just the first year alone, first home buyers using the scheme are expected to avoid around $1.5 billion in potential mortgage insurance costs. We're also continuing the Family Home Guarantee, which helps single parents buy a home with a two per cent deposit. For first home buyers in Melbourne's west, I know this will make a real difference. But expanding access to five per cent deposits to all first home buyers is just one plank of the Albanese government's Homes for Australia agenda. Since we first came to government, we've already seen 180,000 Australians get into homeownership with the Albanese Labor government's support. In my community alone, nearly 1,000 households have already participated in the Home Guarantee Scheme since we came to government in May 2022.”
“From 1 October, everyone in Melbourne's west and across Australia will be able to buy their first home with a five per cent deposit. It's a game changer. For many, this will mean the difference between continuing to rent indefinitely and stepping into homeownership. It will cut years off the time that it takes to save for a deposit. There are no income caps and no limits on the number of places. It means that more families, more young people and more single parents can access this support. We'll have house-price caps that reflect the cost of homes where you live, which means people won't be forced to look too far from their communities or their families to qualify. And, because the government will guarantee part of these mortgages, people won't have to pay tens of thousands of dollars in lenders mortgage insurance.”
“I hear from renters whose rents increase as they struggle to save for the 20 per cent deposit needed to buy their first home. It all just feels out of reach. A home is more than just a roof over your head. It's a place for family, where birthdays are celebrated, which kids take their first steps, where memories are made. For a generation of Australians, though, this homeownership has felt like a distant dream. On top of that, renters have felt insecure, with the scales tipped against them. The Albanese Labor government is continuing to listen to young Australians, and we're continuing to deliver for them. We're delivering on our election promise to ease the housing crisis and help more Australians to own their own home.”
“My community in Melbourne's west are hard-working, aspirational Australians who want a good life for themselves, their children and their grandchildren. They're tradies, small business owners, shift workers. They're young people who dream of security and independence. They're parents who want their children to grow with stability and opportunity and for their children to be afforded the same opportunities that were afforded to them. People in my community are doing everything right. They work hard, they're saving diligently, and they're contributing to their families and their community. They still can't afford a place to call home. All the time, I hear from Australians who dream of owning their home but can't see a pathway to homeownership.”
“India is a top-tier security partner for Australia, and we have never been more strategically aligned than we are right now. There are real steps we're taking to grow our defence relationship. We're doing more exercises together, and we're concentrating on how we can build interoperability between our defence forces, enabling us to have greater access to each other's defence facilities. In times of increasing geostrategic uncertainty, engaging with the Indian Ocean is more important for Australia than ever. We have the biggest search and rescue zone of any nation in the Indian Ocean and one of the biggest EEZs. Australia is using all the tools of statecraft to build a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indian Ocean region where each country can pursue its own aspirations.”
“This gift is a key milestone in our bilateral relationship and a significant step towards enhancing the Maldives's capability to protect its sovereign waters and to contribute to collective maritime security in the Indian Ocean. Lifting the sovereign capabilities of Indian Ocean partners supports them with meeting their challenges in the best way that they see fit. It invests in their agency and their sovereignty. We've lifted our engagement throughout the Indian Ocean region. We've expanded our diplomatic footprint in the Indian Ocean with a new high commission in Male, in the Maldives, and new consulates in Bengaluru and Kolkata, in India. We're also strengthening our defence partnerships with key partners in the Indian Ocean. Our bilateral defence relationship with India is a primary example of this effort.”
“This week in the parliament is the anniversary of their exodus from the Rakhine state in northern Myanmar into Bangladesh. It's important for countries in the region—like Australia, the South-East Asian countries, the Indian Ocean countries—to support Bangladesh and support their resilience in hosting this very significant refugee community in our own region. Where requested, the Australian government also invests in regional resilience by taking targeted actions to help lift the sovereign capabilities of Indian Ocean partners. For example, this year Australia announced that we will gift the first Australian built Guardian class patrol boat to an Indian Ocean country, the Maldives.”
“IORA is critical for Indian Ocean countries to collaborate and resolve shared challenges, and Australia is working to strengthen regional resilience through IORA, including through our investments in maritime security, the blue economy and climate change. We're also supporting humanitarian initiatives to help prevent regional crises from spilling over and causing instability throughout the Indian Ocean region. For example, we continue to support regional resilience through our development program, including, since 2017, $1.26 billion in humanitarian assistance for people in need in Bangladesh and Myanmar. In Bangladesh, in Cox's Bazar, there are now 1.1 million Rohingya refugees who have been in that camp for going on nine years.”
“Our priority in the Indian Ocean is to enhance regional resilience by coordinating with partners on solutions to shared challenges, including maritime and economic security, climate change and disaster resilience. As the foreign minister, Penny Wong, has said, by building resilience we can help keep Australians safe. Australia has shared interests with the countries of the Indian Ocean in maintaining the peace, stability and prosperity of the Indian Ocean and in seeing all countries growing their economies and deciding their own futures. The Albanese government is working with the countries of the Indian Ocean to increase our trade, investment, diplomatic and development ties. And we're supporting regional institutions, like the Indian Ocean Rim Association, the region's premier ministerial-level organisation.”
“The shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean aren't just vital to Australia; they are vital to the world economy. The Indian Ocean is already bustling with more than a third of the world's bulk cargo traffic and two-thirds of global oil shipments. Around half of Australia's sea-bound exports set sail from Indian Ocean ports. The Indian Ocean is also critical for our defence and national security. Half of Australia's naval fleet is based in the Indian Ocean. And of course it's home to Fleet Base West and Submarine Rotational Force—West. The north-east Indian Ocean was identified as an area of primary interest in the National Defence Strategy for these reasons, and strengthening our partnerships with key partners in the Indian Ocean is one of the Albanese government's priority areas for action in response to the Defence Strategic Review.”
“If you value the Point Cook Pop Up Park as a place for our community to come together, make sure your voice is heard by the council. After the federal election I was pleased to be appointed as the Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Indian Ocean Affairs. The Indian Ocean matters to Australia. The Indian Ocean region is essential to Australia's prosperity and security. It's a major part of the Indo-Pacific region, home to the world's fastest growing large economies and also a centre of increasing geostrategic competition. Australia faces the most challenging strategic environment since the Second World War, and our strategic circumstances are continuing to deteriorate. In the Indian Ocean there's increasing competition for access and influence, including efforts to secure dominance over sea lanes and strategic ports.”
“You can complete the survey online or by speaking to one of the council staff present at the pop-up park from 1 pm to 3 pm on Sunday 7 September or from 3 pm to 5 pm on Thursday 11 September. This feedback will directly determine the future of this vital space for Point Cook locals, and I encourage my community to jump online and make sure the community knows you support the park's ongoing operation and existence. Let the council know how important it is to have a place in the most multicultural suburb in Australia for our Diwali events, our Holi events, our lunar festival—a place where you can bring your family and your friends to come together to celebrate. Share your stories of connection, of celebration and of tradition.”
“And, of course, I want to personally recognise Sara Mitchell, the founder of CoLocal. Sara has really put her whole soul into the Point Cook Pop Up Park. I've seen it over the years, and I've seen the very real personal sacrifices she has made investing her time and labour into this passion project. I've seen it, I valued it, I recognise it in this place and I thank her for everything she's done—and I do understand the reasons that she is now walking away from the project. But I do want to say to everyone in Melbourne's west: whether you're a resident, a community group or a local business, share your feedback on how you use the Point Cook Pop Up Park via the Wyndham City Council's community survey. You can voice your support and what you'd like to see happen there in the future.”
“The council will be guided by what our community tells them. Although CoLocal is stepping away from the pop-up park for now, their hard work and legacy will not be forgotten. I want to thank CoLocal for their leadership, determination and passion over the past eight years. They turned a regular suburban street into a welcoming space that celebrates diversity, fosters connection and champions collaboration. I want to thank in the Hansard in this place today the CoLocal volunteers who made this project possible: Sudhit Juneja, the organiser of the Diwali and Holi events I mentioned earlier; Phebe Yeo, the organiser of the Kids Lunar Festival; Luciana Manrique, the organiser of the Latino festival; Kaliope Vassilopoulous, the organiser of the Greek Festival; David Mullins; Steve Jaz; Karthick Thanigaimani; and Senthill Sundaram.”
“The park has become a cherished gathering place for westsiders to frequent today and a focal point for building community and connection and an array of events and entertainment. Although it is a collaborative project, the driving force is CoLocal, a grassroots community group who conceived of and power the park's development and success. Sadly, CoLocal have made the difficult decision to step away from future involvement in the pop-up park in coming months, and now the future of the park is at risk. Stockland has indicated its preference to wind up the park and reopen the road it currently occupies. As a community, we can help ensure this doesn't happen. Wyndham City Council is currently seeking feedback from people in Melbourne's west that will determine the future of the park. This feedback is vital to the pop-up park's existence.”
“The park not only provides community space and celebrates our community but provides real economic benefits to local traders and has revitalised Point Cook Stockland's dining precinct, with 81 per cent of people who have said that the events at the park encourage them to explore new shops, cafes and restaurants in the area and 83 per cent of people surveyed who purchased food or went shopping at nearby stores before, after or during attending events at the park. Located on a pedestrian street in one of the community's biggest shopping centres, events aren't just something on the way to your weekly grocery shop. They're a destination. It's clear that CoLocal and the Point Cook Pop Up Park's events are deeply valued and supported by the community, drawing 60,000 people to the town centre in the last 18 months alone.”
“It's been supported by a series of state and federal grants along the way and has hosted a swathe of important local and multicultural events which reflect who we are as a community in Melbourne's west. I have personally attended at the pop-up park many Diwalis, Holis, Lunar Festivals, Pasifika Festivals, a Latino festival, Filipino Fiesta, Tamil New Year, Eid al-Fitr, Harmony Day, the Africa Festival, Halloween events, spring racing activations, kids fun days and the Christmas market and carols. There's also a wonderful Rainbow Serpent mural celebrating First Nations culture, symbolising community unity and cohesion. The events that have been at the Point Cook Pop Up Park are a reflection of the rich tapestry of culture, tradition, food and storytelling that makes Point Cook unique as Australia's most multicultural suburb.”
“I want to send him off into this new role with the words of S Club 7. Let me say this just once for the record. I say: Don't stop, never give up Hold your head high and reach the top Let the world see what you have got Bring it all back to you Thank you, Steve Le. Point Cook in my community in Melbourne's west is the largest and most multicultural suburb in Australia. In Point Cook, one of those spaces for connection where we come together in our diverse backgrounds is the Point Cook Pop Up Park. For nearly a decade, this diverse and growing community has come together at the Point Cook Pop Up Park at Stockland. The Point Cook Pop Up Park would not have existed without the tireless work of CoLocal, a not-for-profit grassroots group who have championed the park from inception and nurtured it to the success that it is today.”
“As a result, he's been a beloved member of our local community. It would be a rare day for me at a train station, polling booth or supermarket that someone in my electorate didn't thank me for something that Steve had done for them. So thank you, Steve. More importantly, thank you, Marylyn, for sharing Steve with us on so many weekends and late nights. To Sammy, Spencer and Maisie: you can all be very proud of your dad. For the benefit of the Hansard , I want to say thank you, mate, for the last 12 years, and I do want to note that Steve isn't out of the electorate office game just yet. He's just moved on to work with a dear friend of the both of us, the new member for Gorton, helping her set up her electorate office in the electorate down the road. So he's got plenty more people to help in Melbourne's west just yet.”
“He won the APH footy tipping competition—an extraordinary achievement that deserves recognition in the Hansard . We were both there when the Western Bulldogs won the flag in 2016. We were also there for the open training, the banner making, the grand final parade and all that good stuff that goes along with a grand final win. There were hard times too, though. We've been confronted by neo-Nazis at the pub. We've lost dear friends from our office and grieved our fellow staffers Clara and Walter together at their funerals with our electorate office family and the community that they served. We got through the long Victorian COVID lockdowns together, for stretches of which it was just Steve and me in the electorate office. Through all this, there has been no-one who has helped more people in my electorate than Steve.”