I am very pleased to support this motion moved by the member for Ryan and pay tribute to the Meals on Wheels establishment and the wonderful work that it has done in Australia since 1952.

On behalf of the people of Kingsford Smith, I extend our sincerest condolences and sympathies to Parisians and the people of France as they recover from this evil atrocity perpetrated upon their nation by a group of individuals who are not human but, really, animals.

Yesterday I met with representatives of the Assyrian community in my local area and heard their tales of despair over what is occurring in their homeland of Iraq and the persecution that many of their relatives and friends have faced over the last couple of years.

In 2 weeks’ time the leaders of most of the world’s nations will meet in Paris to hopefully agree on a framework to reduce global carbon emissions and attempt to limit growth in global temperatures to 2 degrees to avoid catastrophic consequences of climate change.

Maroubra Beach is renowned for its powerful surf and for producing some of the world's best surfers and surf-lifesavers. This has been recognised in the fact that Maroubra Beach is the second national surfing reserve and the home of the Australian Surfing Walk of Fame.

It is with great sadness that I pay tribute to the life of my mate, Brien Holden, an internationally acclaimed researcher and head of the Brien Holden Vision Institute at the University of New South Wales.

Brien was a tireless advocate for the vision impaired and, in particular, those in developing nations. He has been described as the most influential optometrist of our time.

Pensioners are some of the most financially vulnerable members of our community. Although many have a high-value asset, their family home, they tend to be income poor. Most will get by on between $24,000 and $28,000 a year, so they are by no means well off.

In March 2014, I was informed that the local Medicare office in our community, in Eastgardens shopping centre, would no longer open on a Saturday.

Thank you to the Monash Sustainability Institute for the opportunity to speak at this very important workshop. I acknowledge the traditional owners of this land and pay my respects to elders past and present.

There is no more important role of government than providing young Australians with access to a decent education. Education is the great enabler. It is the springboard to a decent job and security in life. It ensures Australians have higher living standards and our economy is more productive.