Wednesday, 21 September 2022

Announcements

Felicitations

Ms BLANDTHORN (Pascoe Vale—Leader of the House, Minister for Planning) (19:07): I seek leave to make some statements and thank those who have contributed to the 59th Parliament, as this is indeed our last session.

Leave granted.

It is appropriate as we conclude to record our thanks and the thanks of the government to those who make this place work. Indeed it is also my final contribution both as Leader of the House and member of the Assembly, so many of my thankyous have a personal note to them as well.

Firstly, Speaker, can I thank you; the previous Speaker, now the Minister for Child Protection and Family Services; as well as the new Deputy Speaker for the work that you have done in presiding over this chamber and the Parliament. You have shown great independence and patience in maintaining the order of this house over the course of this Parliament in your previous role and in this one.

To the clerks of the Parliament, Andrew Young and Bridget Noonan, including their respective deputies and Parliament support staff, we say thank you. I note this morning we had the morning tea to wish Andrew all the best in his future following his resignation as Clerk of the Legislative Council and as Clerk of the Parliaments. I personally have appreciated his wise counsel, and I know he will be missed by the Parliament. Indeed the Parliament is better for his service. Thank you to Bridget for all of your work. Without you I have no doubt that this place would not work. Over the past eight years I have greatly appreciated your advice on all manner of things, not least on trying to help keep the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee in order and more recently in my time as Leader of the House, so thank you. Your intelligence, calmness, independence, humility, kindness and good humour always is greatly appreciated. As I said yesterday in speaking to the government business program, I am sure all of us here join me in congratulating Bridget on becoming the first female Clerk of the Parliaments.

Can I also thank those who support Bridget. I know that they help make this place work as well. We want to thank Robert, Vaughan, Paul and Sarah for their support of both my role as Leader of the House but also the house more broadly.

Can we also thank Hansard, who, as I think a few people in their valedictories have said this week, always manage to make us read better than we sound—although I do note that the recent addition of video footage cannot always hide the same flaws.

Thank you to the committee staff, who keep all of the important committees of the Parliament working. Again, with the indulgence of the house, on a personal note I particularly thank the staff associated with the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee. PAEC always has a huge workload, with its annual budget estimates and financial and performance outcomes inquiries, and yet in this term we have also seen the additional inquiries associated with the management of the pandemic. This has put a huge strain on all of the committee secretariats but in particular the PAEC secretariat.

To all of the Department of Parliamentary Services staff who assist us as members and our staff, both here in this place and in our electorate officers, thank you. To those who work in Parliament’s hospitality, thank you for the good coffee, always with a smile. And thanks to the cleaning staff who have not only cleaned up after the usual Parliament messiness but who during the pandemic in particular have really gone above and beyond to help keep us safe and help keep this Parliament working through the pandemic. Thank you to the security staff. I think it is fair to say that in many respects this Parliament has faced much greater security threats than any other in Victoria’s history. It is also fair to say that members and their staff—our staff—all have a greater sense of anxiety, both in this place and also when in their electorates, regarding their own security and that of their families. So all members really do appreciate the work that has been undertaken by this Parliament and overseen by these Presiding Officers in particular in relation to keeping us all safe and keeping our families and our staff safe, and I record our thanks to all involved.

Thank you to all electorate office staff across all of our offices. You are the front line for the work that those of us that are elected to this place do, and you see the very best and the very worst of our society at times. Your commitment across all of our offices to real public service is appreciated by all of us and the communities that we represent.

Finally, can I thank all members in this place for their contribution to the 59th Parliament. I would like to particularly acknowledge all retiring members. On the government side, in particular I acknowledge those ministers who are retiring. I can hear one of them behind me. They certainly leave giant footsteps for all of us, whatever side of this chamber we sit on, to follow in their commitment to this place and their communities. The Victorian public service has certainly set an example for many of us who are here to follow. Across the entire Parliament, I think everyone really does come to this place—wherever they sit, whatever their politics—with a view to wanting to do something good. So, on behalf of the Parliament, I thank everyone for the contribution that they make.

To recontesting members of all persuasions, I hope that you take care of yourselves and your families and your teams on the campaign trail. As I think we said yesterday, may you all go well and may some go better than others.

Ms STALEY (Ripon) (19:12):(By leave) I too want to join the Leader of the House in some thankyous. I want to particularly start with the Speakers. You, Speaker—I am going to perhaps break convention and use your name because we have two speakers and I want to make sure I am getting the right people. I have previously got your electorate wrong more times than I want to acknowledge. To you, Maree Edwards, the member for Bendigo West: thank you for being both the Deputy Speaker and now the Speaker. To Colin Brooks, the former Speaker, the member for Bundoora and now the Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers, and to the current Deputy Speaker, the member for St Albans: I thank you for your leadership and chairing what is a very rambunctious place, a very noisy place and one that we could perhaps in the future improve all of our behaviours in.

I want to particularly thank Bridget Noonan, the Clerk, and congratulate her again on being not only the first female Clerk of the Assembly but now the first female Clerk of the Parliaments. I have recently been in the Council chamber where Council members paid tribute to Andrew Young, who is the current Clerk of the Parliaments and Clerk of the Council, and I join with them in recognising his service to the Parliament as Clerk of the Parliaments. To Bridget, though, your ability to help us and even help us ask the right question is incredibly valuable. I think for all of us who are in need of, ‘Well, you could do this’ or ‘There would be this’, it has been incredibly helpful to have that advice and to know that you were always there at the end of the phone, even when I rang you on a Saturday or a Sunday. Thank you very much. To your team, I particularly mention Robert, the Deputy Clerk, but also Paul, Vaughan, Sarah—your whole team. Always so professional, always so organised, you always make sure that this chamber runs the way that it should.

I want to thank Hansard for all of their work and as others have said for making us sound and look good. I understand—I cannot even see you from here—that Hansard reporters wear bowties on the last day. There is yours, in spectacular red. That is a lovely tradition, and thank you for upholding it.

I want to thank the attendants. This is one of the ways in which, because of COVID, people have had to step up into roles, and the attendants have been really at the forefront of some of the measures we have had in this chamber over the COVID journey in keeping us safe.

I would like to thank broadcasting. They tell me I am a power user of broadcasting. I think that means I always ask for my videos. I will be asking for this one, do not worry.

A member: In fact I’ll put my order in now.

Ms STALEY: Yes, I might as well put it in now. I am sure you are listening.

I would like to thank parliamentary counsel, the parliamentary library and all of DPS. I particularly want to mention catering, cleaning and grounds. I think our grounds here are such a delight. I often sit in my office in the annex, and I look out on that quadrangle and just think how lucky we are to have such a beautiful set of grounds. Particularly those of us who come from the country like the greenery; it is just really very special.

I also want to mention security. We do face increasing threats in our jobs as members of Parliament. Security is, I know, always there looking at ways to keep us safe, and they do keep us safe. With that I also include the PSOs.

The last group of people that I would acknowledge is, of course, my fellow members of the Assembly—all of us, the 88 members who make up the Assembly. We are the Parliament with our colleagues in the other place, and like the Leader of the House I would like to pay tribute to those who are retiring, particularly those on the Liberal and Nationals side, for their contribution to public life and to all of those who are continuing. Like others have said, I perhaps would hope some of those who are seeking to continue on the other side might not get the opportunity, and I suspect they have a similar feeling about me. However, I will be back in December, and I look forward to rejoining the fray sitting on that side of the chamber.

The SPEAKER (19:18): Before the house adjourns I would also like to say a few words. Members do not need to be reminded about the importance of our democracy and the fundamental role this institution plays in it. It is fair to say that the 59th Parliament has been one of the most challenging in the history of this Parliament. The disruptions we have experienced from the pandemic have presented challenges for all of us. There have been times when the very act of sitting has presented doubt and uncertainty. Yet it has been during these times when we have been at our best. We have shown that we can put aside our differences and work together towards our shared values of democracy and parliamentary integrity.

So it is fitting to give a special mention to the current and former managers of opposition business and the leaders of the house, particularly the member for Rowville and the member for Bendigo East during their time in these roles for the many hours of negotiation which took place to ensure that this Parliament could continue to sit and perform its vital functions as safely as possible through the pandemic challenges.

To the parliamentary staff who work so hard behind the scenes to make this institution function, we can perform our work in this place so seamlessly because of the work they do. They have been resilient in the face of much uncertainty and have answered the call to go above and beyond their normal duties in this Parliament. So a huge thankyou to Bridget Noonan, to Robert, Paul, Vaughn and Sarah, for their professionalism and expert advice and to the entire Assembly team, especially the attendants for looking after us in this chamber and the amazing work they do in their tours and school programs. Congratulations, Bridget, on your new role as Clerk of the Parliaments.

Thank you to Andrew Young and his team in the Council for their support. I wish Andrew all the best on his next journey. Despite all of our efforts he is still leaving us.

To James Scott and the Hansard team, for the many hours of work making our speeches make sense. To John Fothergill and the buildings and grounds staff, who deal with the many challenges presented by this historic building. To Trish Burrows and the various teams in the Department of Parliamentary Services, who support us both in this place and in our electorates. To the security team and the PSOs, who have done a remarkable job during an extremely challenging time. To the catering team for their endless supply of coffee, tea and other beverages and for their ingenuity in keeping our kitchens going during lockdowns to help feed those doing it tough in our city. To the committee staff, who often have to deal with tight time lines and have been asked to journey through a number of highly emotional inquiries in this term of Parliament. To the community engagement team, who help make Parliament understandable and accessible to many people who would not normally engage in the democratic process.

On a personal note, I would like to pay a special thanks in particular to the former Speaker, the member for Bundoora, whose friendship, guidance and support I value highly. Thank you too to the Deputy Speaker and the acting chairs—your help in sharing the load of chairing this chamber is invaluable. To the party whips, who help with the smooth operation of this chamber, thank you. To the President of the Legislative Council, the Honourable Nazih Elasmar, and former President Shaun Leane, thank you for your support and guidance in my role as Speaker, and I wish Nazih all the best for his next chapter. And a special shout-out to Jason McDonald in my office, who has worked closely with both the former Speaker and me—thank you for your invaluable assistance. Your knowledge of the Parliament is quite extraordinary, your work ethic remarkable and your advice much valued. Thank you so much.

And finally, to all members, whether retiring or contesting at this election, I wish you all the very best for whatever the future holds.