Kristy McBain
Eden-Monaro · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“I move: That in accordance with section 5 of the Parliament Act 1974 , the House approve the following proposal for work in the Parliamentary Zone, which was presented to the House on 22 June 2026, namely: Commemoration of Nangar (Jimmy Clements) and Ooloogan (George John Noble).”
“This piece will be located on the lawns opposite Old Parliament House in a setting purpose-built to suit the sculptures. Works are intended to be completed by May 2027 to align with events to mark the centenary of Old Parliament House. A design and construction team has been selected to deliver the commemoration.”
“These two men, well into their 80s at the time, had walked barefoot from the Brungle Aboriginal mission across the Brindabella Range—a multiday trek of some 150 kilometres—to attend the opening. On arrival, they were nearly evicted for their lack of appropriate attire.”
“I thank the member for Lingiari. She's a fierce advocate for her community, and her community has been severely impacted by floods and cyclones. Thank you for all the time you've spent with me in my office speaking about that.”
“I saw firsthand the impacts on our communities, from Harcourt in Victoria and Dolphin Sands in Tassie to Julia Creek in Queensland and Katherine in the NT—homes and livestock lost, businesses closed and major infrastructure damaged. And, tragically, we lost community members, including first responders.”
“They play a critical and trusted role providing services in our communities, and we know our communities rely on those. The Albanese government has a longstanding commitment to local councils, and our budget reaffirms that.”
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“Well done to everyone involved. It was a great opportunity to be there. I want to give a massive shout-out to Robbie Sanderson from Bungendore, an incredible young athlete and a true mighty Eden-Monaro legend. Robbie is 11 years old and has just returned from the UAE with two world titles to his name after an outstanding performance on the international stage. He won gold in the boys grappling under-14 45-kilogram division on 1 August 2025, and he also claimed a world MMA title, making him a dual world champion in both grappling and mixed martial arts. This extraordinary achievement is a testament to Robbie's hard work, discipline and talent. We are incredibly proud of him and excited to follow his journey as he represents our region and our country with pride.”
“Her success is a win for us all and a powerful reminder of what's possible when we embrace diversity and champion inclusion. Chenoa, we're really proud of you. Congratulations. I rise today to acknowledge the historic return of Goulburn's Lilac City Brass to the NSW State Band Championships. In a landmark moment for regional music, Lilac City Brass represented Goulburn at the NSW State Band Championships in Penrith last weekend. It marks the first time since World War II that a Goulburn based band has competed at the prestigious state-level event. Their return to the competition stage is not only a significant milestone for Lilac City Brass but a proud moment for the Goulburn community. Each piece was assessed by a blind adjudicator positioned out of sight in a sealed area of the auditorium to ensure objective judging.”
“I rise today to speak about some of the amazing contributions individuals make across the mighty Eden-Monaro. Today I'm thrilled to acknowledge the truly exceptional work of Chenoa, a proud member of the Embrace Disability Group in Jerrabomberra and a champion in every sense of the word. At the recent para table tennis championships in Traralgon, Chenoa brought home two silver medals, two bronze medals and the title of 'best player, class 11 women'. These achievements reflect not only her talent and determination but also the incredible support and inclusion fostered by the Embrace Disability Group. Chenoa's journey is one of perseverance, leadership and heart. She's shown us that barriers can be broken and that community and sport go hand in hand.”
“It was important in 2023 when we reduced the cost of medicines for the first time, and it will remain important for this parliament to come together to ensure that access to affordable health care, whether that is medicines or treatment, remains a continuing priority not just of a Labor government but of a parliament as a whole. We have to ensure that health care remains accessible, particularly when we see other countries attempting to attack our PBS. We need to remain strong—that the PBS is a core right for Australians and that they can rely on their government, of whatever political persuasion, to stand up for cheaper medicines and affordable health care and ensure we continue to back affordable health care in this country. Again, I commend the bill to the House. I think it's incredibly important.”
“We need to keep pushing for strong policies that protect Australians from the burden of high medicine costs. That means continuing to expand subsidies under the PBS, encouraging greater competition in the pharmaceutical market and ensuring that rural and remote Australians aren't paying more simply because of where they live. We need to treat affordable access to medicines as a basic right, not a privilege. Medicines are not luxury goods. I would like to sincerely thank the health minister, Mark Butler, and his health team for bringing forward this bill. It delivers on a significant commitment made prior to the election. It builds on earlier actions undertaken by the Albanese Labor government to deliver cheaper medicines. It helps strengthen Medicare and improve access to health care for all Australians. This bill is important now.”
“Australia prides itself on the principle of universal access—that health care should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy. When the cost of medicine becomes a barrier, that principle starts to crumble. Wealthy Australians can afford the treatments they need, while those with fewer resources are left behind. The result is a widening health gap between the rich and the poor, the city and the country, the young and old. There's also a long-term national risk. As more people miss out on vital medicines, chronic conditions worsen, leading to greater demand on hospitals, emergency services and aged care. This drives up the cost of health care for everyone—for taxpayers, governments and the health system itself. So I am here today incredibly proud to support this legislation.”
“That means conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma are left untreated or poorly managed. What begins as a manageable health issue can quickly spiral into a medical emergency. A hospital stay costs far more than a prescription, and it puts pressure on our healthcare system that can be avoided. The second risk is financial stress for people on fixed incomes—pensioners, single parents, students or those who are in casual jobs. The rise in the price of medicines creates impossible choices. Do you pay the rent or do you fill a prescription? Do you buy groceries or your child's asthma inhaler? No Australian should have to make that choice. The third risk is in inequality in our healthcare system.”
“Turning back to cheaper medicines, it's so important that we keep doing what we can to make access to health care more affordable. We don't want to end up like other countries where the cost of medicines is prohibitive—where people don't get the help they need when they need it, and they end up much worse. Preventive health care is vital to keeping communities strong, local economies going and ensuring that people have a quality of life. It's about dignity and ensuring that we look after one another. Imagine the alternative when people can't afford the medicines they need. The first risk is the impact on health itself. When medicines are too expensive, people delay filling prescriptions, cut doses in half to make them last longer or skip them altogether.”
“The Australian government's women's health package has already started to improve access and affordability, with the first PBS listing in more than 30 years for new oral contraceptive pills and the first PBS listing in over 20 years for new menopausal hormone therapies earlier this year. There are now more endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics open. We are expanding from 22 to 33 the number of clinics across the country. On 1 November, there will be larger Medicare payments and more bulk billing for IUDs and birth control implants, saving around 300,000 women a year up to $400 in out-of-pocket costs. Women deserve a health care system that provides more choice, lower costs and high-quality care. As a government, we are committed to supporting women's health care, and I'm proud the Albanese government is delivering on that promise.”
“One-third of these future GPs are training in the new general practice specialty of rural generalism, which has now reached a critical milestone in its recognition as an official medical specialty. Rural generalists are rural GPs and they provide much more than just vital primary and emergency care to rural and regional communities. They often have additional training in obstetrics, mental health and anaesthetics. This is another very welcome sign of confidence returning to general practice and it reflects the Albanese government's financial support to encourage greater growth. It also adds to our commitment to invest an additional $573 million in women's health, including more support for menopause and contraceptives, saving women and their families thousands of dollars.”
“There are no out-of-pocket costs and there are extended hours. Communities are telling us that it's exactly what they wanted. Of course, our general practitioners are invaluable across regional communities which is why we are supporting more GPs to bulk-bill. From 1 November 2025, the government will support thousands of GPs to bulk-bill every patient with the launch of the new Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program. We are supporting more GPs to come to rural and regional Australia with a popular new rural GP specialty reaching a milestone earlier this year. In 2025, we have seen the largest cohort of doctors starting GP training in Australian history. More than 1,750 doctors have started government funded training to become a GP in 2025.”
“Weekend sport can be a crazy time in our regions with kids spraining ankles and wrists, and getting cuts, bruises or breaks. I well and truly know this with an entirely sports mad family. From swimming to netball, basketball, AFL and athletics—we play it all. My middle child is also asthmatic and we know kids can deteriorate quite quickly. I've now had half-a-dozen hospital presentations, with numerous hospital stays with him. If we'd had access to an urgent care clinic when he was little, I wouldn't have had to clog up our emergency department when it wasn't needed. An urgent care clinic is a great way to get something that is minor seen earlier. It could be a cut that needs stitches or a sprain before it turns into something more serious. It's reduced waiting times in our emergency departments.”
“The urgent care clinic we delivered in Queanbeyan has already supported over 7,000 fully bulk-billed presentations and we've just announced that tenders are open for three new urgent care clinics in Nowra, Shellharbour and the Bega valley. These will take pressure off local hospitals including Shoalhaven District Memorial Hospital, Shellharbour Hospital and South East Regional Hospital, and will fill an important gap in services across extended hours and over the weekend. I'm proud to be part of a Labor team delivering on this election commitment to provide better local health care across the Bega valley because people should have access to free health care when and where they need it. As all parents know, having access to a service, especially on the weekend or after hours is incredibly important.”
“You can access these Medicare mental health centres by calling the Head to Health line on 1800595212 and asking for support or by visiting a centre—whichever you are most comfortable with. Urgent care clinics are another important service that we're rolling out. We've opened 90 Medicare urgent care clinics, from Queanbeyan to Broome to Mount Gambier, to free up our emergency rooms and get people seen sooner. These 90 Medicare urgent care clinics have already seen more than 1.8 million presentations since the first sites opened in June 2023, including over 355,000 presentations to the 22 existing New South Wales urgent care clinics as at 4 August this year.”
“This means free mental health treatment for people in communities across the country. Again, this is all about ensuring that cost is no barrier for Aussies with ongoing care needs. Across the country, there are already 13 centres operating in New South Wales; five operating in Western Australia; four operating in South Australia; and one operating in each of Victoria, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the ACT. There's one just up the road from me in Moruya, in the electorate of Gilmore, which officially opened earlier this year. Having accessible and safe places to address mental health needs is essential to having a strong and healthy community. You can access mental health hubs in Bega, Queanbeyan and Goulburn as well.”
“Eden-Monaro residents have already saved $7.6 million because of the Albanese government's cheaper medicines policy, a policy that, unfortunately, those opposite voted against. Living in a regional community, I know it can be tough to access healthcare services, so I'm really proud that the Albanese government is delivering on its promise to strengthen Medicare and invest in local health care. We've tripled the bulk-billing incentive, and, thanks to these landmark investments, we have added 2.2 million bulk-billed visits in regional and rural Australia alone. We're also rolling out Medicare mental health centres across Australia. Medicare mental health centres are government funded centres offering free, immediate, short- to medium-term mental health support and navigation for anyone over 18 with no referral needed.”
“It also builds on our policy for 60-day prescriptions, which is designed to support millions of Australians going through an ongoing health issue. Our Labor government is committed to looking after our most vulnerable people, ensuring that they don't have to make choices between medicines and the other essentials they need. I know that my colleague the assistant minister for health, Emma McBride, often talks about seeing people, as a pharmacist, who were making choices between different scripts. In my electorate of Eden-Monaro alone, the legislation is expected to save our community over $10.2 million. That's a significant amount of money that can be spent supporting our local businesses, getting the kids new school shoes, going out for dinner at a local restaurant or buying a raffle ticket at your sporting club.”
“I think that they still are, so maybe that is something that goes back to 2004. I'm not currently wearing them, but you'll catch me at Woolworths Tura Beach in them. The reduction to $25, turning back that clock to 2004, will help Aussies be able to buy medicines that improve their quality of life. Patients with a concession card will also get that price of their PBS medicines, $7.70, frozen until 2030, which is another fantastic investment made by this government and another way in which we're assisting with those cost-of-living pressures, particularly for people on fixed incomes. This policy is incredibly important because it delivers on our big commitment to our communities which was all around health care—in particular, regional communities, where this matters so much.”
“Having already slashed the cost of medicines with the largest cut to the cost of medicines in the history of the PBS in 2023, we're following that up now and going even further. Keeping the cost of medicines low is also a practical way we can help people make that doctor's appointment, get into the pharmacy and get medications they need to live a healthy life. We are committed to keeping the cost of medicines low. Having already slashed the cost of medicines, as I said, we're going even further. The last time that PBS medicines were this affordable was in 2004, over 20 years ago. Back in 2004, I was still at university and working in a pharmacy. In 2004, T he Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was the Oscar winner for Best Picture. Myspace was the coolest social media site, and ugg boots were a fashion statement.”
“Lowering the cost of medicines across Australia not only helps people with the cost of living but also ensures that we keep people healthy, and it actually helps people with their treatment. People's health shouldn't be something they wonder if they can afford. That's why I'm incredibly proud to rise today to speak about how this Labor government is making medicines cheaper for all Australians. This legislation delivers on Labor's election commitment to make medicines more affordable, saving patients over $200 million annually and assisting with the cost of living. The National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025 will help to reduce the general co-payment for PBS medicines from $31.60 to $25, effective from 1 January 2026.”
“Our Housing Support Program is providing millions to regional communities—$27 million to Marulan for their wastewater treatment plant to unlock 400 new homes; $45 million to deliver sewer and water infrastructure in Kempsey, including water treatment plants, to unlock 430 homes; and $10 million for enabling infrastructure at Lake Wyangan, to deliver 500 homes—because, on this side of the House, we want to see more Aussies into homes in the regions that they want to live in. Regional communities know that they can vote Labor and they can get results in their community.”
“Since taking office, the Albanese government has invested nearly 20 times more in crisis and transitional accommodation than the previous coalition did in 10 years. We're delivering practical solutions for people who need crisis accommodation. There are 42 projects underway across the country, supporting housing in regional communities in the Blue Mountains and in Queanbeyan. We are committed to delivering infrastructure across regional Australia, too, which includes partnering with other levels of government to deliver the enabling infrastructure that regional communities need to deliver more homes.”
“We're not going to pick favourites through colour coded spreadsheets. Our government is focused on delivering right across the country, and this includes being able to buy a home for a five per cent deposit. It will be a game changer across regional Australia. It will take years off the time it takes to save a deposit, helping more young people into that dream of homeownership. Whether you're in Branxton or in Bega, you'll be able to get into your own home faster. On this side of the chamber, we have helped more than 38,000 people into homeownership through our regional home guarantee. That is 38,000 more people who are now able to afford to live in the towns that they've grown up in, the towns they work in and the towns they love.”
“I want to thank the member for Hunter for his question. He has an incredible track record of advocating for his community, particularly for affordable housing. So thank you for your work. People in regional Australia know that the Albanese Labor government has their back, and that's why people like the member for Hunter keep getting voted in. It's why we have the members for Bullwinkel, Ballarat and Bendigo. We've got regional members over here replacing many former regional members from that side. I'm really proud to stand up for regional Australia and I'm proud that our government has housing on the national agenda. The importance of homeownership for people in regional Australia has never been greater, and we are a government that is dedicated to building regional Australia's future.”
“I want to add to an answer that I gave in question time. Rounds 1 and 2 of the Disaster Ready Fund have been announced. Round 3 of the Disaster Ready Fund is about to be announced, in the coming weeks—just to correct the record on that.”
“It's because of this prime minister that there is actually investment in disaster response and readiness. We've created the disaster response fund, a $1 billion fund over five years, with projects already being rolled out in rounds 1 and 2, and 3 just announced—big projects like levees, as well as small projects like lifting up the capability of culverts to two-lane concrete bridges. But not only is it important to invest in hard infrastructure; the soft infrastructure is incredibly important—investing in preparedness programs in local communities across the country, just like communities in Lismore that I visited last week, or in south-west Queensland, which I visited the week before, working with those local councils on priority projects in disaster readiness. (Time expired)”
“We're supporting prac payments, because we know that it is incredibly important to support people who are training to come and deliver services and get their training in our regions. As I said, we're supporting apprentices with that $10,000 incentive, which is incredibly important. We've also committed to establishing a $1 billion Building Early Education Fund to build more childcare centres in regional Australia. I hear the former shadow minister laughing. You were in government for nine long years. You sat on these benches, and you knew there was a childcare shortage, but you did zilch, nothing, zero.”
“They would have supported more doctors training in our regions, which is exactly what we do on this side of the House. We have made the largest investment in health care in our regions ever. Out of the 87 urgent care clinics our government has already delivered, 31 are in the regions. We're investing in rural medical schools to help ensure that more medical students can train and live in regional and rural communities because we know, and the data tells us, that if they train in a region they'll stay in a region. There's a $90 million investment to help address healthcare shortages right across our regions. We've got incentives for doctors and nurse practitioners, and we will waive their HECS debts if they come and work in rural and regional Australia.”
“Regional Australia is much, much more than roads or bridges or infrastructure. Yes, they are incredibly important. It's not just about a grant program that you can pork-barrel to get things in your electorate. I understand that may have been the lay of the land previously, but it's not how we do it. Investing in people, investing in skills and training, investing in services and supporting towns and communities when they're going through a really tough time is incredibly important too. So is access to services. For such a long period of time, when those opposite were in government, they didn't value the services that our community wanted. If they did, they wouldn't have cut Medicare; they wouldn't have frozen Medicare rebates.”
“I hear the member opposite say, 'Shame!' I'm sure his children with HECS debts are valuing the fact that the Labor Party is here cutting 20 per cent off HECS debts. I'm sure, as a former construction worker, his former apprentices would have appreciated $10,000 incentives on construction trades. I know the many apprentices that we've employed—or my husband or my brother, who were apprentices too—would have valued that extra help in their pockets. That's what we do on this side of the House, because we're not here to govern for a sliver of people. We don't pull out a colour coded spreadsheet and say, 'What value do we get out of giving taxpayer funds to certain electorates in the country?' On this side of the House, we govern for all Australians, we have policies for all Australians and we value the services available for all Australians.”
“It's a pleasure to be here to talk about the things that this government is doing for regional and rural Australia. I know it's frustrating for those opposite, because regional and rural Australians vote for Labor members. If they didn't, half of us wouldn't be here. I live in regional Australia. I come from a small community—smaller than the community of many of those opposite. I have a family that's working hard in a small business in regional Australia. I am one of the many people that come to this place from farms, from small businesses and from regional communities right across the country. It is an inconvenient truth for those opposite that regional people vote for Labor people. They vote Labor members in. An opposition member: Shame! They value Labor policies.”
“And I personally know that, as a small-business owner, when you're an apprentice, every dollar counts—which is why we are delivering a $10,000 incentive payment to construction apprentices across the country. In the first week of this new term, we've introduced bills to cut student debt by 20 per cent, and we're protecting the penalty rates of regional workers across the country. We have a lot to be proud of in cost-of-living relief that we've delivered for regional Australia, and we'll continue to do that in the next three years. Let's hope those opposite have learned a lesson and don't get in the way this time round.”
“Instead, regional Australia voted for a strong Labor team, which includes the member for Leichhardt, the member for Gilmore, the member for Lingiari, the members for Ballarat, Bendigo, Braddon, Bass, Bullwinkel and many, many more. We have made medicines cheaper, we've made the largest investment in bulk-billing and we've got 31 urgent care clinics open in our regions, as part of our 87 that we've already opened across the country. Yes, Leader of the Opposition, all you need at an urgent care clinic as a Medicare card. There's one open in the member for Hunter's electorate in Cessnock, which has seen more than 20,000 presentations. We've helped more than 30,000 people in regional Australia into home ownership, through our regional home buyers guarantee.”
“It puts more money back in our community's pockets. That's a tax cut for every taxpayer up and down the income scale. We know regional people work hard for their money, and we want to support them to earn more and to keep more of what they earn. At the recent election, Australians had a clear choice: the Albanese government, who had legislated tax cuts and a range of other cost-of-living supports versus those opposite, who committed to raising taxes. If they'd won, those opposite would be in here right now raising taxes for hardworking regional Australians, they'd be weakening the PBS, they'd be continuing to stall on investment in housing and they'd be putting a nuclear reactor in the backyards of Aussies across the country.”
“I want to thank the member for his question and for the work he does in the community, but I also want to congratulate him on being appointed Special Envoy for Men's Health, a really important subject, particularly across rural and regional Australia, and I look forward to welcoming him to the mighty Eden-Monaro next week. As the minister for regional development, I engage with communities right across the country, and I love seeing the diversity in our regions, the opportunities and the challenges that are unique to each of them. The Albanese Labor government is focused on dealing with the cost-of-living pressures for people right across the country, particularly in our regions—no matter your postcode—because regional communities benefited from the tax cut we delivered in our first term, with another two tax cuts to follow.”
“We've said from day one that we would continue to work with local communities; with local councils; with the state government; and with local, state and federal members in the area to ensure that supports continue over a period of time. As I've said directly to you and the member for Cowper, we stand ready, willing and able to work with New South Wales, particularly on this.”
“We've expended over $212 million on a whole range of income supports—over 170,000 applications across those 19 LGAs. Category D funding was available to rural landholders—up to $10,000 to help with clean-up. There have been a range of other support measures put in place, including concessional loans and freight subsidies for primary producers. We have worked really closely with the New South Wales government on a range of supports, including $25,000 grant supports for small businesses. To date, we've expended around $300 million with the New South Wales government on a range of supports across those 19 LGAs.”
“I thank the member for the question, and I also thank her for her hospitality towards me, the Prime Minister, the Premier and various other New South Wales ministers in her electorate and also the electorate of Cowper. The flood that we've seen there is obviously devastating to the community, and recovery is a long-term situation. I've been through it directly with my own community. We know recovery isn't days and weeks; it's months and years, which is why we've worked really hard and really closely with the New South Wales government on a whole range of support and funding opportunities in that local community. Initially, we allowed 19 councils access to $1 million for a clean-up fund. We've allowed disaster recovery payments across 19 LGAs, including disaster recovery allowance, which is income support, across 12 LGAs.”
“Is it going to be from the Defence call centre in Cooma? Is it going to be from NEMA? NEMA is an organisation that has done so much good in our community over the last three years. If we are serious about good public service, then we have to back it, and outsourcing $20 billion to consultants is not that. Federation Chamber adjourned at 10:30”
“Across Eden-Monaro a lot of my constituents, from Goulburn to Queanbeyan to the coast, work in the Public Service, which is why they are incredibly concerned about what they've heard from Peter Dutton, Angus Taylor and all of the Liberals about pledges to cut 40,000 jobs—which, to put in perspective, is roughly the population of Queanbeyan. He said he will cut workers' flexibility too, which will not only disadvantage workers but disadvantage women in particular, and it will result in worse services to our community. Under the former government, Veterans' Affairs claims took over 400 days to even be assigned to assessment. We've cleared the 42,000-claim backlog, and claims are now being allocated within weeks. Where are these cuts going to come from? Is it going to be from Services Australia? Is it going to be from Medicare?”
“There are also activities that are much easier on the body but benefit the mind, like mahjong and euchre. But, most importantly, the seniors centre is a place to connect with friends, both new and old, like never before. The space is a real testament to the Queanbeyan seniors community because it's been designed for the community by the community. This space will have a huge impact on our community, especially for the over 20 per cent of the Queanbeyan population who are seniors. Congratulations to Brenda and the entire association on the opening of Queanbeyan's new seniors centre. Well done to Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council on making it all happen and working with the community there.”
“I bumped into Cindy in Cooma last week, and she showed me a picture of her with Prince Harry holding the Aboriginal flag. Prince Harry kept the flag as a special memento of the games. I'm going to put the picture up on my Facebook over the next few days. It was absolutely fabulous to see Cindy. Well done to her and all of the Australians who were involved in the Invictus Games. I had the great privilege of opening Queanbeyan's new seniors centre last week. The Queanbeyan Senior Citizens Association is a dedicated organisation committed to promoting the welfare of all senior citizens in the city of Queanbeyan and the surrounding districts. When I was asked to attend the grand opening, I jumped at the opportunity because jumping is what this fantastic new space is all about—jumping and a little bit of stretching, from Zumba to yoga.”
“At the end of last year I spoke in the House about Cindy Chawner from Cobargo, who was due to represent Australia at the Invictus Games in Vancouver this year. She competed in five sports at the games, picking up a silver in the skeleton and bronze in snowboarding. Cindy joined the Royal Australian Air Force in 1999, initially as an Army Reserve operations officer and later serving most of her career as a personal capability officer. She was deployed in the Middle East in 2010 and was medically discharged in June last year. Despite a range of physical and mental health injuries related to her service, Cindy personifies what it means to be resilient and hardworking. Before she left for the Invictus Games, I gave Cindy an Australian flag and an Australian Aboriginal flag to take with her to Canada.”
“Congratulations again, Bob, on this milestone and thank you for all you've done for our local community. I want to give a shout-out to Eden triathlete Jack Caldwell. Jack is 18 years old, and he recently won a gold medal at the 2025 Oceania Triathlon Junior Championships in Devonport. The win has secured him a spot at the 2025 World Triathlon Championship in Wollongong in October representing Australia. He graduated in December last year from Lumen Christi Catholic College, where he was waking up at 5 am every day to train and then head to school to complete his studies. Jack, well done. You're a legend. We're all cheering you on from the coast. I can't wait to see how your bright future unfolds. Bring on Brisbane 2032.”
“The Bombala community recently celebrated 150 years of the Bombala Show, which is a huge community milestone. I want to congratulate all of the committees and the volunteers over the decades who have contributed to this long-running event. I also congratulate all of the small businesses and organisations that have sponsored the show along the way. The recent show was even more special because the community came together to celebrate a very special Bombala legend, Councillor Bob Stewart, who has been serving his community for 30 years. He is a formidable character who champions the region with gusto, from his time as councillor and mayor of the Bombala Council to, now, being the longest-serving member of the amalgamated Snowy Monaro Regional Council.”
“They were handed the Sydney airport slot review in 2021 and sat idle at the departure gate. We have responded with an aviation white paper. We've said that we will keep Rex Airlines operating regional routes through voluntary administration. I am proud that we are supporting Rex's regional flights in the air with $80 million loaned to the administrators and additional support to reduce what Rex owes, because for regional communities like mine these flights are critical to our economy and they are critical to accessing important health services and for getting around. This is why we will continue to stand up for a strong regional aviation sector.”
“Every regional community, every community across the country, that feels the brunt of a natural disaster gets help. But that could be put at risk if you cut public servants from the National Emergency Management Agency. It's outrageous. We have delivered the $1 billion Disaster Ready Fund, which is supporting regional communities to be better prepared for disasters. We have supported an additional $35 million to boost our national aerial fleet, because most regional communities need emergency support, and, when they need it, they shouldn't have to wait. We have invested in it. But it's not just during disasters when our regions need aviation. We need a strong regional aviation sector. I said it yesterday. It is so important. We are not going to let what happened when the other side were in government be perpetuated.”
“We have just heard from the Leader of the Nationals, the member for Maranoa, how grateful he is that the National Emergency Management Agency is preparing and doing the work, something that wouldn't have happened unless we created that agency and got it working. It wasn't the case in 2022 when the member for Page had serious flooding issues in Lismore, because the response and the recovery wasn't handled well. Communities in my own electorate have felt that firsthand. Unfortunately, the Deputy Leader of the Nationals in the Senate has said she can't confirm or deny whether public servants from the National Emergency Management Agency are on the chopping block with the 41,000 public servants they want to cut if they are elected. Just think about that.”
“There's $400 million for the Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program. In the member for Page's electorate, the Clarence Valley Council received $1.6 million for the Clarence Regional Aquatic Centre waterslide development, because pools are the beating heart of our regional communities. We've delivered $3 billion to NBN Co to finalise the rollout of full-fibre connections, including over 334,000 additional regional premises. But we know that the NBN will just get sold off under those opposite. We're serious about supporting regions. That is why I'm so proud that we have launched the National Emergency Management Agency, which continues to support regional communities, most recently in Queensland and New South Wales during ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.”
“The Leader of the Nationals said those opposite would deliver a strong infrastructure pipeline, which regional communities needed. He delivered a bunch of press releases with 800 additional projects, with not a single dollar extra added to the budget. In our latest budget, there's $7.2 billion for the Bruce Highway for safety upgrades; there's $200 million to duplicate the Stuart Highway from Darwin to Katherine; there's $40 million for the Main South Road upgrade in South Australia; and there's $1.1 billion for upgrades along the Western Freeway in Victoria. We don't need colour coded spreadsheets. We're delivering on those commitments in an established and transparent way. That's how we're dealing with it from our grants program perspective as well. There's $600 million for the Growing Regions Program.”