Inaugural Speeches
| About this Item |
Subjects | Aborigines: New South Wales; Industrial Relations; Members of Parliament; Electorates: Maroubra |
Speakers | Speaker; Chaytor Mr Steven; Daley Mr Michael |
Business | Inaugural Speech |
Commentary | Michael Daley maiden speech |
Page: 18506
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for Macquarie Fields will now make his inaugural speech. I ask honourable members to extend the usual courtesies to him.
Mr STEVEN CHAYTOR (Macquarie Fields) [7.30 p.m.] (Inaugural speech): Yesterday I took an oath of allegiance as the new member for Macquarie Fields to be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, her heirs and successors according to law. I should have pledged loyalty to Australia and the people of New South Wales. The Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Bill, which would ensure this change, currently waits to be passed by the Legislative Council. I call on the council to pass the bill and ensure that members of this Parliament first pledge their loyalty, and second remain directly responsible, to the will of the people of New South Wales.
It is an honour to represent Macquarie Fields in Macquarie Street in a building established by Governor Macquarie, the most memorable and significant of New South Wales Governors. Macquarie Fields was named to honour Governor Macquarie by James Meehan, who in turn is honoured by the name of a prominent high school in the area. The legacy of Macquarie's period of increased law and order, public building infrastructure, town planning programs and the encouragement of civil rights across all of society against an influential and conservative elite, remains a priority in Macquarie Fields today. I thank the people of Macquarie Fields for their endorsement at the by-election on 17 September 2005 to represent them in this Parliament. I undertake to be a local resident who is always active and always listens.
I developed an interest in politics at a young age. I am the youngest member in the current Parliament. Growing up in Ingleburn and attending local schools, it became apparent to me that south-western Sydney, experiencing a tremendous residential period of growth, was a place where parents could start a family at an affordable price. You lived here because it was the place your parents could afford in Sydney. When government provided these new neighbourhoods with public schools and public health facilities of the highest standard in the world, the families—and in particular the children—could become anything in the world. As a new member of Parliament I am thankful for that opportunity. What began as streets with boundaries to opportunity finished as neighbourhoods with unlimited borders.
There was an inherent fairness about what government could do and what government should do. It was very much a Labor agenda of fairness. The antithesis of this sense of fairness, balance and equitable economic progress could not be more currently and blatantly displayed than by the Federal Government's proposed changes to industrial relations laws. Like the rest of the country, I did not come to work today so I could pay for the Howard's Government's extensive advertising in today's newspapers. In Western Sydney, Labor governments are committed to infrastructure but are more importantly committed to providing services to an equitable standard. The cost of inequity in society will always far exceed the cost of providing services on an equitable basis. Western Sydney has become a place that no longer has a chip on its shoulder but is a community and region of opportunities and choices.
You enter politics and stand for public office because you want to make a difference in your community. Daily life in the electorate of Macquarie Fields provides plenty of opportunities for a member of Parliament to stand up and be effective. There is no issue more important to me than increasing the sense of community and government programs following the riots in Macquarie Fields earlier this year. I will always work hard to ensure that local police have the right level of resources to ensure that this failure in order does not happen again. I will always work hard to ensure we have the right built environment and the right social environment that leaves no-one behind. Macquarie Fields TAFE has the potential to play a pivotal role in this regard.
My area has residential subdivisions that were some of the fastest growing in Australia in the 1970s. It has some of the fastest growing suburbs today. It will continue this fast pace growth over the next decade in new suburbs. In the older subdivisions, infrastructure needs upgrading and maintaining. Glenfield station needs lifts for commuters interchanging CityRail lines. In the streets where people are now moving into, schools, health services and transport must provide equity and opportunity. The current upgrade of Camden Valley Way and Cowpasture Road needs to be completed and extended. The Labor tradition of neighbourhoods with unlimited borders must continue. With new subdivisions we must learn from mistakes over the past 30 years and demonstrate that government can finally move people into an area where infrastructure is not only planned but provided. New South Wales Labor will get this right. The place I grew up in south-western Sydney wasn't too bad; the place the next generation grows up in will be even better.
As a product of previous growth periods, I am optimistic about future growth in south-western Sydney. The thing that Western Sydney does best is provide new housing and new business opportunities. Matched with a commitment to local transport, local jobs, and protection of the local environment, I am positive about what we can achieve by working together. Transport is a big issue in my electorate. Indeed, in his inaugural speech in 1982 former local member Stan Knowles complained about the then Federal Treasurer, John Howard, short-changing New South Wales on transport funding. Some things never change in politics. Twenty-three years later as Prime Minister, John Howard is still short-changing New South Wales—on GST and AusLink funding.
Serving the people of the electorate of Macquarie Fields is my primary duty in this Parliament. I am representative of them and responsible to them. All voters are entitled to a professional, compassionate and diligent representative. Being selected to raise the concerns of my electorate in this Chamber is the most fundamental principle of democracy. This principle is matched with my commitment to the rule of law. My first function in this parliamentary building last week was at the Law and Justice Foundation's 2005 Justice Awards. A former Chief Justice of the High Court, Sir Anthony Mason, provided a wise voice to a new, young member of Parliament at a time when governments in Australia have a pressing role to provide a guarantee of security from actions of terrorism. Referring to an overseas judgement, Sir Anthony said:
… This is the fate of democracy, as not all means are acceptable to it, and not all methods employed by its enemies are open to it. Sometimes, a democracy must fight with one hand tied behind its back. Nonetheless, it has the upper hand. Preserving the rule of law and recognition of individual liberties constitute an important component of its understanding of democracy. At the end of the day, they strengthen its spirit and allow it to overcome its difficulties.
In Australia the protection of the rule of law and the safeguarding of individual rights in our society is what distinguishes and advances us from the thinking of terrorists. Terrorists should not force us to compromise on these principles. On the third anniversary of the first Bali bombing and 12 days after the second Bali bombing it is clear that Australia needs strong laws and strong safeguards to deal with terrorism. I am confident the Iemma Government will put them in place. Our community also needs strong systems in place to guarantee fundamental freedoms secured over centuries of struggle, at a time over the last quarter of a century when the principles of parliamentary sovereignty and ministerial responsibility have shifted.
Like the past two members for Macquarie Fields, I come from a background of first serving my community in local government. I have had the honour to represent residents on Campbelltown City Council since 1999. I would like to place on record my gratitude to the Labor councillors I have worked with: Meg Oates, Brenton Banfield, Rudi Kolkman, Aaron Rule, Anoulack Chanthivong and Mollie Thomas. We have worked together to ensure local residents are put first. The issues represented at local government level ensure I come to this Chamber with a strong commitment against buck-passing between governments. No issue more distorts the community's confidence in the political process than buck-passing between different levels of government and different political persuasions.
One issue in local government that must be urgently addressed is the increasing component of local government budgets devoted to the salary of senior staff. Sydney councils compete strongly for senior staff doing the same job, resulting in spiralling salaries and fewer funds for local roads, parks and footpaths. I acknowledge that good staff deserve good pay, but salary bands or a salary cap are needed in local government. During my time on council the Campbelltown Arts Centre was opened. The project, part funded by the Carr Government, increased confidence and vitality in Campbelltown. The day the centre was opened by former Premier Carr the city took a new positive direction forward. As part of the Carr Government's commitment to the arts in Western Sydney, it provided similar funds to the Casula Powerhouse in the area I now represent. I look forward to working with Liverpool community groups to enhance local facilities.
In the time I serve in this Parliament I look forward to Sydney taking its place as a world city in the Asia-Pacific region. The lives of the residents I represent function better when Sydney functions best. Few issues would assist that better functioning than an integrated smart card for all transport and daily item purchases in Sydney. To become a leading world city, Sydney must adopt world's best practice. That means a multi-application smart card to assist the movement of people on public transport. The Hong Kong Octopus card is Australian technology by an Australian company. I could not think of a better place to use it than here.
I have been fortunate to establish a working and personal relationship with former Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. Of all the principles and policies Gough Whitlam has enriched in the thoughts of others, he has always demonstrated to me that politics is an honourable profession. Gough Whitlam set the benchmark for political representation in Western Sydney: living locally, meeting local residents, attending local functions, and understanding and acting on the concerns of a growing region. Gough and Margaret Whitlam have a commitment to public service in its most fine and generous tradition. No corner of Australia is even now too small for them to provide both time and interest. Gough Whitlam sits in this Parliament tonight. It was through the funding of schools on the basis of need, abolishing fees for tertiary education, establishing universal heath insurance, and setting new directions in urban renewal, transport and law reform that the Whitlam Government modernised Australia on the basis of advancing opportunity.
As a new member of Parliament it is right to pay tribute to the previous members of Parliament who have provided assistance and support to me over many years in the local area. Three very different members of Parliament fall into this category and have a proud record of achieving for Labor in south-western Sydney: Stan Knowles, Craig Knowles and Mark Latham. I am very much my own man and do things in my own style. However, I acknowledge and respect that next to my name on every ballot paper are five important letters—letters that spell "Labor".
Stan Knowles, the first member for Macquarie Fields, opened up south-western Sydney by making sure that bridges for rail and road were built over significant physical barriers and that a better quality of life was delivered. There is no greater example than the East Hills railway line. Today we can add examples of the M5 East tunnel and the M7—a great Christmas present for Western Sydney. It is an honour to be the successor to Craig Knowles in this Parliament. Those who live in my electorate know that Liverpool and Campbelltown hospitals are larger and better than they were ten years ago. They know that public housing estates have been refurbished and redesigned over the last 10 years. They know there is a greater green buffer around the Georges River than there was 10 years ago. They know that Labor and Craig Knowles did this. They are aware that Leacock Regional Park, the Casula Powerhouse, and industrial parks that promote local jobs and improve the quality of life in our area were all championed by Craig Knowles. It is a proud record of achievement, but, of course, more remains to be done. I am keen to get down to work.
I would like to thank my campaign team and all the volunteers who worked on my campaign, including the peak youth organisation in this country: Young Labor. Damian Kassabgi and Aaron Rule headed the campaign team. Damian has the skills, the spirit and the right temperament to be a leader in Labor. Aaron is a true friend and has a humility and humanity that is an example to others. I would like to thank Labor Party branch members for selecting me to be Labor's voice in our area. I am glad that many branch members have been able to come tonight. It is your commitment over many years that I bring to this Chamber.
I would like to thank Premier Iemma and his Ministers for the advice and encouragement provided throughout the campaign. The good result in the by-election was a tribute to the new ideas and fresh approach of the new Premier. The Macquarie Fields by-election was the only election contested by the Liberal Party on 17 September. The Liberal Party campaign did not say one thing positive about Western Sydney or put forward one solid policy direction for Western Sydney. It was a negative campaign that received a negative response. During the campaign and now as member for Macquarie Fields I will stand up for Western Sydney because I am sick of people talking down our area. I congratulate the honourable members for Marrickville and Maroubra on their victories on the same day.
I would like to thank the honourable members for Camden and Campbelltown, and the current Federal member for Werriwa, for their assistance over the years and in my first days in this building. Finally, I would like to thank my family and my partner, Fee Fen Njoo. They are my greatest support and my greatest inspiration. All members would know that our families are very proud of us. I remain always very proud of them. I thank the people of the electorate of Macquarie Fields for the honour to represent them. It is an opportunity to get things done.
Mr SPEAKER: I note the presence in the gallery of the family and friends of the honourable member for Macquarie Fields. The honourable member for Maroubra will now make his inaugural speech. I again ask members to extend the usual courtesies to him.
Mr MICHAEL DALEY (Maroubra) [7.58 p.m.] (Inaugural speech): I would like to similarly begin by congratulating Steven Chaytor, the honourable member for Macquarie Fields, and Carmel Tebbutt, the honourable member for Marrickville, who were elected on the day I was elected. Having been elected on the same day, I believe we will always share a special bond. As a young legal student I read carefully about the development of democratic institutions in the early colony of New South Wales and I studied the social and legal history and traditions of this House, which, like many similar Chambers in the world, is the inheritor of over 700 years of history and tradition.
It is with a sense of awe and great pride that I address the House now for the first time. I do not for one moment fail to appreciate that the people of Maroubra have bestowed upon me what I consider to be the greatest privilege citizens can bestow upon another in a democracy—the opportunity to be their representative in a legislature. I thank the families of Maroubra, my fellow locals, for electing me on 17 September. I have lived every day of my life in the Maroubra electorate. I will not let them down.
There have been only three former members for Maroubra—and two of them have been Premiers—Robert James Heffron from the establishment of the seat in 1950 until 1968, William Henry Haig from 1968 until 1983, and Robert John Carr from 1983 until his departure earlier this year. Each of those men represented the people of the electoral district with distinction and set a high standard for me to maintain. They laid down also the tradition that the electorate is represented for long periods by members of the Australian Labor Party—18 years in Mr Heffron's case, 15 years in Mr Haig's case and 22 years in Mr Carr's case. It is a tradition I will be proud to continue.
At this point I would particularly like to thank my immediate predecessor, former Premier the Hon. Bob Carr. Along with Neville Wran, Bob Hawke and Paul Keating, huge characters in the Labor movement and on the Australian political landscape, Bob Carr is one of the people who inspired me to join the Labor Party and seek political office. Mr Carr was always there to provide advice and encouragement when required, but for an aspiring young politician he provided something far more valuable than counsel: more than any other person I have met in political life, he presented me with a clear and flawless example, a model of how to conduct oneself as a capable, diligent and, above all, dignified member of this Parliament.
Bob Carr is an icon of the Labor Party and a monumental character in the political history of New South Wales and Australia. For a time in the 1990s, the Carr Government was the sole Labor ship afloat. In dark times it was our beacon, and Labor's return to dominance at State and Territory level today is due in no small part to Bob Carr's capabilities. I thank Mr Carr for all that he has provided to me and for the fact that the seat of Maroubra, which I inherit from him, is in tremendous shape.
I am keen to place on record my enormous gratitude to the many people who assisted and supported me in the Maroubra by-election on 17 September this year. From a glance at the gallery, all of them are here tonight. Firstly I wish to thank the President of the Randwick Labor Club, Ken Murray, who was my campaign director. Ken has been the campaign director for many elections in Maroubra over decades. No stone is left unturned, and no opportunity is ignored to impart the Labor message. I thank Ken for his efforts and look forward to joining him in the trenches in 2007, as we will no doubt once again talk him out of a premature retirement.
The real strength of any political organisation is, of course, the people who work tirelessly behind the scenes. The branch members and supporters of the Labor Party in Maroubra are no exception. They are numerous and extraordinary. These are the people who, inspired by conviction and loyalty, are there for every campaign, eager to contribute and make a difference. And make a difference they do! They are too numerous to thank individually. They are the real strength of the Labor Party. I thank them all. At election times, and in between, they do not conduct themselves as if Maroubra is a safe Labor seat. Nor shall I.
I would like to thank three such people who have been my right-hand men over many years: Graham Waters, Chris Ryan, and the late Dennis O'Leary. I would also like to thank the many members of the Parliament who assisted me in the campaign and thereafter. I thank the following honourable Ministers and members: the Premier, Ministers Carmel Tebbutt, Joe Tripodi, Frank Sartor, David Campbell and John Hatzistergos, the Hon. Eddie Obeid, and my neighbour, the member for Heffron, Kristina Keneally. I also thank Mark Arbib, the General Secretary of the New South Wales branch of the Australian Labor Party, for his continued support.
Finally, with respect to my campaign I thank the many members of Young Labor and my campaign office staff, led by Sam Dastyari, Josh McIntosh and Rolly Smallacombe, who descended on Maroubra in great numbers during the campaign. The energy of youth! They are a great asset to the Labor Party. I have the immense privilege of being the local member in a truly wonderful seat. In geographical terms the seat is a wonderland. It extends from the south of Coogee Beach all the way to La Perouse. Along the way the coastline is blessed by unrivalled beaches, including the world-famous Maroubra Beach. There is beautiful windswept coastal heathland, some of it remnant, and green open spaces, including four premier golf courses.
On that topic, a most significant issue in relation to open space within the electorate is the Malabar headland. It is an amazing site with a unique history but an uncertain future. It is owned by the Commonwealth. Listed on the Register of the National Estate, it is Labor's position that it should be handed over to the people of New South Wales and Australia to become a national park and public open space. It is an issue far too important with which to play politics. I invite and urge every member of this House to visit that site. It is an area every bit as interesting and unique as North Head. Those who see it will understand.
I commit myself to pursuing the handing over and conversion of this land as vigorously as I can. Ideally I would like to work cooperatively with the Commonwealth Government to achieve those objectives, but if they cannot be achieved co-operatively they must be pursued by all other legal means. The stakes are too high to fail in this endeavour. I look forward to working with the Federal member for Kingsford Smith, Peter Garrett, on this and many other issues that are important to our respective electorates.
My electoral district is also blessed with many wonderful institutions, including one of the best health care precincts in Australia: the Prince of Wales Hospital, the Royal Hospital for Women and the Sydney Children's Hospital. The University of New South Wales also partly resides in the electorate. It is a matter of historical record that the first member for Maroubra, the Hon. Robert Heffron, as Premier and local member, played a major role in the establishment of that university, the second to be established in New South Wales, on the site of the old Kensington racecourse. The university consequently plays neighbour to another great institution in our area: the internationally recognised Royal Randwick Racecourse.
The story of the local area is also replete with episodes of significant history. At this juncture I wish to acknowledge the Dharawahl Aboriginal people, who are the traditional owners of the land on which the seat of Maroubra and surrounds are now founded. Their ancient history in our locality is still there to see if one cares to look, and I am proud to say that the seat is still enriched by a significant Aboriginal presence, particularly at La Perouse. They are, pardon the pun, a colourful, vibrant and interesting community, full of character.
The local Aboriginal people have always been particularly gifted in athletic and sporting pursuits and that community has produced many sportspeople of note. The famous Ella brothers, who represented Australia in rugby union, are but one example. I very much look forward to working closely with the people of this community and enjoying their company in the coming years. I really enjoy having a laugh with them. And bridges can only be built from the bottom up.
The southern part of the electorate is also the foreshore to a significant part of Botany Bay—significant not only in terms of its Aboriginal heritage but also because of its role in European settlement. Captain Cook's diary records that he walked along the highest sand ridge in the area. Members of the expedition of the famous French navigator La Perouse camped on the beach at present-day Frenchmans Bay, which is aptly named. A member of the expedition, a French priest, Father Receveur, died whilst camped in that bay. The first European to be buried on Australian soil, his grave at La Perouse is marked by a monument revered each year by the French Government and French community in Sydney.
History and institutions aside, as I have already alluded to, it is the people, the community of the electorate, who are the most remarkable. Bounded by water on, let's say, two and a half sides of the electorate, it is an area where everyone knows everyone else. There are no six degrees of separation in Maroubra. Maybe two. It is a small country town in the heart of Sydney. The word "community" might as well have been conceived for this area. There is a significant RSL presence, there are many registered clubs and hotels that provide terrific community support, there are surf clubs, sporting and social clubs of all persuasions, and there are charitable and volunteer organisations of every kind. The Randwick Netball Association, one of the largest netball associations in the State, also calls Maroubra home. Significantly, it is an area that has produced an abundance of representative sportspeople over the decades. It is a part of the heartland of Randwick rugby and of next year's National Rugby League premiers, the South Sydney Rabbitohs. The honourable member for Heffron agrees with me entirely.
Every new member of this House has an ambition to contribute to the betterment of public life in certain policy areas. I would briefly like to place on the record my interest and position on certain relevant issues. The environment is an area which greatly concerns me. Whilst time does not permit a general discourse on the subject, I nominate global warming as the most pressing environmental threat of our times. Global warming is a reality. Whilst the man on the street knows this, our Federal Government refuses to recognise that reality. It is therefore up to the States and Territories to take the lead. Failure to do so will be catastrophic. Education and training are other areas in which I should like to take an interest. The fact that I am standing here now is a testament to the educational opportunities provided to me whilst growing up.
I come from a typical suburban middle-class Australian family. Thanks to the hard work and sacrifice of my parents, I received a wonderful education from the Marist Brothers at Marcellin College, Randwick, a regional Catholic school. After I left school I worked for 13 years as a customs officer with the Australian Customs Service. I studied law at night, I paid my way through tertiary studies, and I succeeded. I was one of the fortunate ones who were given the opportunity. That opportunity is now being denied to thousands of young people in Australia because, sadly, we have a Federal Government that has been spectacularly successful at creating an American-style university system where increasingly only the well-off or the hopelessly in debt will be able to afford to complete a tertiary education.
Increasingly, student places are being sold to foreign students to subsidise underfunded universities. This, combined with the skills shortage in the country, is a sad indictment of failed policy at the Federal level. For over a decade the Federal Government has failed young Australians looking to become educated and skilled. Once again it is up to the State governments—the State Labor governments—to look after young Australians. Even though my seat is very much a metropolitan one, I have a great affinity with the people of rural and regional New South Wales. My forebears, having immigrated from Ireland, all came from the land: on my mother's side, from the Burragorang Valley before it was flooded to make way for Warragamba Dam, and on my father's side, dairy farmers scattered along the coast of the State, but principally in Kempsey.
In addition, as a councillor on Randwick City Council I have greatly benefited from a sister-city relationship between the City of Randwick and the Shire of Warren, in Western New South Wales, which, because of its wonderful racecourse, describes itself as "the Randwick of the west". The people of Warren are typical of people generally in regional Australia that I know: salt of the earth. Their Mayor, Rex Wilson, is one of nature's gentlemen. I value his friendship and that of his family. I look forward to joining with my Country Labor colleagues in supporting the interests of country people. As I stand here tonight I have never been more proud to be a member of the Australian Labor Party, the party that has for over a century fought with spectacular success to improve life for ordinary working people.
We are at a seminal moment in the history of Australian industrial relations, where an ideologically-bent Prime Minister is about to undo a century of careful evolution and is about to wreck an industrial relations system that has delivered balance, fairness and stability to the nation for a hundred years: a Prime Minister who is bent on taking us down the path where it becomes more difficult for ordinary people to succeed. He has done it to the university system and he is doing it slowly to the health system. Now he wants to do it to the industrial relations system. Throw a few scraps to the employees of the nation, call them minimum conditions and safety nets, and then let it rip, do your best, may the strongest survive! Australia was not founded on that concept and I am proud to be a part of this Government, the Iemma Labor Government, that only yesterday reiterated its commitment to fighting the Prime Minister's plan with all means at its disposal. The Prime Minister will learn that with the working people of Australia on our side this fight is far from over.
All members of this House know that to be truly successful in public life one needs a loving and supporting family. I am truly blessed in that regard. I would like to place on the record the enormous contribution my family has made to all my endeavours in life. Their support has been absolute. To my little sister, Maree, my brothers Paul and Peter, to Lucinda Daley, Emma Stradling and little Finn Daley, likewise. I thank my wonderful fiancée, Christina Ithier, who will become my wife on 3 December this year, and our children Alison and Jake. Like others in public life I am frequently working until late at night. I always return to a warm and friendly family environment—a typical Aussie home with kids and dogs under your feet. God willing, there will be more to come—kids that is—not dogs.
I would like to dedicate my speech today to four people. Firstly, to my uncle, the late Brother Benedict (Bernard) Carlon, a Franciscan friar, my friend with a gentle heart. Also, to my grandfather, the late James Raywood (Ray) Daley, who was a dairy farmer from Kempsey and for many years the President of the North Coast Dairy Farmers' Association. But most particularly I would like to honour my mother and father, Mary and John Daley, to whom I owe everything. I thank honourable members for doing me the honour of listening to my first speech. I am honoured to join them in this place.
Mr SPEAKER: The Chair notes the presence in the public gallery of the large contingent of members of the family and friends of the honourable member for Maroubra.