Mr JOHN AQUILINA (Riverstone—Parliamentary Secretary) [7.38 p.m.], by leave: I move:

That the House take note of Christmas felicitations.

I take this opportunity to wish you, Mr Speaker, and yours the very best of the festive season and to thank you for your efforts in the Chair, particularly during what has been a very difficult period. As I stated in my Christmas felicitations last year, being Speaker at times can be very difficult. It is difficult to know what is happening both inside and outside the Parliament and to make sure that you make impartial rulings for both sides of the House on all occasions and in all circumstances. I extend to you my congratulations on the work that you have done so far and I extend to you, your family and your staff all the very best wishes for the festive season and beyond.

As I have in previous years, I acknowledge the very hard work of the Whips—both the Government Whips, the member for Bathurst and the member for East Hills, and the Opposition Whips, the member for Wagga Wagga and the member for Lismore. A special relationship exists between the Whips and the Leader of the House because quite often when other members are busy and Ministers are preoccupied with legislation, it is our task to ensure that the processes of Parliament proceed in the most orderly and most efficient manner. I commend all the Whips for their very hard work and also for the very strong level of professional understanding that exists between the Whips of this Chamber. I know there is also a very strong understanding between the Whips and my staff, particularly between the member for Wagga Wagga and "Princess" Priscilla, who organises a lot of the business of the House on my behalf. I will have more to say about that later.

I take this opportunity, as you have on a number of occasions when the opportunity has arisen, Mr Speaker, of recognising the work done by people who assist us as members of Parliament, but who have very little opportunity to visit Parliament. Approximately a week ago the Parliament recognised long-serving members of staff, and many of those were electorate officers. I take this opportunity to extend to all electorate secretaries on behalf of all members, both Government and Opposition, our very best wishes and very sincere thanks for the work that they do in electorate offices. It is sometimes very lonely work, but we recognise that they are very much the face of parliamentary representation on behalf of members. In many ways electorate officers are front-line troops who are doing very hard work. While members are at Parliament, they are pretty much on their own and have to use their own judgement when dealing with some very difficult situations. For the reasons I have given, I think it is important for electorate staff to receive particular recognition.

I also recognise all other staff who work so hard: Everyone makes a huge contribution. That includes the attendants, who are here very early in the morning and until a long time after parliamentarians leave, the catering staff and the cleaning staff—that charming group of people. When the member for Wagga Wagga and I arrive at Parliament House very early in the morning, we meet some of the cleaning staff who are always very friendly. Despite the fact that they work very hard and often are not recognised for the work they do, they are always very jovial. It is nice to be greeted by a cheerful face when we arrive at Parliament House very early in the morning. I extend our best wishes, as I have on every occasion when I have had the chance, to the Hansard staff, who do such an outstanding amount of work. I once described the Hansard staff as the disciples of Midas because they turn our leaden words into gold. Quite frankly, they do a wonderful job. A great feature of this Parliament is that it is one of the very few Parliaments in the Westminster system that retains Hansard reporters, and I hope that continues for a very long time. As everyone knows, I take great delight in the historical context and the historical longevity of this Parliament.

Mr Barry O'Farrell: You are one of the historical figures of this place!

Mr JOHN AQUILINA: And I hope to be for a long time yet! This Chamber is the longest continuously serving Chamber in the Westminster system. I am proud that we have retained the traditional way of doing things and some of the great traditions of Parliament, such as our Hansard staff. They are unique and are deserving of mention and praise. I extend my sincere thanks to the Hansard staff. I also thank the staff of the Parliamentary Library. I know how much work they do and how hard they work. Sometimes, because they work on the sixth level, they are not visible to us unless we make a conscious effort to go and see them. Nevertheless, we are very conscious of the extraordinary amount of work they do and how they are always very willing and efficient whenever we have a request for research on some particular aspect. Sometimes requests are made at very short notice and the topics are sometimes very difficult. The staff of the Parliamentary Library are always very polite and they are extraordinarily efficient. I commend the staff of the Parliamentary Library for the work they do on behalf of all members.

I also thank the Clerks at the table. Approximately a week ago a wonderful function was held to recognise the long service of the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, Russell Grove, who has attained the historical feat of being the longest-serving Clerk in the history of the Legislative Assembly. That is another historical aspect that is worthy of recognition! Not only does New South Wales have the longest continuously serving Chamber in the Westminster system right throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, but we have now our longest-serving Clerk as well. Mr Grove commenced working here more than 30 years ago. The occasion to mark his record years of service as Clerk of the Legislative Assembly—18 years, two months and 10 days—was an outstanding event. I compliment you, Mr Speaker, on the reception you organised on behalf of the Parliament and for ensuring that so many members were able to attend and enjoy the function with Mr Grove and his wife, Frances, who I know has been by Mr Grove's side over his entire career and has provided very positive support for Russell. There are other long-serving members of the table staff, including Mark Swinson, Les Gönye, Ronda Miller and Greg Kelly, as well as many others who assist as Clerks at the table on a regular or irregular basis. I thank them all as well for the outstanding work they do.

I also thank the shadow Leader of the House. I think we have achieved quite a good understanding of each other's roles, but that was not always the case. We had a somewhat shaky start for the first 12 months until we got used to each other. Leaving aside our political differences and the fact that we have our own jobs to do, we have a professional and respectful understanding of what needs to be done and the processes that we necessarily undertake. With the indulgence of the House, I wish to mention some of my personal staff. Many members would know Nicole Ryan, who worked for me for a long time. Nicole has gone on to do other work, and I am very happy for her. She has been able to obtain a job that in a sense is a promotion, and it is closer to home, which enables her to be closer to her young family, and she is also able to serve the local community. I am very grateful for the service she provided for me under sometimes very difficult circumstances, particularly when we made a transition following last year's State election. I state my acknowledgement on the record and thank Nicole and her family for the work she undertook.

I also wish to acknowledge others who have worked in my office from time to time, such as Julie Apps and Ruth Apps. Ruth turned 82 recently. She was my original secretary in 1981 and she fulfilled the role of secretary for me when I was the Mayor of Blacktown between 1977 and 1981. Ruth is an incredible lady with incredible energy. When she visits my office as the Leader of the House from time to time, it is obvious that she is extremely popular with members of the staff of the Parliament. She richly deserves to be recognised. She has had a little bit of indifferent health recently and underwent quite a serious operation on her back. But Ruth is such a Trojan that the next day she was up and walking and, despite having had a major operation to repair a slipped disc, went home!

Now I have another young worker, Danielle Kolodziej. As it turned out, she is a schoolfriend of Priscilla Armstrong-Guirguis, who has been working with me for quite some time. I think the two of them have a very happy relationship. Priscilla, who is well known to everybody in the Parliament, is extremely efficient and diligent. She works very long hours and pays great attention to detail to ensure the orderly processes of the House. Given the number of times we have contemplated changing legislation and had to readjust and change tack, she has done an extraordinary job.

Finally, I refer to my electorate staff: Sandra Caldwell and Janine Drury, formerly Janine Adams. Janine was married on 1 November. I made some general comments about them earlier. I take this opportunity to extend to Janine and her husband my sincere congratulations on their wedding. Janine's son Scotty is my godson. She has come back from her honeymoon and is continuing the efficient work she has done for many years. I have been her only employer. She first came to work for me as a second electorate assistant in my office when she was 17. That was in the mid to late eighties—I think 1986 or 1987. So I have had an association with Janine for a long time, and I wish her all the very best.

To all the members—my colleagues on both sides of the House—to you, Mr Speaker, and the Independents, I extend my very best wishes and Christmas felicitations. Christmas is still some time away and I think we all acknowledge that we have a lot of work to do between now and then. But the work of the Parliament for this year is over, and I think it is appropriate that we end this year and this day with greetings and best wishes to everyone. We will come back next year and it will be tough—it always is. We all have a job to do in our respective roles. What we do, of course, is legislate. Sometimes that is relatively easy and at other times it is hard and confronting, but we do it because it is our duty and we do it in the best interests of our constituents and in the best interests of the State. I wish everyone a very happy Christmas and I look forward to being with you next year.

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL (Ku-ring-gai—Leader of the Opposition) [7.52 p.m.]: I am happy to follow such a historic figure in the history of this place in these felicitations. The Hon. John Aquilina is one of 28 Speakers who span the 100 years of the twentieth century. That compares with only eight who span the 44 years during the time that this place existed in the nineteenth century. That probably demonstrates, as the Leader of the House has said, that change is with us and is increasing in pace. This has been, as some might say in that old joke about a Chinese curse, an interesting year. It has been fast moving and it has been full of action—a lot of it regrettably, or not regrettably, having occurred in this Chamber. But it is important to note that it has been tough—tough on the individuals involved and tough on their families, whether they are members of Parliament or staff. This is a time when we get to seek some absolution for those things, and I am happy to come back to them.

This is, of course, the year in which family friendly hours came and family friendly hours went. Given the state of the front page of at least one of our journals of record today, I simply make the obvious point that that controversy would, could and should have been avoided if we had had the sense—and if the Labor Party had had the guts—to back your proposal, Mr Speaker, regarding sensible family friendly hours, which was that no-one would come into this Chamber after seven o'clock at night to do anything. As was reported in the papers a couple of days ago and as I said earlier today, this is the Christmas when our Premier, Nathan Rees—a Premier chosen for us by the Labor Party—will marry. He will discover, as you and I have discovered, Mr Speaker—not simply because we both married women named Rosemary—that marriage is a life-changing experience that ranks up there with the birth of one's children as being one of the best things that can ever happen to a person.

The SPEAKER: Hear! Hear!

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: I come to you, Mr Speaker. Given the year that we have had, given all that has been involved and given the centrality of this Chamber to that year, you have had a fairly tough job to do. I suppose at times I have not made it any easier—but then that is my job as well. You have brought a fairness to the Chair that those on this side of the House respect. You have brought an independence to the job. It does not always mean that we agree with you—as I make clear from the odd interjection—but I think it is a testament to you that you enjoy respect across the Chamber, otherwise you would not be in the job. May it last for at least another 120 weeks!

The SPEAKER: Thank you—I think.

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: I said "at least". There are no guarantees in politics. As the old joke goes, behind every successful man is a surprised wife. Behind a successful Speaker, of course, are not surprised but hardworking, dedicated and professional staff. I particularly acknowledge your three staff members. First, Joe, who does an extraordinary job and who, if there was any justice in the world, would have replaced Robbo on last night's list of the most desirable men around this place. You see him at the end of the corridor and you are not quite sure whether he is to be the next Premier of New South Wales or whether he is just Joe. Secondly, I acknowledge Lucy in your office, who is always courteous, always cheerful and always seems to have a cup of tea in hand when one is either summoned to the office or one is seeking to get your attention.

But I particularly want to talk about Margaret, who—and I mean this in the nicest possible way; she should note that when she watches this tape—in racing parlance would either have been shot or put out to paddock. I passed her leaving the Chamber this evening and she was limping. We know—and I will not divulge it—that she has a joint problem in one leg. I thought it was playing up but, no, she has broken her toe on the other leg. If that happens to a racehorse it gets shot; it gets put down. If it happens here you are simply told to come to work tomorrow. I acknowledge your staff for everything they have done. I acknowledge the Chamber officers, led by that historic figure Russell Grove. I acknowledge his deputy Mark Swinson, who could do with the haircut that Russell Grove was always encouraged to have. I acknowledge Les Gõnye, Ronda Miller and the others. They do an extraordinary job for us. That was demonstrated in the lead-up to question time today when their professionalism, dedication and impartiality enabled me to score a few more points.

I acknowledge the Leader of the House and the shadow Leader of the House. I thought initially that it was a Mediterranean thing when the Hon. John Aquilina was appointed Leader of the House and I appointed the member for Murrumbidgee shadow Leader of the House. It was a Malta-Italy thing. Both have strong Mediterranean backgrounds—the backgrounds of those who have contributed so much to this nation—and I thought the water and extra virgin olive oil were not mixing properly. It is terrific to see that, in the best tradition of Mediterranean cultures, they have found a piquancy that, despite the odd repetitive speech about the suspension of standing orders, amuses both sides of the House. By and large, business in this place is conducted with some degree of good humour and coordination. There would be chaos if we did not have managers of business, and I pay tribute to the Leader of the House and to the member for Murrumbidgee, who cannot be here this evening.

If the Leaders of the House are the managers, of course the Whips are the competitive floor managers—they are the Captain Peacocks from Are You Being Served? They do a terrific job. I particularly acknowledge, in reverse order, Thomas George, The Nationals Whip; Daryl Maguire, the Liberal Party Whip; and the two Labor Party Whips, to whom—again because it is my job—I give a reasonably hard time. I only wish the Leader of the House would occasionally introduce them to an abacus or something just to speed up the counting of divisions. But I thank them for all their work.

Mr John Aquilina: One of them is a history teacher and the other is a maths teacher.

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: He is supposed to be good with numbers. I thank Jan in the Labor Whips office. I particularly thank Maryann Winterflood in the Liberal Whips office. It has been a difficult year for Maryann, made no less difficult by the activities of Coalition members of Parliament who rely on her services. We thank her for everything and wish her well. I thank all the attendants in this place. This year I will not make the mistake that I apparently made last year, but I say again that, when it comes to inspiring young people and informing students about the importance of politics, Parliament, the democratic process and the development of the future of this country, no-one does it better than Dennis and his team in the lower House. They do far more than that of course, but they have no greater role than inspiring young people about the activities that occur here.

I thank all the people without whom we could not operate. I think the Hansard staff should be called "eloque-ution" experts in the sense of eloquence as opposed to elocution. I acknowledge them. They make speeches like this read like Milton's Paradise Lost—according to the Premier. Frankly, I prefer Peter Fitzsimmons. I suppose Fitzy fits with the Opposition because he is the greatest storyteller around and sometimes does not let the odd fact get in the way. Again, I acknowledge the Hansard staff. I acknowledge the tremendous job done in the library. My only complaint this year is that on those occasions when family friendly hours have been breached too often the library is closed, which creates difficulties and problems. I hope that that can be looked at.

I thank all those in joint services, from my friend Isaac on level 2 all the way through to dining room staff and to the newest manager in this place, who I think is doing a terrific job and who is appreciated. I thank my colleagues. Mr Speaker, you will admit that a degree of tolerance needs to be shown to the Leader of the Opposition, and I am glad my colleagues do that. I particularly thank the Leader of The Nationals, Andrew Stoner. I thank my deputy, Jillian Skinner. I thank all staff who work for the Opposition. I particularly thank my personal staff who put in an enormous amount of effort that often goes unrewarded and unacknowledged in opposition. But the business of government and democracy—the concept of accountability and responsibility—would not occur but for their efforts.

I join the Leader of the House in thanking our electorate staff for their work during the limited period when Parliament actually sits and at other times throughout the year. It is upon our electorate staff that the greatest load falls, and they occasionally cop the abuse that is intended for us and that should be heard by us. But, regrettably, of course the messengers are always shot and at times they get between us and our constituents. So I pay tribute to all those electorate staff. I seek absolution for any offences committed throughout the year. Seeking to hold government to account and standing up either for my constituents or for citizens across the State is a vigorous and passionate profession, and I try to bring some vigour and some passion to it.

We now have at least three decent footballers in this place. We have been joined this year by Mr Besseling, who is a former New South Wales representative in rugby union. We have George Souris, who is no slouch at that game himself—although he played it the odd decade earlier—and, from perhaps an even earlier decade, we have our friend Gibbo. I never played football at such an august level, and I never attended the fabulous schools that people like George Souris attended. But, like in football, I believe you give your all on the field and you leave it on the field. And that is how I have sought to approach this job. Finally, I make mention of level 6. In one sense, we could not be here if it were not for the media. It is an interesting relationship. I noticed Mr Speaker's relationship with the media last night on a certain tape. We can go down that path or we can stand up and be independent about these things.

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: There are times when the media can be our best friends; there are times when the media can be our worst critics. Long may it last, because that is the sort of competition, accountability and responsibility we need. We can be frustrated—as I was reminded by a few of my colleagues today—but we cannot live with them, and we cannot live without them. Long may that continue. Finally, Christmas is a special time of year. It is a time to affirm our faith and to be thankful for the wellbeing of our families and our communities. Regrettably, not all of us are blessed with good fortune this Christmas. Last night I attended an interfaith gathering associated with the terrible events in Mumbai that of course led to the loss of two Australian lives, including one member of my local community.

It gives us pause to reflect on the true spirit of Christmas: the message of peace, tolerance and support for those less fortunate than ourselves. Christmas is made all the more special when as a community—a community in this place, in our own areas and across the State—we reach out to those in need whether by donating toys to struggling families or by serving meals to the homeless on Christmas day. I thank everyone who engages in those activities at this time of year for their efforts. The generosity of spirit and the commitment to looking after our neighbours that is so typically Australian will be vital as we tackle the emerging challenges, particularly the economic and employment challenges, that face us in 2009. I share the hope that 2009 will be peaceful and prosperous, and I wish everyone in this place and across the State a happy and safe Christmas.

The SPEAKER: Order! Before I call the Leader of The Nationals, I want to add my comments and, as others have, wish everyone a merry Christmas. It is a very happy time, when family and friends get together after what has been a pretty gruelling year. I take the opportunity to thank, firstly, my family. We all would not be here without the support of our family and our friends. Those of us with additional responsibilities know that they take us away from our families, and that can be quite testing. So I take the opportunity to say thank you to my wife and our children, and to reiterate my love. I thank them for their support of my role and of the various duties that I seriously enjoy doing.

I also take the opportunity to thank all members of Parliament. They extend significant courtesies to me as a member of Parliament, and to my office as Speaker. I do not take that for granted, and I am very pleased to acknowledge that it is equally distributed on both sides of the House. To the Premier and the Government, the Leader of the Opposition, the Leader of The Nationals and the Opposition, and of course my colleagues on the crossbench, the Independents, I say a special thank you to each and every one of you for your support. It is important that we continue to strive to do in this place what the community expects of us.

The Leader of the House and the Leader of the Opposition paid tribute to the many people who support us in our roles—other than our families, and I have acknowledged mine. I thank both the Leader of the House, John Aquilina, and the shadow Leader of the House, Adrian Piccoli, who have been regular visitors to my office. As the Leader of the Opposition pointed out, Opposition members do not always agree with my rulings but they are courteous—and indeed respectful—and offer their views in a very direct way, which I have always appreciated. I thank them for their support. I thank their staff, who have been tremendous in liaising with my office. I also thank my colleague the President of the Legislative Council, Peter Primrose, and his team. As the two Presiding Officers in this place, we enjoy a close working relationship. It has been a year of change, with budgetary considerations, restrictions and other issues. The Presiding Officers and their staff must share a good working relationship as we deal with those difficult matters. I thank Peter and his team.

I thank my Clerk—and that is what I call him—Russell Grove. The Leader of the House mentioned the celebration for Russell when he became the longest-serving Clerk in this Parliament. Russell is an outstanding public servant. He is a source of great support to me as Speaker, as he was to my predecessor. I am sure that the Leader of the House would warmly acknowledge that. His contribution was acknowledged recently when Russell received appropriate accolades for achieving his milestone. Of course, this is Australia's first Parliament, so that is a significant achievement. I thank him for his support and his loyalty to this place and to me. I also acknowledge the people who support Russell. We acknowledge the work of Mark, Les, Ronda, Greg and others in this place. They do a great job. The attendants are at the front line and they represent us to the community every day. As the Leader of the Opposition said, the young people who come through here—the student leaders—get a first hand view of this place. The feedback I get is very interesting. I warmly acknowledge the contribution of our attendants.

I also acknowledge Brian Ward, our new joint services manager. Brian started work here in recent times in a very new structure, which I believe will assist us to fulfil our roles and to operate within the budgetary restrictions that we know will continue to be placed on the Parliament. I wish that that were not the case. However, we must remember that, as difficult as it is to sell to the public, this is the Parliament of New South Wales and it is appropriate that it have the appropriate facilities and resources to undertake the very important leadership role that it must play on behalf of the people of New South Wales.

I acknowledge my staff: the limping Margaret—as she was referred to by the Leader of the Opposition—and Lucy. They have provided magnificent support to me and, I know, to many members in this place. I also acknowledge Joe. I sometimes introduce him as the real Speaker. The support he provides to me is incredible. I thank him very much for that. He has faced some difficult challenges recently when his beautiful daughter required an operation. As always, he turned up for work even during those very difficult times. He gives this place very high priority in his life and we are privileged to have him with us.

Mr Andrew Fraser: What about his motorbike?

The SPEAKER: Yes, we must not forget his motorbike. The member for Coffs Harbour's interjection is most appropriate. I join with the Leader of the Opposition in acknowledging the media. It is important that the Presiding Officers maintain an appropriate relationship with the media. That scrutiny and competition referred to earlier is appropriate in the Westminster democracy that we have been fortunate to inherit. I acknowledge Simon Benson as the president of the Press Gallery, particularly after last night's goof tape. Most of us got an honourable mention. The work that members of the media do in this place is important and I am pleased to acknowledge it.

Last but not least, I thank the people of New South Wales. I believe that the majority of members of Parliament are respected in their local communities—and significantly so. The overwhelming majority work very hard and they come to this place to make a difference. We should not forget that, and we should stand up for it. Each time we fail to do that we create a false perception about what members of Parliament do, the important role they play and the support they enjoy in their communities. There is a person behind every service that this Parliament provides, whether it be in the library, the catering section, the security section—

Mr Barry O'Farrell: Or the mute button.

The SPEAKER: Yes. It has been a wonderful addition. I thank every staff member in this place who provides a service. Everyone does a magnificent job. As Speaker I thank them very much for their contributions. I thank Hansard for making us sound so good. It would not be a parliamentary speech without Hansard's alterations. I make that very generous point from my own perspective. Thank you very much, and merry Christmas to everybody.

Mr ANDREW STONER (Oxley—Leader of The Nationals) [8.15 p.m.]: As the popular Christmas song goes, "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas". I know that all members are looking forward to a break from this place. I think we all need a break at home in our electorates and with our families. Without a doubt, this has been one of the most eventful years in State politics in decades. On behalf of The Nationals I express our felicitations and appreciation to all those involved in the running of this Parliament. Of course, this place is the great pillar in our democracy here in New South Wales.

Like the Speaker, I will start by mentioning the families of members. Our families pay a price and make a sacrifice so that we can participate in this democracy. That is particularly true of the families of our country-based members, who do not see their loved ones for four or five nights at a time when the House is sitting. When they are at home in their electorates over the weekend they are all too often out doing what they do as local members. I thank my wife, Cathy, and my children Stephen, Beau, Gemma, Abby, Annalise and Nathaniel. It was not easy to remember them all. They support me 110 per cent. I know that every member would express their thanks to, and love for, their families for the contribution they make towards what they do as members of Parliament.

Every member acknowledges the hard work that their staff do in their electorates, on the ground, at the coalface assisting constituents. That is what our system of democracy is all about. Not only do we express our views and, hopefully, the views of our constituents in this place but at that coalface we also assist all sorts of people in various aspects of their lives. Our electorate staff bear the brunt of what can often be a very stressful job, particularly when we are in this place doing our job dealing with legislation and participating in debates. I thank my electorate staff in Kempsey—Marg, Patricia, Jodie, Jenny and Mary—for all the work they do. I also thank them on behalf of the many constituents they help in so many ways. I also thank my staff here in Sydney—Peter, my chief of staff; Rob, my media adviser; Ben, my policy adviser; Bree, my personal assistant, and Erin. They not only work for me, they also try to assist all members of The Nationals in the lower House. They punch above their weight and they are a very efficient crew. I am very privileged to have them as my staff.

I thank the Speaker and his staff—Joe, Lucy and Margaret. Again, I offer felicitations on behalf of The Nationals. Mr Speaker has grown in the role and earned the respect of all members. In the chair he certainly endeavours to be fair and to maintain order. The mute button has been an innovation in that regard. It is not always easy to maintain order in this place. We are all passionate in our beliefs. Times can be stressful and the debate can occasionally become quite heated and disorder breaks out. Along with the Leader of the Opposition I seek absolution from my sins in that regard over the course of the year.

Mr Speaker has done a good job in the chair, and also in the behind-the-scenes role of managing a very large part of this Parliament. I thank the Deputy-Speaker and the Assistant-Speakers. Acting-Speakers Thomas George and Wayne Merton also do an excellent job in supporting Mr Speaker. The Clerks, the record-breaking Russell Grove, and Mark, Les and Ronda, occasionally assisted by Vicki, Russell and Helen, support our system and the efficient running of the Chamber. The efforts of the Serjeant-at-Arms, Greg, and our attendants, Richard—who has moved on—Ian, Dennis and April, are appreciated by me and all members of The Nationals.

To my Coalition partner, Barry O'Farrell, and his staff, particularly Peter, Natasha, Brad, Sam, Gayle, Ryan, Rose and Diane, with whom we work quite closely, I say thanks for the cordial relations that our offices enjoy, and the cooperation that we achieve in our work. The Whips on both sides of the House deserve our thanks as well. To Thomas George and Daryl Maguire and their staffers, Tara and Maryann, our thanks go to you for the job that you do. They are always around to round us up and to point us in the right direction. I know that is easier said than done. I thank also the Government Whips, Gerard Martin and Alan Ashton, and Gerard's staffer, Jan, who is very helpful. We hope that Thomas and Daryl can give a few secrets to the Government Whips to speed up the vote counts next year.

Mr Thomas George: Just separate them.

Mr ANDREW STONER: Thomas suggests that we separate them. To the Leader of the House, John Aquilina, and his staff, particularly Priscilla, I give my thanks for being so helpful. We acknowledge the good work they do in keeping the program rolling. Sometimes we get frustrated when things do not go our way, but that is part and parcel of the running of this place. The shadow Leader of the House, Adrian Piccoli, does a terrif job on behalf of the Opposition. It is pleasing to hear that he and the Government Leader of the House are sorting out their role and relationship. Adrian Piccoli has certainly grown into that role.

To the long-suffering Hansard staff, the staff of the Procedure Office and Members' Services we say thank you for making sure that what we do in the House is done with the minimum of fuss, and they support us logistically with pieces of paper and the inevitable questions on notice. That is all taken care of with maximum efficiency, and I thank them on behalf of The Nationals.

I thank also the Accounts staff who, in this day and age of massive red tape, churn through the various Parliamentary Remuneration Tribunal decisions that are buried under mountains of paper. I thank the Building Services staff for helping us in our offices and with our equipment. I thank the catering staff as well; an army marches on its stomach and we are always well fed in this place. I acknowledge the advent of Cafe Quorum, a positive development this year. I thank the Security staff, who are always polite, helpful and friendly. The Library staff do a wonderful and highly professional job of research and support for members in this place. So too do the Information Technology staff; in this technological age they certainly provide us with much-needed support and equipment to enable us do our job that little bit better. I wish the members of the media all the very best for the festive season and thank them for their role in our parliamentary democracy. Theirs is an important role.

I wish members who have departed during the year a very happy, safe and holy Christmas—the former Premier, Morris Iemma; the former Deputy Premier, John Watkins; the former Minister for Health, Reba Meagher; the former Treasurer, Michael Costa; and also the former member for Port Macquarie, Robert Oakeshott, who has moved on to Canberra. I hope they and their families enjoy the Christmas season with safety and happiness. I wish all members and staff, and their families a happy, holy and safe Christmas. This brings me to the reason for the season and, indeed, these felicitations. Australia remains a Christian nation and Christmas is the time we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, which heralded a message of hope and joy for all Christians. I encourage all of us to celebrate that good news and not get caught up too much in the commercialisation and overindulgence that all too often goes with the festive season.

Mr ANDREW FRASER (Coffs Harbour) [8.25 p.m.]: First and foremost I mention my wife and family, who have had a pretty tough year to say the least—a year in which, apart from a legal case that I will not say too much about as it has cost us a lot of money, we lost our family home and our daughter suffered serious injuries. She is in Sydney today for what we thought was her last doctor's appointment, but she has to come back down again in January. I particularly thank my electorate staff and the Clerks of the Parliament. Russell Grove and his wife, Frances, are personal friends of mine and of my wife, Kerry. My congratulations go to Russell and Frances. No member of this Parliament would survive without the support of his or her partner, and that applies even more so the Clerk. I am a fairly early riser, and when I arrive at Parliament House in the early hours of the morning I often see Russell here getting his early morning coffee—as I do. I know that he works back late too—as we do.

The Leader of the House, John Aquilina, and I have our differences on occasion—and a couple of nights ago was one such occasion. As I said in the media recently, I have been a stickler for procedure, and I advise that the Leader of the House and the Speaker invited me to join in discussions on the standing orders even though I was not a member of the Standing Orders and Procedure Committee. Eventually we were able to smooth out some rough patches, and I believe there is room for further amendments. I believe that if an opportunity presents itself, as it did recently, amendments should be debated. Gags should not be applied in this place. One was applied tonight—and I suppose some members on our side might suggest that was not a bad idea, or else we might have been sitting here until after 10 o'clock.

The business of the House could be better organised. I do not blame the Leader of the House for that; he has to fit in the business that is presented to him by the Government of the day. When everyone works together we get a fairly workable situation, but sometimes that does not happen. To the Speaker, and to Joe, Lucy and Margaret, I say thank you very much for your assistance through the year. I thank Dennis and his cheery attendants, the catering staff and all the people who work in this place. I wish you all the very best for Christmas.

The support given to Kerry and me by 91 members of this House after our loss was heartfelt. In that fire I lost 18 years of political memorabilia. But that really does not worry me. I can duck down to the Library, where the great people down there can find all that I need. But my kids have lost their school reports, their school awards, their birth certificates, their baby books and their baby photos. And that is tragic. Over that period the phone calls, emails, cards, letters and donations I received from just about every member in this place were heartfelt. Hopefully, the slab for our home has been poured and the frame has arrived. When I get home on Saturday morning I hope to see the frame up. This weekend we hope to move into the flat next door to the farm that we are having done up and we should get a bit of normality into our lives.

While this has been our annus horribilis, I must mention the great democracy we live in. Quite often we take for granted the great freedoms we have. My daughter returned from India about two weeks ago—the week before the trouble in Mumbai started. She has a photo of the big Sikh fellow who was helping people into ambulances at the Taj Mahal Hotel. To learn that Brett Taylor from Blacktown Timbers was killed there makes our year pretty good by comparison. To Brett's family, workmates and colleagues, I send my sincere condolences. What happened to him was tragic. To think that in this day and age people can travel to a country that we regard as a pretty close ally of Australia on a trade mission led by the Department of State and Regional Development and have a 49-year-old man with everything in front of him not come back is tragic. It is a sombre note at a time of great joy.

To my electorate staff, Diane and Campbell, and to Debra McGrath, who fills in faithfully for us, thank you for your support. To all my colleagues in this place, from both sides of the House, thank you for your support. To all the staff, everyone I have not mentioned, I thank you for your support and I wish you all a very happy and holy Christmas and a prosperous New Year. I look forward to returning early in 2009. I will continue my robust representation for the people of the Coffs Harbour electorate, to whom I wish the very best. I also wish you the very best, Madam Deputy-Speaker.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE (Lismore) [8.32 p.m.]: I will speak as The Nationals whip and for Daryl Maguire, who would like to be included in my comments. I endorse the comments of appreciation from all the previous speakers to everyone who makes this Parliament work. It would be remiss of me if I did not start by thanking my staff back in Lismore. I refer to Karen Wilson, Bronwyn Mitchell, Christine Marshall, and Kirsten and Carol, who make up the team. I thank them sincerely for their support throughout the year. They do not work full-time jobs, they all job share. I thank them for all they have done for Deb and me this year. It has been greatly appreciated. I particularly mention Christine and her husband, Malcolm. They are both close friends of mine. Malcolm has just been through an operation. Reports are very good at this stage and we hope that Malcolm continues to make a good recovery.

To the Government Whips, Gerard Martin and Alan Ashton, and, of course, Jan, I sincerely say thank you on behalf of Daryl and me. The cooperation we have, despite our differences, has always been amicable and we have great respect for one another. I thank Daryl and Maryanne in his office. Daryl has the ability to make sure that everything is right and I am part of his team as The Nationals Whip. Daryl would also like to place on record his appreciation to his electorate staff, Margaret, Paula and Brenda, and Di Lee, who has just been appointed as the Whip's secretary here. I pay tribute to my Deputy Whip, Russell Turner, and thank him for coming down at very short notice. Being a Temporary Speaker I often end up in the chair when I should be acting as Whip, but I only have to ring Russell and he will be here and he is willing to do any other jobs. To Peter McConnell and the staff in the office of the Leader of The Nationals—Erin, Ben, Rod and Bree—I say thank you for everything you have done by cooperating with us to make sure that the whole team works. To the parliamentary staff of The Nationals in the other place and the staff who work in this place for The Nationals and the Coalition, we simply say thank you.

A number of members have thanked Hansard. What else can I add? You just make us look so good, and I sincerely thank you for your support this year. To the staff of member services, security, accounts and the cleaners, who do a tremendous job in supporting us, I say thank you. To the staff in catering—Carlos, Jennifer and everyone else—I say thank you as well. This place is like our home. Each and every one of The Nationals is here for the full week. Whilst we might vent our anger at seeing the same menu every day, the quality of the food is outstanding, and we say thank you. To everyone associated with the bar, stationery and every other department in Parliament I give my thanks. The Parliamentary Library supports us so well and I say thank you. When you walk through the door you pass the security staff and then you get to Dennis and his team. Everyone says good morning, greets you and makes you feel at home.

I particularly thank Tara in my office. Tara has just grown into the position. She has matured, is accepting responsibility and is able to run a very efficient office. Sadly, Tara will leave me before Parliament sits again next year, but she goes with my blessing. Words cannot express my appreciation for Tara. She will be missed and all I can do is wish her the best, but at an appropriate time more words will be said about Tara. The Clerks have been mentioned tonight. I congratulate Russell, and also Frances on her support of Russell, in his achieving what has already been well and truly documented here tonight. Russell gets great support from Mark, Les and Ronda, and the whole team.

To Greg Kelly and the attendants—especially April and Ian—thank you all very much. You look after us all the time we are here and we thank you for all you have done. I thank the Speaker, the Deputy-Speaker, and the assistant and temporary speakers. I thank Joe, Margaret and Lucy from the Speaker's office. Joe is always there. He gets embarrassed about ringing to remind us that we should be in the chair, but it is the best phone call we get. We get busy and can forget to be here. No-one wants to forget to be here because everyone puts in so much effort. Joe should never feel embarrassed about ringing me because he does a mighty job.

Where do I start with the Leader of the House and Priscilla? Nicole left earlier this year and Danielle is here now. It is a pleasure to work with John. I know we have our differences—although it is probably show half the time. I sincerely appreciate the job you do. I make only one plea—that we might go home by 10 o'clock tonight instead of being kept here till all hours. It is a very hard job and I appreciate what you and Adrian Piccoli have to put up with. I have always said that members of Parliament are the hardest people to organise. You and Adrian Piccoli do a tremendous job in organising 93 of us, and I thank you for that. A lot of things have happened this year, but one of the most memorable as far as this Parliament is concerned was the visit of Pope Benedict XVI.

The Government supported the local area command in my electorate to bring down a policeman whose dying wish was to see the Pope. The Government cooperated to enable Senior Constable Gary Hill to come to Sydney. He was blessed by the Pope on the Wednesday and died on the following Saturday. I will never forget that. The Pope went back to Rome with two Akubra hats and one police hat. He would be the only person around the world who would have a New South Wales Police Force hat. I thought we might have had an opportunity this year to speak about the Pope's visit and document it. Not much of it has been documented in this place, but perhaps we will be able to do so next year.

As president of the Parliamentary Lions Club I felt very proud today. I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been involved with the club. A cheque for $34,000 was presented to Lifeline today as a result of the dinner that was held. Many members were involved, not just parliamentary members of the Lions Club and staff in this place. I thank each and every one who supported the Parliamentary Lions Club in having its meetings here and the dinner. I say thank you to the constituents of the Lismore electorate for their unwavering support. On a personal note, I want to say that I am very honoured to have Deb in my life now.

Next week will be a trying week. As everyone in this place knows I have a son who has spent the last 18 months at Silverwater waiting for a court case to begin. That case is coming up next week and the family—Stuart, Margaret, Cameron and the grandchildren—will be here to support Brendan. We just hope and pray that maybe he will be home with us for Christmas. You never know. These things are sent to try us. But as Andrew Fraser just said, the people around you often get you through these things. To all members of Parliament on both sides I say thank you. I hope that you all enjoy a safe, happy and holy Christmas. All that I ask for next year is that everyone be blessed with good health.

The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: I have the privilege of being the last speaker on this motion. I have two very special people in my life—my very young girls, Tahlia and Liviya, who are five and three and do not know what Christmas felicitations are. One day when they have learnt to read they can look back and read this. They are the absolute light of my life. It is fair to say that we all have a very difficult time in politics but nothing beats going home and cuddling up to two little girls. I have the privilege of doing that on most nights. I have been very ably assisted this year by my dad and my sister, so I am enormously grateful to them for making it possible for me to continue in my job, particularly following my promotion to Deputy-Speaker, which is an enormous honour.

Naturally the Parliament does not work without a huge team of dedicated staff. I think just about everybody has been mentioned today. I refer to the Hansard reporters as the "miracle workers". I have seen some of the notes that go up to the reporters and I do not know how they actually manage to make sense of any of it. There are also the people whom I refer to as the "angels"—Ian, Dennis and April and Joe—who make our lives so much easier in here. I thank also the Clerks who, as I have just discovered today, have the best seats in the House. Thank you very much for your assistance.

I have known the Speaker for a long time. He has seen me grow and mature somewhat from the rabid student activist that I once was when we first knew each other. The staff in his office are absolutely sensational, and I say thank you. I acknowledge the Leader of the House and the shadow Leader of the House. Everyone has said how hard it is to organise this rabble. A colleague of mine said earlier this year it is a bit like trying to herd cats. I think that is probably an apt way of describing what it must be like for everybody who has the responsibility of organising members in this place.

I also thank security, catering, administration, building services, library, PITS and the cleaners. People do not realise how pristine this place is. I have been here now for almost six years and the other day I came across the gentleman who cleans and washes the floors of the car park with a special machine. I want to say a special thank you to him. I thanked him then and there, and said I did not realise that somebody did that job but it suddenly made sense of why it was all so clean. The electorate staff across the State bear the brunt of a lot of things that many constituents would like to say to us. I particularly thank my electorate staff, Stephen Leslie, Gloria Brown, Donna Davis and Theresa Chidiac, who left to take up a promotion earlier this year. She has been wonderful. My staff are absolutely incredible.

To my old boss Morris Iemma, whom I have the privilege and pleasure of calling a friend, and also John Watkins and Michael Costa, I express my appreciation for teaching me a lot about humanity and humility. I thank them and pay tribute to them. I wish our Premier and his fiancée, Stacey, a very happy wedding later this year. I hope they have some kind of break because the Premier is working very hard and putting in the hard yards, particularly for our party at the moment. I think I can say on behalf of all of us that we are very grateful. I hope I have not overlooked anyone. Thank you and merry Christmas to everybody. May the new year bring love, happiness and good health to you and your loved ones.

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

Motion agreed to.