ADJOURNMENT NOTES- OCTOBER 7, 2020

Welcome to Adjournment Notes.

It has been a very busy month in NSW Parliament and the Legislative Council. I spoke on a range of community and legislative issues.

spoke on a range of community and legislative issues including:

You can click on any of the links above to read my speeches on Hansard or click here to watch my speeches on my YouTube channel.

Parliament will be sitting for another fortnight commencing on Tuesday, 13 October 2020.

In the meantime I have a number of Committee hearings underway including the State Records Act inquiry which I Chair and a site visit to Lake Macquarie for the Coal Ash inquiry.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of further assistance.

Sincerely,

VICTORY IN THE PACIFIC DAY

Speaking on Victory in the Pacific Day in Parliament.

It was special to speak on the Victory in the Pacific Private Members motion moved by the Hon. Trevor Khan MLC in Parliament.

It is very important that Parliament acknowledges the significant anniversaries of pivotal events in our relatively youthful nation's history.

VP, or Victory in the Pacific Day—also referred to as VJ, or Victory over Japan Day—is celebrated on 15 August. That date commemorates Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender on 14 August 1945. For Australians it meant that the Second World War was finally over.

The following day, 15 August, is usually referred to as VP Day. Australians had been at war since 3 September 1939, so the surrender marked the end of nearly six years of conflict, with all the loss, stress and fear that marked those years.

This year marks 75 years since the end of the Second World War, which triggered euphoric celebrations across New South Wales and dancing through the streets of Sydney as then Prime Minister Ben Chifley announced over the radio, "Fellow citizens, the war is over ... let us remember those whose lives were given that we may enjoy this glorious moment and may look forward to a peace which they have won for us." Such fitting words.

This year's celebrations were very different due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with many face-to-face commemorative events very restricted. The New South Wales Government and the acting veterans affairs Minister, Geoff Lee, launched the One Month to Remember VP Day campaign, encouraging veterans and their families to share their service stories in the lead-up to the seventy-fifth anniversary of VP Day to ensure that we can continue to acknowledge the service of veterans and, importantly, their families. The story collection is available online on the NSW War Memorials website.

To read my speech on Hansard please click here.

DOGS IN POLITICS DAY

As US President Harry Truman once said "If you want a friend in politics, get a dog!"

It was a great way to finish up the Parliamentary sitting week with 'Dogs in Politics Day' with the Parliamentary Friends of Animals and Members from both sides of the aisle.

The Animal Welfare League brought along a number of dogs waiting to be adopted including Vader (pictured), a 9 month old gentle giant Rottweiler mix.

If you want to find out more information on the Animal Welfare League, please visit their website here.

GET READY WEEKEND- BUSHFIRE PREPARATION

Last week in Parliament I spoke in my Private Members Statement about Get Ready Weekend.

One of the key lessons from the 2019-20 horrific bushfire season is the importance of instilling the message of preparedness in our communities.

Unfortunately while many people are still recovering from last season's catastrophic bushfires, the next bushfire season is already upon us. The memories are all too familiar so it is more important than ever that New South Wales residents are prepared for the coming season.

Each year the NSW Rural Fire Service holds Get Ready Weekend with the aim of helping communities prepare. As many members know, on 19 and 20 September events took place to inform communities of the fire risk and how they can play their part in preparing. As a Blue Mountains resident, I saw the RFS spreading that message in our community.

The top four tips for getting ready for the bushfire season are: first, discuss what to do if a bushfire threatens your home; secondly, prepare your home; thirdly, know the bushfire alert levels; and, fourthly, keep all the bushfire information numbers, websites and the Fires Near Me app handy.

To watch my speech please click here or to read my speech please click here.

SISTER CITIES- AUSTRALIA AND JAPAN

Speaking on the sister city relationship with Japan And Australia in Parliament.

I recently spoke in Parliament about the sister city relationship between Australia and Japan.

I was prompted to speak on the issue after contributing to debate on Victory in the Pacific Day. That commemorative motion, which was well supported by the Chamber, caused me to reflect upon our country's relationship with our once-adversary and how countries and cities across the globe reconnected after World War II, developing strong and prosperous economic and security relationships.

The Japan of the 1940's that we spoke of in the Chamber is very different to the Japan of the last half century. Sister cities have their origins in the post-World War II era, aimed at allowing citizens to understand different communities, cultures and people.

Following the incredible destruction and loss of life caused by World War II, international diplomacy focused on avoiding such conflicts in the future. World leaders hoped to learn from their mistakes made before World War II that may have led to the re-occurrence of all-out war once again.

Strong people-to-people links continue to contribute significantly to the strength of our bilateral relationships. These links are reflected in extensive and well-established sister city relationships. In our COVID environment, one hopes that in future refreshed, restructured sister city relationships will flourish and be encouraged to flourish as we try to reach out to our friends across the globe sharing the suffering of the current pandemic.

To read my speech on Hansard please click here.

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