Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.45 a.m.]: I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that the week beginning 11 May 2009 is National Volunteer Week;

(2) congratulates all volunteers on their efforts in supporting the community through their activities; and

(3) recognises the economic and social value of volunteers to the New South Wales community.

I gave notice of this motion 12 months ago, and this debate has fallen in National Volunteer Week 2010. The Keneally Government recognises the value of volunteering. The increased level of volunteering is one of the key components of a cohesive and harmonious community. That is why the New South Wales State Plan commits the Government to increasing volunteering participation rates by 10 per cent by 2016. This target is about building communities. Government alone cannot make communities more harmonious, but it can support the efforts of those who want to move in that direction. Community harmony is everyone's responsibility. Religious organisations, sporting groups, schools, and environmental, arts and cultural groups can all encourage participation.

Corporate social responsibility is also an increasing trend that can support these efforts. Volunteering already makes an incredible contribution to our community and our economy. Most of us have heard the staggering statistics, but it cannot be stressed enough. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, approximately 1.7 million people are volunteering in New South Wales, contributing approximately 240 million volunteer hours. If we are to increase community harmony we need to support and encourage everyone in the community to get involved in volunteering. We know from research that communities with high levels of volunteering participation are stronger and more harmonious. The Keneally Government is committed to supporting volunteering.

The Government established the volunteering unit in Communities New South Wales for this very reason. The unit is charged with coordinating cross-government strategies that support volunteering. One Government initiative is the student volunteering program, in which students in years 9 and 10 volunteer a minimum of 20 hours while they are at school. This is an $8.4 million program to encourage even greater participation in voluntary service. Volunteers frequently give up their time and effort to help their communities; at the same time they reap the rewards that volunteering brings. The New South Wales State Plan also commits the Government to developing a comprehensive New South Wales volunteering strategy. The volunteering unit in Communities New South Wales is currently developing that strategy in consultation with key government and non-government agencies.

The strategy will focus on supporting volunteers and increasing participation across generations and communities. It will include mechanisms for promoting volunteering to segments of the community with low participation rates. It will also include mechanisms to work with cultural, sporting, environmental, education, community welfare and emergency services groups and organisations to provide appropriate training and support to attract and retain volunteers. In developing the strategy, the volunteering unit will ensure that consultation with relevant groups is undertaken so that community thoughts and views are considered. One mechanism for supporting volunteering is the recognition of the valuable contributions made to our communities by the efforts of those who volunteer.

I take this opportunity to recognise some of the volunteers in the Wyong electorate who have put in incredible years of service. Bruce Kirkness has been involved with Toukley and District Senior Citizens for more than 20 years. He has worked to improve the facilities and organise events for seniors in the area. I know he is very passionate about his work and he has lobbied on numerous occasions for more resources. In recent years his achievements have included a new roof for their facility and hosting a fantastic arts program, which my family and I attended. It was a fantastic opera at the Toukely and District Senior Citizens. Shirley Marlin has held various positions in Toukley District Senior Citizens for more than 15 years, which is staggering.

Chris Miles has been involved in an executive position with Wyong Netball Association for more than 20 years. She has been instrumental in the expansion of the Baker Park courts to bring them to the standard to hold State and national events. Recently six new courts were added. There is also a new clubhouse to service a growing sport on the Central Coast. Chris has been a volunteer reader-writer for exams at St Peters College for many years. The wonderful Cathy Marvell, OAM, formed the Renal Association of New South Wales and has been involved with the organisation for more than 40 years ago. The respite holiday house for those on machines was the first in New South Wales. She has also been involved with Legacy and the RSL for almost 20 years.

Ken Marvell, OAM, has been involved with Toukley RSL in various positions for more than 20 years and is currently the welfare officer. Ron Marlin has been a member of various associations. Currently he has volunteered for about nine years with Airleague of Australia, Central Coast Branch. He has been driving the RSL bus taking oldies—his words, not mine—on trips for about 10 years. He was heavily involved in fundraising for Wyong Cancer Care as part of the National Service Mens Association. Joe and Pat Parker have been involved with the Central Coast multiple sclerosis and handicapped group for more than 25 years and both have also been involved in pastoral care groups with St Marys for close to 30 years. Claire Johnston has been involved with Vinnies for approximately 20 years. She has been involved in pastoral care and home visits with St Marys Catholic Church for more than 20 years.

Bill Cheal has been involved with Toukley Sailing Club for 49 years. He has held various executive positions and has taught young people to sail at no cost. He has kept the club going through vigorous negotiating when it was hit with exorbitant new public liability fees. His wife, Joan, was involved up until she was hospitalised. Recently I presented a Premier's award to Margaret Thirwall, who has volunteered with the San Remo Neighbourhood Centre for more than 20 years. The list goes on and on. I have been involved with surf clubs for a number of years, including Umina Surf Club and Soldiers Beach Surf Club. It is pleasing to see young people who are coming through the rookie program are volunteers in that organisation. I am also a member of the operational support brigade of the Rural Fire Service, where I see the exceptional work and training of volunteers every weekend.

One way the Government tries to recognise the work of people such as these is through support for the New South Wales Volunteer of the Year Awards. These awards are coordinated by the New South Wales Centre for Volunteering and provide a way to recognise and publicly acknowledge the important work done by thousands of volunteers across New South Wales. This week the Minister for Volunteering launched the 2010 awards and announced a $15,000 contribution to support the awards, continuing the support the New South Wales Government has provided since the awards were first established in 2007. This is another example of how this Government has worked closely with the community sector with volunteer-engaging organisations, and will continues to do so.

The New South Wales Volunteer of the Year Award has several categories, including Young Volunteer of the Year and Senior Volunteer of the Year. Nominations close in September, and award ceremonies take place across 18 New South Wales regions throughout October and November. The major statewide ceremony and announcement of the 2010 Volunteer of the Year takes place on 3 December 2010, to mark the United Nations declared International Volunteer Day, on 5 December. The awards will be presented by the Minister for Volunteering in Parliament House. I know that members on both sides of the House will take this opportunity to recognise the wonderful people in their communities who give up their own time with no thought of any remuneration to volunteer, whether it is through Marine Rescue, the Rural Fire Service, the State Emergency Services, surf life saving clubs, or as cub masters, scout masters or guide leaders. They do so because they know and understand the benefits it brings to our community.

Mr Geoff Corrigan: Meals on Wheels.

Mr DAVID HARRIS: Yes, Meals on Wheels. I have gone out with Meals on Wheels. I have noted those incredible people, many of whom have worked really hard in the community for many years, who in retirement continue good work. I wish all volunteers a wonderful National Volunteer Week. I thank them for their tireless contribution to the New South Wales community. The contribution is recognised and appreciated.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE (Lismore) [11.55 a.m.]: I proudly support the National Volunteer Week motion moved by the member for Wyong. I acknowledge the presence in the Chamber of the member for Lane Cove, the shadow Minister for Volunteering and Arts. I thank him for affording me the opportunity to speak on this motion. The member for Wyong said that volunteering is very much a part of our family life and the electorate at large. I would not be game enough to single out one volunteer or organisation. Sadly, if work is left to government it does not get done, but volunteers get it done. This week the Parliament has recognised National Volunteer Week, which is such a small way to say thank you to the community.

Mr Geoff Corrigan: Very small.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: It is a very small way. Right across this State and nation volunteers are tireless in their contribution to their communities. It is very much appreciated. I do not want to dampen this debate, but my area has been saddened in National Volunteer Week by the announcement of the Red Cross that it will close its regional offices in Lismore, Wollongong and Albury at the end of May. Our area's new office will be at Kempsey, the Wollongong area will be in Nowra and the Albury area will be in Wagga Wagga. Mr Lewis Kaplin, Executive Director of the Red Cross, wrote to me on 5 May and I received the letter on 11 May.

Last week I was in a little village called Uki near Murwillumbah conducting interviews. Two members of the Red Cross were nearly in tears because they had been advised that the Lismore office will be closed. Why? They have devoted their life to the Red Cross. They have worked continually, and as each and every one of us in this place would know, members of the Australian Red Cross have given a lifetime to their work, and they are not young. They have had the support of this area office in providing support to their branch network and support to the members, and they have been able to increase their membership through the support provided by the Lismore office.

I note that the member for Clarence is in the Chamber. Red Cross branches in the Clarence electorate, which are well and truly serviced by the Lismore office, have volunteers who were also devastated by this news. I immediately rang Lewis Kaplan, who advised me that the closure was happening. I told him that I have a lot of disappointed Red Cross members, to which he responded, "I have a lot of happy ones at Kempsey". I told him that I was disappointed with his attitude. Members are finding out about this closure second-hand. With the support of my colleagues—the member for Clarence, the member for Ballina and the member for Tweed—a meeting has been organised to be held in Lismore on Monday 24 May 2010 for Red Cross members and the community of Lismore and surrounding areas, because we are disgusted and disappointed that the Lismore Red Cross office has been closed.

The Mayor of Lismore, Jenny Dowell, has written an open letter to Robert Tickner, the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Red Cross, and Lewis Kaplan, the Executive Director of Red Cross New South Wales, regarding the closure of the Lismore office. Jenny Dowell expressed her grave concerns at the decision to close the office. Members would recall that the Lismore office played a very big part in providing back-up during floods that have been experienced over the past few years in the North Coast area. It was the Lismore Red Cross office that led the way, backed up by members from surrounding areas. No-one would deny Kempsey having a Red Cross office, but apparently the office is being moved to provide services for people in socially disadvantaged areas. I can assure the Red Cross that the disadvantaged places on the North Coast match those on the mid North Coast. This morning's edition of the local paper, the Northern Star, published a letter written by Rachael Rose of Goonellabah. The letter states:

As a former regional secretary of the Australian Red Cross Northern Regional Centre, I find it a great shame but not a surprise that the decision has been taken by "the powers that be" to move the regional centre to Kempsey.

Be under no illusion that ARC is a charity. Several years ago I had the opportunity to personally ask the (then) CEO of the ARC, Mr Paul O'Sullivan, if the Australian Red Cross was a charity or a business. The answer was categorically "It's a business".

That is the difference: Red Cross volunteers believed that they had been working for a charity; that they were volunteers who supported an organisation that is dear to the hearts of everyone across this State and across this nation. One may ask why I am highlighting this matter. I am doing so because this is National Volunteer Week, and volunteers across the State have been involved with the Australian Red Cross and have contributed to the wellbeing of this State and this nation. For volunteers to be informed of these decisions during National Volunteer Week is a slap in the face to the individual members of the great number of branches in the North Coast area.

The Parliamentary Secretary, the member for Wyong, gave notice of this motion 12 months ago. The decision to debate it today is well timed, because if it is not debated today it will not be debated next week. The motion provides the House with the opportunity to recognise the contribution of volunteers. Many organisations would not survive without the support of volunteers. This morning a number of organisations have been mentioned and I am sure the shadow Minister for Volunteering, the member for Lane Cove, will pick up on that theme. Individual organisations do not survive without volunteers. The businesses that support volunteer organisations are to be thanked as well, because without their financial support the volunteer organisations would not survive.

I thank not only the volunteers, but also those who give financial and other support to volunteers. Volunteers usually leave their families at home, with the mothers minding the children, and sometimes the families need to run a business while dad goes off to do his volunteer work, or vice versa. A lot is involved when a person turns up to do volunteer work. The family at home supports the volunteer, and those families should be recognised as well. The volunteer could not go away to do that work without the support of his or her family. In this National Volunteer Week there are so many people to thank. As the member for Lismore I say thank you to the volunteers for the enormous job that they do in supporting communities and organisations. Their efforts certainly make the Lismore area a wonderful place to live in and represent.

Mr NICK LALICH (Cabramatta) [12.05 p.m.]: I thank the Minister for Volunteering, the Hon. Peter Primrose, for giving me the opportunity to speak on this important issue. Monday 11 May 2010 marked the start of National Volunteer Week, and it is appropriate that we all come together in this place to say a big thank you to volunteers across the State and in our local areas. Volunteer Week is the largest celebration of volunteers in New South Wales and Australia. It provides an opportunity to acknowledge the dedicated and committed volunteers in our communities. I take great pride in knowing that my city of Fairfield, which takes in my electorate of Cabramatta, is blessed with hundreds of local volunteers who help out in sporting clubs, church groups, seniors associations, organised charities, schools and childcare centres, help keep the environment clean, and do so much more. The New South Wales Parliament and Fairfield City Council recognise the valuable contribution that volunteers make to our community.

Every year, Fairfield City Council hosts its own event, known as the Gift of Time, to thank all of our dedicated local volunteers who give the gift of their time to us. The council is only able to hold this event with the generous support of Mounties—this is the eighth year that the club has hosted the event. I give special thanks to Mr Kevin Ingram, President of Mounties, and his board of directors for their unfailing dedication to our community and recognition of our volunteers. I thank also Mr Greg Pickering, the Chief Executive Officer of Mounties, for making it the number one club in the State. More than 400 volunteers, local residents and community leaders attend the thank you celebration that acknowledges the contributions made to the City of Fairfield by our local volunteers.

The Gift of Time event is a small token of our appreciation and a great way to show our volunteers that we, the community, care. Volunteering requires dedication, generosity and a genuine willingness to help your fellow man and those less fortunate. The fact that volunteers give selflessly of their time without asking for anything in return makes each and every one of them a special person in our community. The generosity and support of these volunteers foster the very real sense of community and neighbourhood. I am sure that if we could put a dollar value to the contribution offered by all local volunteers it would be a very large sum. And as such, would place an unbearable burden on the economy of our State.

I thank all our volunteers for sacrificing their time and putting so much effort into assisting people in our community. Their work truly helps build the reputation of our State and my City of Fairfield as a diverse, active and great place to live. It is wonderful that we have put this week aside to have the opportunity to publicly thank volunteers for what they have offered and will continue to offer our communities. I know that our volunteers do not expect recognition, but I assure them that each and every volunteer deserves it. On behalf of the New South Wales Parliament, Fairfield City Council and my electorate of Cabramatta, I thank volunteers for what they do—we think they are terrific!

Mr ANTHONY ROBERTS (Lane Cove) [12.09 p.m.]: It is my great pleasure on behalf of the New South Wales Liberal-Nationals Coalition during National Volunteer Week to thank and pay tribute to the 1.6 million volunteers in this State. I commend the member for Wyong for moving this motion. It is a shame that a Minister has not moved a motion to this effect in the House this week, which is the usual practice. I realise that the Minister for Volunteering is in the other place but I think that to a great extent it shows a lack of concern by the Government. I know that all the members who have spoken today wholeheartedly thank and support their local volunteers, but it reflects poorly on the management of this House that we have not had a ministerial motion to mark such an important occasion, National Volunteer Week, and thank our 1.6 million volunteers.

All members know that volunteers are the unsung heroes of our communities, playing a vital role in so many areas and contributing more than 200 million hours annually. Every day, everywhere, people donate their time, their resources and at times risk their lives to guide, help, assist and protect others. If I might be indulged by the House to give just one example, this week, as shadow Minister for Volunteering, I attended a volunteers morning tea conducted by the Salvation Army Emergency Services [SAES] Australia Eastern Territory, where I had the pleasure of meeting Mr Norm Archer, the Territorial SAES Director. He informed me that the SAES has around 1,800 volunteers spread throughout the State, essentially linked to Salvation Army churches. In the past 12 months SAES has served in excess of 12,000 meals at evacuation centres during floods, bushfires and other emergencies. I acknowledge that this good work could not be undertaken without the generosity of NRMA Insurance.

In our roles as parliamentarians we all have been fortunate to meet a great number of volunteers and we all have come to know that volunteers are a special type of citizen—they think of others before themselves, which is a rare and valued commodity in today's world. Recently in Kiama I had the pleasure of meeting Jan Dodge, a volunteer in the library, and Sandra Pearson from the Red Cross, which makes a magnificent effort locally and across Australia. At the Recent Red Cross awards I had the utmost pleasure of seeing both Sandra and Margaret Warby, who are old friends of mine, receive service awards.

Many government agencies in New South Wales would not be able to perform their combat roles without volunteers. The State Emergency Service, Rural Fire Service, and Marine Rescue New South Wales exist only because of volunteers from all walks of life share a generosity of heart and a love of their country. Often volunteers have to work without Government aid; in fact it would be more accurate to say that Government is quite often indifferent to their contribution to the community. We still have one of the lowest volunteering rates in the nation. Insurance is still an issue with respect to volunteers. The cost for volunteers to do their work continues to rise. Onerous police checks are involved, which means that if someone is involved with five volunteer organisations that person must have undergone five police checks, often at great cost to the individual or the organisation. There just seems to be a lack of a plan or strategy. We have been told that is being addressed but it needs to happen now because unless we recruit, retain and reward volunteers we will be in a very difficult position in the next two decades.

We should not have just a week for volunteers, where we thank them once a year, we should as a Parliament and a community thank them each and every day, because their efforts help make this State a better place in which to live. This House should be in no doubt that if it were not for volunteers our State would grind to a halt in a day. I emphasise that point: If our volunteers did not turn up tomorrow this State would shut down within 12 hours. It would take much of this day to list all our volunteer organisations. I join with all my colleagues on both sides of the House in expressing the belief that every volunteer deserves our praise, our gratitude and, above all, our thanks on behalf of a grateful State. I join with colleagues on both sides to humbly thank those wonderful volunteers.

Dr ANDREW McDONALD (Macquarie Fields—Parliamentary Secretary) [12.14 p.m.]: Our lives are measured by our relationships and altruism is the glue that defines us as a society. There is no greater demonstration of true altruism than to be a volunteer. That is why National Volunteer Week is a rare opportunity for us to recognise all volunteers and all types of volunteering, because volunteering permeates every part of the way people live. The New South Wales Government recognises the value of volunteering, particularly as a pathway towards increasing social cohesion and building harmonious communities. That is why in setting the State Plan target of increasing volunteering by 10 per cent by 2016, this Government also acknowledged the importance of developing mechanisms to support the engagement of people from traditionally under-represented groups. The State Plan acknowledges the importance of presenting opportunities for young people to engage in volunteering, as well as for people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities and indigenous people.

My colleague the member for Wyong has already spoken about the wonderful initiative to engage more school students in volunteering. The Government has also been working to expand emergency service volunteering, with a focus on diversifying the volunteer base. Today in this place a large number of State Emergency Service volunteers are being recognised for their contribution to date. In 2007, the Government committed to expanding the Rural Fire Service Secondary School Student Program for young people and establishing a similar program in the State Emergency Service. In 2008-09, 43 RFS Secondary School Student Programs were run, with more than 600 students participating. Funds were allocated to the SES in the 2008-09 budget for an SES cadet program similar to the RFS program. In 2008, the SES program commenced in four schools, with more than 80 students participating. In 2009, the program was rolled out to a further 15 schools, with more than 300 students participating. The program continues to be developed in 2010. That is why it is very encouraging to see a large number of young volunteers among the SES volunteers here today.

Another successful initiative is a partnership between the SES and the Adult and Community Education Unit of the Department of Education and Training, designed to increase the number of Aboriginal people volunteering in the SES. This partnership has enabled the SES to extend a program piloted in Moree in 2007 to a range of other communities, such as Taree, Wagga Wagga, Cabbage Tree Island, Toomelah, Boggabilla, Nowra, Lismore, Cowra, Condobolin, and Lake Cargelligo. In 2009, the program was also extended to culturally and linguistically diverse communities, with training conducted in Hurstville, Armidale, Tamworth and Newcastle. To date, the program has achieved a retention rate of more than 87 per cent amongst Aboriginal participants and 80 per cent amongst participants from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. The people of New South Wales have already benefited from this program, with a number of the new Aboriginal SES graduates from the Boggabilla and Toomelah training assisting with recovery efforts during the floods in the Lismore area in May last year.

A new online resource, launched by the Minister for Volunteering earlier this year, will better support cultural awareness training for existing SES volunteers and enable the partnership to continue its success in 2010. Programs such as these demonstrate that when Government and the community support efforts to remove barriers and reach out to specific groups, those communities and individuals respond. As the State Plan notes, arts, sport and volunteering help in societal cohesion, promote social harmony and diversity, and break down barriers for those who are marginalised and disadvantaged.

Our society has always given great prominence and recognition to participating in sport. The Whitlam and Wran governments also gave increased recognition to participating and achieving in the arts. It is now time to better recognise the contribution that volunteers make to our community. My colleague the member for Wyong spoke about the Government's ongoing support for the Volunteer of the Year awards, which represent the diversity of volunteering cross the community. I join all members in this House in acknowledging the contribution of volunteers in our communities in National Volunteer Week. I thank them for their dedication and for what they have done for New South Wales.

Mr GREG APLIN (Albury) [12.20 p.m.]: I join other members in supporting the motion recognising National Volunteer Week. Volunteers are the unsung heroes of our communities. Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending a function at the council chambers in Culcairn at the invitation of Diane McElwaine, a former Citizen of the Year for Greater Hume shire. On that occasion I recognised the work of the volunteers who distribute the local "Oasis" newsletter. Diane single-handedly puts together that newsletter before it is printed. Volunteers meet to fold copies before delivering them by hand to homes throughout Culcairn, which is welcomed as a means of keeping in touch. That would not be possible without the service of the volunteers.

Volunteers play a vital role throughout our community, whether it is in the Albury electorate or elsewhere in New South Wales. It is estimated that there are 1.6 million volunteers in New South Wales. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that around 20 percent of people in New South Wales, or one in five, are regular volunteers. Slightly more women—21 percent—are likely to volunteer than men, of whom 19 per cent contribute. Annual volunteer hours are estimated at 200 million. Clearly, our State relies heavily on the selfless contribution of these people. Every day volunteers donate their time and their resources and, on occasions, they risk their lives to assist and protect the public. Many volunteers leave their families and homes to help others, sometimes returning to find that their own homes have been burned down or that their families have been evacuated.

Volunteers truly embody the spirit of generosity. They say, "Yes, I can", and they do what they say. Often volunteers are the first to arrive and the last to leave. Many of our government agencies can function only on the back of the support of volunteers. Look at the State Library with its number of guided tours for school groups, and the sorting and the school activities that are performed at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Volunteers guide the general public, entertain corporate clients and show around those members of the Art Gallery Society. To a large extent the Powerhouse Museum relies on visitor services, with staff supported behind the scenes by volunteers. At the Royal Botanic Gardens volunteers conduct walks, work as green guides, work in nurseries and provide on-site interpretation of plants, as indeed do the Friends of the Botanic Gardens in my electorate of Albury.

The Rural Fire Service, one of our foremost embodiments of volunteering, has more than 70,000 people from New South Wales volunteering their services. Volunteers are extensively committed and well trained, and they deliver essential services. Often they, too, put their lives on the line to safeguard their community. That comes to the fore so many times in the Albury electorate during the bushfire season when many committed captains and volunteers train and exercise for events such as those last December when they battled terrible fires at Gerogery and Walla Walla. The State Emergency Service is an emergency and rescue service dedicated to assisting the community. The SES, which depends almost entirely on volunteers, has more than 228 units located throughout New South Wales comprising more than 10,000 volunteers. Those volunteers, who are easily identified by their distinctive orange overalls, provide essential front-line and often life-saving assistance.

The Landcare movement, which is not too much to the fore, is recognised in country areas as depending entirely on volunteers. Landcare is strong in the Holbrook area and in the Corowa region of the Albury electorate, where volunteers manage local environments, deal with land management issues and often win national awards. Marine Rescue NSW draws volunteers from three existing marine volunteer rescue organisations and encompasses 56 accredited bases from border to border. It is responsible for all types of marine monitoring, searching and rescuing, and for assisting other emergency rescue organisations. We should not forget the RSPCA, where volunteering can involve contact with animals. Opportunities exist for volunteers to assist with administration events, customer service and fundraising.

There are a number of service clubs throughout our State—Lions, Rotary, Zonta, Inner Wheel, Apex, and many others. Volunteers dedicate their time to serve their communities. What do volunteers achieve as a result of serving their communities? They say that they live longer, feel better, sometimes gain employment, and that it provides an outlet. Clearly the benefits are from giving and not receiving. We thank those volunteers for their wonderful service to our State and we praise them in National Volunteer Week.

Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [12.25 p.m.], in reply: I thank the member for Lismore, the member for Cabramatta, the member for Macquarie Fields, the member for Lane Cove and the member for Albury for participating in debate on my motion to observe National Volunteer Week. One of the greatest privileges to be gained from serving in this place is that on most days we come into contact with fantastic volunteers and witness the incredible work that they do in our communities. The member for Lismore said that volunteers form a part of the lives of people in our communities and strengthen the fabric of society, which is so true. They are tireless in their contributions to our communities. As other members have said, we come across volunteers in all facets of our lives—whether it is Meals on Wheels, our emergency services groups, local service groups, or volunteers at schools and preschools.

As a former teacher I am aware of the valuable contribution of grandparents who help young people who experience difficulty with reading. Even though that might occur for only one or two hours a week it has an incredible impact on the lives of those young children. There are carers, volunteers in sporting organisations, volunteers in the arts and entertainment areas, and volunteers in environmental groups. After listening to the contribution of other members it made me reflect on the fact that two weeks ago I was able to participate in Graffiti Action Day. Thirty people from San Remo got together and cleaned up the San Remo shops. The youngest person would have been aged about seven or eight—the rubber gloves stretched almost up to his elbows—and the oldest person was well into his eighties. All those volunteers helped to scrub the graffiti off the San Remo shops.

I then travelled to Budgewoi Beach where 100 Dune Care volunteers planted 1,200 native plants in an attempt to restore the dunes along Budgewoi Beach. I also attended the Toukley Hawks game where volunteers were running the show—referees, umpires and linesmen. Volunteers were helping out in the canteen and cooking sausages on the barbeques. That day encapsulated many things about what is good about volunteering in our community. As has been mentioned, approximately 1.7 million volunteers in New South Wales contribute 240 million hours of volunteer work. What would be the cost of those volunteering hours to our community, which could not meet those responsibilities? The member for Lismore referred to the unfortunate proposal to close the Red Cross offices in some regional areas. I hope that the member for Lismore and other members of Parliament who are involved in this issue achieve a good outcome for their constituents.

Earlier I referred briefly to the $8.4 million program for student volunteers—year 9 and year 10 students volunteer their services for a minimum of 20 hours. On Graffiti Action Day students were able to fulfil their 20-hour obligation. They were painting fences, cleaning doors and doing all sorts of things with smiles on their faces. They experienced firsthand the value of contributing to the community and how rewarding it is. I encourage all members to promote the New South Wales Volunteer of the Year awards by putting forward nominations or by promoting in their local community the idea of nominations. People will not volunteer because of the recognition, but recognition is good not just for the individual but also for their families, particularly when people have spent decades volunteering for the community. A good point was made that we should thank the supporters of volunteers—the businesses and, of course, the families behind them who make sure they have the time to volunteer. I commend the motion to the House.

Question—That the motion be agreed to—put and resolved in the affirmative.

Motion agreed to.