23 March 2020 - House of Representatives

Mr DICK (Oxley) (18:31): We join here in this home of democracy as parliamentarians and representatives of our communities at the most unprecedented of times. We're not standing here as Labor people or Liberals or members of the government or opposition. Each of us is simply standing here as one of 151 people wanting to do the very best in the most desperate of times for our nation. Just by looking around the House and in this building, in the nation's capital, we can see the impact this pandemic is having here on every Australian. It's in the businesses, the schools and the communities across our great country that the devastating effects of this virus are being felt by all Australians, many of whom are facing the most challenging times in their lives. I rise to speak in favour of the Supply Bill (No. 1) 2020-2021 and related bills tonight, and as one of the last speakers in the House of Representatives I do so with great honour and privilege and recognise those members of this place that aren't able to be here for this historic moment, including many of my friends.

I want to bring to attention aspects of the challenges faced by Australians due to the coronavirus and acknowledge particularly those working in our community, particularly in the mighty electorate of Oxley, which I proudly serve. The coronavirus is reminding Australians that we are all connected and we all rely on each other. Australia is built on looking after each other. We may be physically isolated but we are not alone. I want to remind every Australian to be safe and to call a friend, a family member or a neighbour, and let them know you are standing with them.

There are a number of people working on the front line that we heard about in many speeches today. I want to place on record my thanks and acknowledge them. They are heroes: doctors, nurses, paramedics, teachers, childcare workers, shop assistants and particularly those in aged care, who are still heading to work every single day to sacrifice and look after vulnerable Australians.

In my remarks I want to place on record my thanks to members of the Queensland government who are leading the fight against this pandemic, particularly my friend Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her government, who have done an outstanding job with their commitment to keep Queenslanders safe during this time. I have known Annastacia for 30 years. I know her compassion, her dedication and her complete resolution to making sure that every single Queenslander remains safe. Queensland is leading the nation. I was so proud to see an outstanding announcement yesterday of $17 million to the University of Queensland School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences to fast-track vaccination research for COVID-19 as an urgent public health priority.

I want to acknowledge members of the government working day and night and the public servants in every office that are fighting this pandemic, particularly the Minister for Health, Steven Miles, and the Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning, my brother, Cameron Dick, who I know is doing an outstanding job in trying to keep the supply chain going. I want to place on record that I know how proud our parents would be of the work that he's doing.

We're also reminded of how important our fellow trade unions are for the workers. They're the people doing everything to protect our jobs, to provide jobs and to ensure businesses around Australia have the essential groceries and products Australians need at this time. I want to personally thank them for all their extra efforts at this time, going beyond the call of duty to make sure Australia keeps on going.

By talking to local residents, I know how afraid they are. When it comes to the bills we are speaking of today, I want to first acknowledge the work the government has done so far, but, like my colleagues, I want to emphasise that much more needs to be done much more quickly. It's absolutely imperative we do whatever we can as soon as we can to cushion the blow that the virus will have on the health of Australians and the nation's economy. As our Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, said multiple times over the past week: 'If we know we're going to make a decision in a week's time, why wait? We must make that decision now.' This can be seen in the amendments passed today that we have moved, alongside the legislation we're dealing with tonight. Make no mistake; Labor will be supporting these measures put forward by the government, but we would be neglecting our duty if we did not emphasise where these can be improved to protect more Australians. Currently, there is nothing, that we know of, that ensures employers will use the money provided by the government to keep Australians employed. Right now, as we speak, hundreds if not potentially thousands of Australians are losing their jobs and many are facing mental health issues as a result of this decision. As such, there must be measures we can make that stipulate that, as part of the contribution made by the government to businesses, they will in turn keep people in their jobs. The more businesses who are able to do this, the more jobs we can save and the more we help Australian families who are doing it tough.

I know the 3,334 traders in the electorate of Oxley and the 6,436 small businesses with turnovers of less than $200,000 are counting on all of us to do the right thing by them. We know some of these measures will not come in until it's too late. This is not good enough, and I will continue to speak on it. The sooner we can get the money to the people who need it, the better. We've seen the long lines of people outside Centrelink today. This shows the urgency and the need for people to access money now. We know that pensioners, the elderly, are worried they won't receive their payments until it's too late. There are around 12,000 people in my electorate who are aged over 70, with many of them living at one of the 17 aged-care facilities in the electorate. I want to make sure that they're protected and looked after as well.

I'm proud to see our local temples, mosques and non-profit support groups come together at this very difficult time and offer support to the community, including many of the hospitality workers—the people who've lost their jobs as of lunchtime today. I pay tribute to the work of the peak bodies. I spoke with the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the hotels industry, particularly those leaders. I know they're turning themselves inside out about their workforce and the hundreds if not thousands of workers that are scared about their future.

I want to particularly offer my support to all of our wonderful churches and places of spiritual worship. I want to acknowledge John Redfern at the Salvation Army in Inala. I want to acknowledge Liza Dykstra of the St Vincent de Paul Society and the Australian Red Cross, who are doing amazing work. I acknowledge Pastor Mark Edwards, at Cityhope Church; Pastors John and Robyn Robertson, at Riverlife Baptist Church; Pastors Phil Cutcliffe, at the Springfield Christian Family church; and those in the Vietnamese Catholic community at St Mark's Catholic Church in my own community of Inala. They're just a sprinkle of the people doing amazing work, such as delivering food hampers, giving assistance, offering a strong message of hope and showing ways to connect in our community.

In closing, I want to ensure that we come to this in the greatest spirit of bipartisanship. I hope our concerns are taken on board, so that we can work together so that we can have no regrets when we look back—that we should have done more. We know and believe as a nation that there is a God looking over all of us. In the Bible, 2 Timothy 1:7 says:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Myself, my office and my staff are here to serve the community and our nation throughout this difficult time so that we can continue to build this beautiful country of Australia, which we call home.