Last Week in Parliament

There is no such thing as a quiet week in Parliament. This week was the culmination of a lot of big things. Keep reading to find out how I represented Southern Metro this week.  

Following Prime Minister Albanese’s announcement of the upcoming referendum date, I took the opportunity to address the chamber on the Voice to Parliament. I emphasised the importance of recognising First Nations people in our national constitution as well as Victoria’s ongoing commitment to fulfilling the Uluru Statement from the Heart: Voice, treaty, and truth.   

On October 14, I will be voting ‘yes’ because I believe it is time for our government to listen to the voices of our First Nations people.   

I will be voting ‘yes’ because it is the right thing to do. 

 Wednesday proved to be a busy day. In the morning I spoke on the Andrews Labor Government’s expansion of sick pay guarantees for casual and contract workers. COVID-19 shone a light on the cracks in our employment system that mean thousands of people face the difficult decision between going to work sick or putting food on the table. Expanding these schemes is the solution to keeping our community safe and strong.  

The afternoon was a chance to highlight the new developments in Victoria’s Big Housing Build. Under the Andrews Labor Government, Southern Metropolitan has seen the addition of 299 new social and affordable houses in New Street, Brighton, 178 in Markham Estate, Ashburton, 445 in Bank Street, Prahran, and 206 in Bills Street, Hawthorn. But it can’t stop there. We are getting on with building more homes for more Victorians including in Hampton East and Port Melbourne where developments are beginning construction. 

Finally, after five months of hard work, nearly 10,500 public submissions and 28 public hearings, the final report from the inquiry into Victoria’s recreational native bird hunting arrangements was tabled in parliament. Many Victorians care deeply about the practice, and the depth of these feelings were clear to the Committee. To the majority of the Committee, it was clear that Victoria should end recreational native bird hunting on all public and private land from 2024.