Sally Sitou
Reid · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“I withdraw an unparliamentary remark that I made yesterday during the MPI. In withdrawing that remark, I would also like to apologise to you and to members of this House. I used a word that was not up to the high standard that we would expect of this place and the high standard that I expect of myself. I apologise.”
“If you vote against tax cuts for all Australian taxpayers, if you vote against helping first home buyers to buy their first home, if you vote against super on government funded paid parental leave, if you vote against payday super, if you vote against same job, same pay, then you are voting against all Australians.”
“Today, 1 July, is an important day. Mark it in your diaries. I do want to thank the shadow treasurer for bringing this matter of public importance to us, because it gives us on this side of the House an opportunity to talk about all the changes that are coming in today, because today all Australians get more help.”
“While Labor is strengthening Medicare, increasing bulk-billing rates and making Medicare urgent care clinics a permanent part of our healthcare system, the Liberal Party froze the Medicare rebate and they wanted to introduce a GP tax. Again, no rebranding is going to change that.”
“Today, Australians can access three hours of free energy through our solar sharer program. Today, the Albanese government says to all Australians that we are working hard to help you. More than 14 million taxpayers get another tax cut. But what did the coalition do when the tax package came before the parliament? What did they do?”
“It is good economic policy because it keeps parents connected to work, it supports women's participation and it gives parents more time with their children. Today is a great day because we are saying to parents, 'We want you to spend more time at home with your children.' We are expanding the government's paid parental leave to 26 weeks.”
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“The Liberal and National parties are still trying to figure out whether climate change is real and whether they want to support a net zero policy. There is so much infighting around this within the coalition that they are tearing each other apart. We, on this side of the House, have accepted that climate change is happening and that government has a role to play and act and that we need to work with the private sector to do so. That is exactly what we are doing. Those opposite continue to play politics. The Albanese Labor government is getting on with the job of building more homes, cutting student debt, and protecting our environment and climate—because young Australians deserve a government that listens, acts and delivers. Under Labor, that is exactly what they will get.”
“Despite all of this and despite the opposition leader's initial embrace of the review from when she was the minister for the environment, the opposition continues to oppose real action on the climate and environment. Professor Graeme Samuel described the opposition leader's opposition as a 'political game' and said that it made him feel 'bitterly disappointed', 'frustrated' and 'frankly a little angry', and I share those sentiments. Despite what the opposition and, indeed, all of us have heard from young voters regarding action on climate change and the environment, the opposition continues to dither and obstruct. Labor has set a new 2035 emissions target, a 60 to 72 per cent cut from 2005 levels, backed by record investments in renewables, green hydrogen and clean industries.”
“On climate and the environment, in 2020, the Samuel review warned that Australia's environmental laws were failing. It said urgent reform was needed to stop the decline of our natural environment. Who was the environment minister when that review landed? The Leader of the Opposition. And what did she do? Nothing. The report sat on a shelf while species disappeared and the Australian community lost faith in the system meant to protect our environment. Now Labor is finally acting. We will be introducing the nature positive bill—the biggest environmental reform in two decades. It will finally establish an independent federal environmental protection agency, strengthen protection for the environment and deliver transparency in our environmental planning approval system.”
“They neglected, undermined and underfunded the tertiary education sector. But Labor is taking bold, practical steps that will genuinely ease the burden on young people. Starting in a few weeks every young person with a student debt will see a 20 per cent cut in their student debt, backdated to 1 June this year. That's $16 billion in student relief for over three million young Australians—so many in my electorate will benefit from this—and is in addition to delivering a fairer repayment system. We've already delivered a fix to the broken indexation system. No more will student debts grow faster than your wages. And from this financial year students and graduates won't have to start repaying their student loans until they earn about $67,000 a year. This means that you start paying down your debt when you can afford to do so.”
“It was to erode their retirement savings and rob them of security later in life, forcing them to choose between a home today and retirement in the future. They went to not just one but two elections with that same failed idea. As if we've learned nothing over the last few months, the coalition either have refused to learn those important lessons from the election or are just refusing to recognise the realities. The Liberals didn't just stop at making it harder for a young person to buy a home. They also made it harder to afford an education. The Job-ready Graduates scheme introduced by the Morrison government didn't do any of the things that it was supposed to do. It didn't improve job outcomes like they promised. It didn't boost enrolment in priority areas like they promised. It didn't deliver value for students like they promised.”
“And Labor governments, at both the federal and state levels in New South Wales, are making it easier to build homes by cutting red tape and approving development applications. We are building more homes, making it better and easier to rent and backing first home buyers. Meanwhile what is the record of those opposite? For most of the decade that the Liberals and Nationals were in government, they didn't care enough about housing affordability to have a housing minister. In the decade that the Liberals were in, they only built 373 social and affordable housing places, and, when they were finally dragged kicking and screaming into pretending to have a viable housing policy, what was the solution from those opposite? It was to let young Australians raid their superannuation for a home deposit.”
“As of 1 October, every single first home buyer around this country is now eligible to get into the housing market with just a five percent deposit supported by the Albanese government—no matter their income, and with no limits on placements. With the First Home Guarantee scheme, a young couple in Sydney would on average save 11 years and $23,000 in lenders' mortgage insurance getting into the property market. And we didn't just deliver our promise; we delivered three months early, because Labor also recognises that we need to increase housing supply and build more homes. The Albanese Labor government is investing $43 billion to build more homes for Australians. We've established the Housing Australia Future Fund, a $10 billion investment that will build 30,000 new social and affordable homes over five years.”
“It's the result of a decade of neglect and deliberate sabotage by the former Liberal-National government: 10 years where wages flatlined, 10 years where housing affordability went backwards, 10 years where university and TAFE fees went up, and 10 years where climate change was seen as an inconvenience instead of the defining challenge of our generation. But, unlike those opposite, who continue to ignore and demean young people, Labor is listening and delivering. Unfortunately, Sydney is the second-least affordable housing market in the world, second only to Hong Kong. The challenges in the housing market have been brewing for decades. It is too hard to build, too hard to buy and too expensive to rent. That's why Labor went into the election with a promise to expand the First Home Guarantee scheme.”
“All of us come to this place to make sure that we are creating a better world for future generations. Unfortunately, not all governments have had that at the forefront of their minds. It is hard to be a young person in Australia. They're studying longer, they're juggling multiple jobs, and they're paying more for housing, food and other necessities. Yet they're feeling further away from basic milestones that once defined the cornerstone of Australian life. For many young people, home ownership feels out of reach, stable employment feels uncertain, and the promise of a secure climate and healthy planet is no longer taken for granted. Let's be clear: this didn't happen by accident.”
“Through our Energy Savings Package, we've provided financial support to households, businesses and local councils to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency measures. We're also making cars, both EV's and petrol cars, cheaper and cleaner. That is what a responsible government—a government that believes we need to act on climate change, drive down energy prices and bring in more renewable energy—does.”
“We know that, when it comes to addressing climate change, some of the key points are around fairness, because it's important that we bring everyone with us on this journey of moving towards cleaner energy. It's important that we bring households, workers, businesses and communities with us. We need a fairer deal on power bills, fairer access to clean energy and a fairer share of opportunities from the clean energy transformation. That's why we're implementing policies to make the transition more accessible for all. We've reduced the cost of a home battery by 30 per cent. That has delivered 80,000 home batteries across Australia. As well, we've delivered community batteries across communities and we've supported renters and people who live in units through our Community Solar Banks Program.”
“In 2025, voters delivered a clear message at the election. They support Labor's plan to tackle climate change and seize the biggest economic opportunity in our history. And our plan is working. Emissions are down and renewables are up. That's exactly where we want to be. Conversely, those opposite tried many, many times to land a climate change policy or an energy policy, but they failed at each and every turn. Their biggest failure was at the 2025 election campaign, when the Australian public gave them a resounding mark for their terrible nuclear energy policy. It was an 'F'—a big fail. So I hope that they accept some of these lessons from the failures that they've had and that they get to work and come together, get behind net zero by 2050 and get behind the idea of acting on climate change like we have.”
“My hope is that they will come up with policies to help drive down emissions, because at the moment the only policy that they do have on the table—and it's hard to imagine whether it's going to continue or be wound back—is their nuclear energy policy. This is a reminder to everyone that that policy was one that cost $600 billion and was going to jack up the price of electricity for ordinary Australians. So it's of great interest that they have now become focused on reducing emissions and they have become focused on energy prices. My hope is that they will actually start to generate some policies that will address both. When we came to government in 2022, we laid out a very clear plan to cut emissions and transition to cleaner, cheaper, renewable energy, and we got to work straightaway, on day one.”
“It is a real shame that the member for Cook is no longer in this chamber, because I wanted to address some of the points that he tried to raise and which were very misleading, like his assertion that emissions have fallen under coalition governments. The key point here is that they fell not because of the policies that the coalition introduced; they fell despite the lack of policies they introduced. The fall in emissions was because of the Gillard government's carbon price. It was because the market was already moving in this direction, so the industry was already doing a lot of the heavy lifting in reducing emissions. The third reason emissions fell was a pandemic—a total shutdown of our economy. My hope is that the coalition do not see a future fall in emissions under them based on a total shutdown of the economy.”
“The Liberal Party cut Public Service jobs when they were in government. Veterans had to wait years and years to get their claims processed. I note that those opposite always claim to be on the side of veterans. They are the first to stand up at Anzac Day services and talk about how they want to support veterans, but, when it came to actually processing their applications so that they could get the funding that they legitimately deserved, you failed them. You failed to properly staff our passport offices, so Australians couldn't even get their passports when they wanted them. You failed to adequately staff our immigration department, so there were gaping holes allowing known human traffickers into this country, including into my electorate.”
“Inflation is now under control and within the Reserve Bank's target band. We've been able to do all of this while providing cost-of-living support to Australians, including cheaper medicines, tax cuts for all Australians, free TAFE so that we can get more people trained up into areas where we have desperate skill shortages, real wages growth and cheaper child care. These are all measures that those opposite voted against, unfortunately. Let's contrast that with what happened in the last election campaign. The Liberal Party had their nuclear energy policy. The other policy offering they had—and it was a very bare cupboard indeed—was to cut 41,000 Public Service jobs over five years. It felt like Groundhog Day. The one policy they ever pull out is to cut Public Service jobs. We've been there; we've done that, and it didn't work.”
“Those opposite are going through an identity crisis at the moment. They're going to go through their Eat Pray Love moment of discovering themselves, what they stand for and what policies they want to bring forward, but let's hope they ditch their nuclear energy policy. Certainly on this side of the House, we have been singularly focused on the Australian people. We're not fighting amongst ourselves for the spoils of office. Instead, we are singularly focused on helping the Australian people because we want to deliver for them. That's the whole point of us being in this place. When we came into government we inherited $1 trillion of Liberal Party debt and two Liberal deficits. Now, under Labor, our debt is $188 billion lower and we've turned those two Liberal deficits into back-to-back surpluses.”
“I first would like to congratulate the previous speaker for his election to the positions of deputy leader of the Liberal Party and shadow Treasurer. Given that he was the architect of the nuclear energy policy that those opposite took to the last election, a failure of a policy that would have cost $600 billion and increased energy costs, one might say that he failed upwards in this case! Good luck to those opposite. They've chosen a shadow Treasurer who wanted to give the Australian public a $600 billion bill for a policy which was going to increase energy prices. But good luck to them. Certainly the shadow Treasurer did not bring very much, in terms of policy offerings, to the previous campaign. Maybe the one thing the shadow Treasurer will now do is provide policy offerings.”
“He's been awarded the Australian Fire Service medal, the National Medal with four clasps, the long service and good conduct medal, the New South Wales premier's Bushfire Emergency Citation and the National Emergency Medal. But Greg's legacy runs deeper than that. The McIlwaine family name has been part of Rhodes Fire Station since it began 104 years ago. The fire station was founded by Greg's grandfather Captain Charles McIlwaine. Greg is also a proud member of our local Labor family. His Labor values have never wavered, and he has handed out for the party on more occasions than can be counted. Greg, thank you for your service and leadership in our community.”
“After an extraordinary 59 years of service to Rhodes Fire Station, including more than 40 years as captain, Greg McIlwaine has hung up his helmet and retired. Greg's name is synonymous with fire safety in our community. His leadership, commitment and deep local knowledge have protected generations of families across Rhodes and the City of Canada Bay, from hazardous industrial sites to high-rise developments and from Concord hospital to Rivendell School. Greg's dedication to fire prevention and rescue as well as pre-incident planning has been second to none. Over his distinguished career, Greg has accrued a long list of honours.”
“And I want to point out a stat to show the inequity: 43 per cent of super earnings tax concessions go to the top 10 per cent of income earners. This change is about bringing intergenerational fairness into action.”
“We're delivering tax cuts in a way that is going to be more equitably distributed, and the biggest beneficiaries of our changes to the stage 3 tax cuts were young people—99 per cent of gen Z and 95 per cent of millennials got a bigger tax cut because of the Albanese Labor government. That is something that we are incredibly proud of. I do want to remind the House that the coalition opposed it the whole way through. A further change that we are making to make our tax system fairer is around the $3 million super balances. We want to make sure that our tax system is working for everyone, not just the few who have super balances over $3 million. Let's be honest: there are very few young people who will have balances over $3 million.”
“This Labor government is squarely focused on what we need to do to make this world a better place for young people, and part of that will be changes to our tax system, but part of that will also be some of the work that we have already done, including making HECS indexation fairer; wiping 20 per cent off student debt; paying students studying social work, midwifery, nursing and teaching who have to go on prac placements—we heard today that 30,000 people have already taken that up—and also providing fee-free TAFE. These are all measures that are going to directly benefit young people, but I want to address the points around making our tax system fairer. We have taken bold steps to make our tax system fairer for younger generations.”
“And, of course, we've got the youngest senator in Charlotte Walker. I just wanted to read a few lines from her first speech, because I think they're very instructive of how young people feel about politics. She said: What I bring to this parliament is the experience of young people today … Young Australians aren't a side issue. We aren't a future issue. We are Australians now. She also went on to say: … in 2050 I won't be in my late 90s, like some who want to abandon net zero; my friends and I will be in our 40s, and we demand an inhabitable planet.”
“Intergenerational inequity, the impacts of climate change and how they will be felt by future generations, I think, are the big, glaring challenges that we have to confront, and they're something that we on this side of the House and, I know, the crossbench are very, very interested in working on. When we think about young people, on this side in the Labor government, we don't have them siloed in one area; we have them throughout our entire decision making process. We have created youth advisory groups to ensure that young people have a seat at the table when it comes to the decisions that we are making about their lives. We also have four millennial ministers on our frontbench, which I think goes to show that, in this Labor government, we have young people who are at the decision-making table as well.”
“I want to say at the outset that I really appreciate the constructive engagement from the crossbench on this issue, particularly from the members for Curtin and Wentworth and from so many of the crossbench who have been engaging with this debate in a really constructive and thoughtful way. I know many of the crossbench came into this place because they wanted to ensure we were creating a better place for future generations, and I can say, on behalf of the Labor caucus here, that that is exactly the reason that we are all here. It's certainly the reason I put my hand up to run, and one of the guiding policies that has energised us has been action on climate change. That is the big burden that we will leave for future generations if we do not address it now.”
“Thanks to Newington, Lidcombe and Homebush West public schools for co-hosting the Cost of Living Help Hubs to ensure households get access to government support services. Thanks to Five Dock and Burwood public schools, and Strathfield Girls High School for generously hosting seniors afternoon teas, providing an opportunity for students and older residents to sit together and share stories. To teach in a public school is to believe in the power of equity and the promise of potential. It is one of the most profoundly important professions in our society, and there's no better example of that than at Lucas Gardens School. The dedicated staff, led by Principal Jenny Zagas, provide education to students with intellectual and physical disabilities, helping them reach their full potential.”
“Not only is she a great teacher but she is also fiercely committed to ensuring every child gets a good-quality education. She teaches at a high school which has achieved remarkable results because of the hard work of the teachers and students. Thanks to the leadership of Victor Newby and Kathy Kalachian, Concord High School has successfully improved maths results by adding a senior study coach, a dedicated learning centre and an after-hours algebra club. These changes lifted their average HSC maths score to among the top five non-selective schools in New South Wales. The public schools in Reid are deeply embedded in the community. The work of teachers and staff extend beyond the classroom, and I've been lucky to work with so many wonderful public schools who have co-hosted community events with me.”
“Today, almost 800,000 students walked through the gates of a public school, and around 10,000 of those students live in my electorate of Reid. One of those students is my son. He follows in the footsteps of his parents; my husband and I are proud products of public education. Now, with federal and state Labor governments in New South Wales, public education is finally getting the funding and spotlight it deserves, and this speech is my love letter to public education. Public education transforms lives. It changes a family's entire trajectory. Its magic lies in the dedicated teaching staff. Their impact is immeasurable, and it goes through generations. I see that work in Alice Leung, a teacher at Concord High School, who was awarded the Prime Minister's Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools.”
“My question is to the Treasurer. What do today's monthly inflation numbers say about the housing market? Why is the government's housing plan so important, and how does it contrast with other proposals?”
“The scheme will cut the time it takes to save for a deposit and will save you thousands in mortgage insurance. Our government wants to make it easier to rent, easier to buy and easier to build more homes. In Australia, we're obsessed with big, iconic infrastructure projects—the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Snowy hydro scheme. I want making homes more affordable to be the next big major project that we can all be proud of.”
“Buying a home for the first time is hard. The first hurdle you've got to cross is the 20 per cent deposit because if you can't get to 20 per cent, you've got to pay for mortgage insurance. For the average home, that could be about $30,000 more. The government's First Home Guarantee scheme helps to clear this hurdle by allowing eligible first home buyers to purchase a home with as little as five per cent deposit. You don't need to pay for costly mortgage insurance because the government guarantees some of the property's value. Already, 760 people in my electorate have purchased homes using this scheme, and, from 1 October, we're going to expand it further so that more people can buy a home. We're going to remove income caps, and we're lifting the property caps from $900,000 to $1½ million in Sydney.”
“We are delivering on cheaper medicines by reducing PBS medications down to $25, we're delivering a 20 per cent cut to student debt, and we're also guaranteeing penalty rates because we know so many people struggle to pay the bills and rely on their penalty rates to be able to do so. We're saying to Middle Australia that 'the PBS cut is for you', we're saying to young Australians that 'that cut to student debt is for you', and we're saying to workers that 'we've got your back with penalty rates'.”
“We've now heard first speeches from all of the new Labor members, and they have been crackers. There have been common themes throughout them all—those of humility, service and a love for doorknocking. From the member for Leichhardt up in Far North Queensland down to the member for Braddon in Tasmania, across to the west with the member for Bullwinkel and across to the east with the member for Bonner, they have all spoken about their love of doorknocking. That's because it deeply connects us to our community. We get out there. We talk to people. We find out what they are concerned about. One of the things that the community said was their No. 1 priority was the cost of living, so it's great that in this fortnight in parliament that is exactly what we're delivering on.”
“And, yes, we should work through the accord's recommendations, and we're doing that the right way—systematically, sustainably, with students at the very centre of it.”
“We're making it fairer for students in disadvantaged, regional and outer suburban areas studying in our new university study hubs, where access to higher education has been out of reach for far too long—because where you live should never determine whether you can go to uni. That is what a fairer system looks like. But reforming a system as complex as higher education, a system that has been neglected for more than a decade, takes time. As the Minister for Education has said, the Universities Accord isn't just about one or two budgets or short-term fixes; it's about delivering a sustainable tertiary education system that works for students and for our country. So we're working with universities, students and communities across Australia to build a system that's responsive, inclusive and future focused.”
“When Labor says, 'We'll back you; we'll deliver for students,' we'll make it happen. But we're not just delivering change; we're making the system fairer—fairer for 70,000 students a year receiving a Commonwealth prac placement who would have had to give up paid work to complete mandatory placements in essential care professions such as teaching, nursing, midwifery and social work. No-one should have to choose between finishing their degree and paying their bills. We're making it fairer for students in FEE-FREE Uni Ready courses who need a stepping stone to get into university. We're giving thousands of Australians the foundational skills and confidence they need to succeed at university.”
“It was the first piece of legislation that we introduced when we came into this parliament, and, backdated to June this year, we're delivering $16 billion in student debt relief for more than three million Australians. And we're delivering a fairer repayment system. From this financial year, students and graduates won't start repaying their loans until they earn around $67,000 a year. That's more time to build your career, to get established, before you have to start making these repayments. We've already delivered a fix to the broken HECS indexation system so that there's no more student debt growing faster than your wages. It's a structural fix that protects students now and into the future. This isn't just policy; it's progress. They're not just promises; it's delivery.”
“I agree with many of the points that the member for Clark has made. But we have to be upfront about the challenges that faced this government when we came in in 2022. The higher education sector, under the leadership of the former Morrison government, had been treated with utter contempt. They didn't just neglect it; they undermined it, they underfunded it and they undervalued it. But we're not standing idly by. We're rebuilding the higher education sector. We promised to fix the system and now we're delivering. We're taking bold, practical steps that will ease the burden on students and graduates. We made a promise to the Australian people to wipe 20 per cent off all student debt. Australians overwhelmingly voted for it, and now we're delivering on that.”
“In my first speech, I spoke about the importance of higher education. I'm going to quote from myself here, which I don't do often. I said at the time: If we can get this right, there is a kingdom that awaits us all, one made up of highly skilled and fulfilling jobs, an economy that is productive and makes the most of our talents and where imagination is valued. I quote myself because I want all members to know how importantly I value higher education. Sadly, the Job-ready Graduates scheme has failed to do all of those things. It was introduced by the previous Morrison government and it didn't do the things that they promised it would do. It didn't improve job outcomes like they promised. It didn't boost enrolments in priority areas like they promised. It didn't deliver value for students like they promised.”
“This morning I hosted an event to bring Labor members together to hear from experts from the Climate Council and to discuss our emissions targets for 2035. While Labor are discussing our path to get to net zero by 2050, those opposite are looking in the rear-view mirror. The member for New England has launched a retrograde crusade to repeal net zero, calling it 'lunacy'. The member for New England's bill, the Repeal Net Zero Bill 2025, is not just backwards; it's bizarre. It's nostalgia masquerading as policy. While the world moves on, they're stuck in the past.”
“The start of the 48th Parliament last week was extraordinary, thanks to some incredible and moving speeches from new members of parliament in this place. What was also extraordinary was the contrast between this side of the House and that side of the House. The very first bill we introduced as a Labor government was to cut student debt by 20 per cent and raise the HECS repayment threshold, delivering help for three million Australians. What was the very first question in question time from those opposite? It was about the coalition defending generous tax concessions for 80,000 Australians with more than $3 million in their super. The contrast here speaks volumes about their priorities, which we're seeing again this week.”
“Thank you most of all to the people of Reid for the privilege of continuing to serve you. I'll work hard to make our community and our country a better place. House adjourned at 17:00”
“Thanks to volunteers with Asian Women at Work, Sydney Chinese Drum Art Troupe, Rhodes Multicultural Community Association, Sydney Olympic Peninsula MCA and the Australian Xiao Hong Mao Tourism Culture for helping me connect with the Chinese community. To all our local councillors—Mayor John Faker, Mayor Karen Pensabene, Mayor Darcy Byrnes, Andrew Ferguson, Rory Nosworthy, George Mannah and Michael Ng—thank you for your support as we continue to fight for our community. To my campaign and electorate teams—Caleb Dredge, Kyan Aitken, Molly Quinnell, Jo Carlisle, Philippa Scott, Maryanne Duggan, Phillip Kim, John McManus, Jo Mai, Jing Hong, Elaine Shi, Kitty Farrell, Georgie Slater and James Callow—thank you for your hard work, commitment and long hours. Thank you to Dom Ofner and David Dobson for your unwavering support and wise guidance.”
“To those who braved early mornings and weekends at transport stops and street stalls, thank you. Jianhua Liu, Graham Levy, Sris Ponniahpillai, Siva, Ivy Tseng, Helen Westwood, Phyllis Parr, Sharron Hawkins, Margaret Donnellan and Mykyta Bolshov, your visibility helped us connect with thousands of voters. To my prepoll queens and king—Kym Ralley, Karen Pensabene, Greg Davis and Rhys Patton—thank you so much for your support, especially when the days were long and the weather unforgiving. You held the line with good humour and make sure every voter received a Labor how-to-vote. Thanks to all my state colleagues: Jason Yat-sen Li, Donna Davis, Lynda Voltz, Mark Buttigieg and Courtney Houssos.”
“I want to thank my volunteers, from high school and university students to parents wanting a better future for their kids, seniors who have been through many elections and migrants who voted for the first time. They all came together to fight for a fairer future. Our campaign community knocked on more than 30,000 doors. Thanks to Roewen Wishart, Madeleine Winter, Anthony Hannan, Evan Yoo, Sean Fitzgibbons, Max Eastwood, Pete Repeti, Sue Bolton, Ralph Curnow, Dani Dwyer, Pauline Johnson and Kate Sullivan for pounding the pavement and knocking on doors with me. Our phone bankers made more than 30,000 calls, too. Thanks to Lesley Light, Michael Holland, Jennifer Davoren, Stuart Maclaine, Caleb Pietsch, Vivek Goyal, Colin Chiu and Nick Rupolo for phoning night after night, bringing empathy and purpose to every conversation.”
“The former Leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton, delivered one of his most gracious speeches on election night, acknowledging the result and congratulating the Prime Minister. These acts of respect and civility are not just nice-to-have courtesies; they are the very foundation of our democracy. While we compete in the battle of ideas, we are all ultimately here to serve the Australian people. The will of the people doesn't reach these chambers without the efforts of hundreds of volunteers who gave their time and participated in the democratic process, and I want to thank some of those volunteers here today because I want to recognise the important role they have played in our democracy.”
“As members of this place, we are temporary custodians of something much bigger than ourselves. We are here because the people gave us their trust, and it is our job to honour it. At the opening of the 48th Parliament, Speaker, you committed to ensure that democracy is not only practised here but strengthened here. In a world where democratic norms and institutions are under threat, this sentiment could not be more relevant. The strength of our democracy isn't just measured in votes cast; it's measured in how we contest elections, how we respect outcomes and how we treat each other. In that spirit, I want to acknowledge my Liberal opponent, Grange Chung. While we had our differences, he engaged in respectful discussion. After the election, he called to concede graciously and offered his congratulations.”
“This year, it reached 46 per cent female participation in its youth teams, a huge leap towards its gender equity goals and well above the national average. To the Abbotsford Juniors Football Club—the volunteers, players, coaches and parents—I say: thank you for 60 years of community inclusion and passion for the game. Special thanks to the extraordinary efforts of president Chris Williamson and vice president Nick Ancona, who have been the driving force behind this club.”
“Founded in 1965 by a passionate group of football-loving locals, the Abbotsford Juniors Football Club transformed a former waste disposal site—what is now Campbell Park—into a place where generations of children have enjoyed football. Since then, the club has stayed true to its roots, putting local kids and community at its heart. They're now the largest football club in the city of Canada Bay and a powerhouse of grassroots sports. I'll be attending their celebrations this weekend to mark their 60th anniversary, where the club will recognise Stan Blake, the sole surviving founding member, and his son, Gary, an original member of the club. Among those celebrating this milestone will be players from the club's first premiership-winning female team. The club has a proud history. It also has a bold future.”