Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia national conference

Thank you so much to Prerana and to Peter for giving us a powerful beginning for this morning's events and discussions. And thank you to Auntie Serena and her niece and nephew for once again giving us a wonderful Welcome to Country. And I join with her in acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we're meeting, past, present and emerging.

I acknowledge Dr Anne Aly, our fantastic Minister for Multicultural Affairs, and I acknowledge other Members of Parliament, Senators who are here, and I thank all the sponsors who are here as well, who of course make this possible. I've spoken to FECCA before, but not in the Great Hall of Parliament House. It is appropriate that you come here.

The centre of our democracy and the centre of our power and relationships, in this country. Because here in our national capital, there is a debate, as has been acknowledged. It's a debate between a nostalgia, as Peter put it, for a past that has never existed in this great nation, and whether we will come together – as your theme is here, many stories, but one future.

One commitment to our great nation of Australia, the best country on earth, in part because of who we are. The fact that we have the privilege of sharing this great continent of ours with the oldest continuous culture on earth is a pretty good beginning. The fact then that people have come from all over the world to call Australia home – some out of choice, some out of necessity, but all contributing to our nation as we go forward.

And FECCA embodies a crucial part of what makes this the best country on earth, because you bring together the different community organisations at that grassroots level. The community organisations that celebrate who you are, where you come from, what your heritage is, but come together to celebrate what modern Australia is in 2026. Through the sheer power of your example, you show us the true meaning of that great Australian ethos of the fair go, eroding any barrier that may stand between multicultural Australians and their proud sense of belonging to this country which they love and to which they add so much.

A country that has long offered migrants the gift of opportunity, an offer that migrants have in turn responded to with extraordinary energy and initiative. Migrants have played an essential role throughout our lives, and continue to do so, from the maternity ward to the nursing home and every single stage in between. From construction sites to businesses, from classrooms to restaurants to doctors' surgeries, migration has added to Australia's prosperity and it continues to build our strength.

Migrants work hard and they pay taxes. They add to the bottom line and they lift our ambitions as a country by expanding our sense of what is possible. So many underpin our world class health system with their skill and stamina.

So many boost our economy with their entrepreneurial spirit. More than a third of small business owners in Australia were born overseas. I've seen questions in the last 24 hours, why is Dr Aly Small Business and Multicultural Affairs Minister.

Some people just need to get out more, and actually talk to what small businesses in Australia look like, who they are, bringing that extraordinary entrepreneurial spirit. The common link that we have is a profound enthusiasm to be part of the great Australian story. The story that we're writing together, the story in each generation writes the next chapter, not a static story.

It evolves, as it has as I've grown up, where the make-up of Australia has changed over a period of time with waves of migration. My home of Marrickville's history, written by the May Murray Neighbourhood Centre. Many years ago, they had people from different communities, the theme that it was first stop Marrickville, because waves of migrants have come through, each adding a different element to it.

So that you had, obviously, your British and Irish going through, you had your Greeks, Italians just a bit down the road there in Leichhardt and Haberfield, your Portuguese in Petersham. You had the waves of Lebanese migrants and people from the Middle East fleeing the civil war there in the 1970s. You have then Islander communities, and in more recent times people from Africa.

And in the middle of all that Vietnamese who went from largely the community in Marrickville, a bit different from the community in Cabramatta, came from North Vietnam, went down to South Vietnam as a result of conflict and then just kept going post 1975. Every one of those communities fortunately have left an imprint. The history of migrant communities, they will settle in particular areas but then spread so that now there's not just a Greek community in Marrickville.

Greeks are everywhere, even in Ashbury, where your Chair lives. Still in my electorate, it must be said. But that is the history of what occurs, and it means that you can walk around the streets of Marrickville and get groceries from the Filipino shop, which was three doors down from my old electorate office providing everything.

Everything that you can get in Manila, you can get in Marrickville. The Vietnamese grocers, particularly for fruit and veggies, are the best and the cheapest you can get anywhere in Sydney. I shouldn't say that because the market will swoop in there and it'll make it more difficult to get.

Still, you can go across the road from my old electorate office there at the Corinthian, you can still get – they're a family business, a classic example of a small business where now the son looks after you, but still mum's out the back doing the cooking – the best lamb you have ever had in your life, I believe, isn't in Greece. And I've been to Greece a number of times.

It's in Marrickville. Because we have better ingredients than anywhere else in the world. Here in Australia, it's fresh and fantastic.

What a privilege it is, where you can see we can be a microcosm for the whole world. And at a time where there is so much conflict in the world based upon religion or what people look like or historic grievances. Here in Australia, we have an opportunity, and it's one that I believe we're fulfilling overwhelmingly to be a microcosm for the world.

That shows that we're enriched by the fact that we have people from different faiths, from different backgrounds, from different cultures, all living overwhelmingly in harmony, side by side, looking after each other, respecting each other. And we cannot afford to take that for granted. We must nurture it.

We must cherish it. We must make sure that we value it. Because it is, when you look at the turbulent world in which we live and engage with, a land war in Europe, conflicts in the Middle East, conflict in Sudan, we have an incredible opportunity to go forward.

I think that, as the second verse of our national anthem says, for those who've come across the sea, we've boundless plains to share. We have an opportunity to do what Australians do. To reach for the sky.

And that's what generations of migrants have done, become deeply and energetically Australian. It is a wonderful story. The world has thrown a lot of Australia in recent years, and as more Australians feel the brunt of economic pressures, there are always those ready to exploit the moment by sowing division, by saying that the reason why your life isn't everything that you would want it to be is because of someone who doesn't look like you.

What's extraordinary is that Australians overwhelmingly will engage in communities, like the local community that I'm proud to represent. They look after each other at that level. It's an abstract notion that people are trying to appeal to when they try to break down social cohesion.

That is why measures such as, we await the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion, established in as a result of that horrific antisemitic terrorist attack in Bondi. I know a lot of people including in this room made submissions to the Royal Commission about the work that they do to bring communities together. We do have to call out hatred in all its forms, and we have to acknowledge there has been a rise in antisemitism as something that we have to deal with, and something that we need to make sure that we do everything we can to stamp out.

We need to stand out all forms of racism and discrimination. The challenges are myriad. How we choose to deal with them is paramount.

And as part of that, we have through Dr Aly, we've re-established the Federal Office for Multicultural Affairs. I agree we can't afford to walk away from what is an embracing concept that has been part of who we are. That's why nothing could be more timely than the theme of this conference, 'Navigating Change, Shaping Australia: Many Stories, One Future'.

We share a crucial imperative to shape the future rather than taking the passive option of letting it shape us. And we achieve this in a spirit of cooperation, bringing together the multiple strands of our continent's story into a powerful whole, with one community after another adding to the breadth of who we are, expanding our powers, lifting us through their love of this country that unites us.

Australia's migration story has been many generations in the making. Anyone who can look in the rear vision mirror and see a monoculture should really get themselves down to the nearest Specsavers. Because we have of course always been multicultural.

And I'm really proud to lead a political party that has taken that into practise. You look at our Caucus roll call, you don't have to go past the letter A. You get Abdo, Albanese, Aly, Ambihaipahar, Ananda-Rajah, and then you get Ayres.

What that does is reflect the fact that when I look at our government frontbench and our Caucus, it looks like Australia. And that wasn't always the case. It took 83 years for the first woman to be elected from New South Wales to a House of Representatives seat. 83 years, all blokes, every one of them.

And all with surnames a bit different from most of those that I just read out there. And of course we have someone called Wong leading us in the Senate as well, and being Foreign Minister. Of course, as well, we have a majority of women in our caucus as well.

And there is a link between representation and outcomes. I think it's now actually that a government with a majority of women has taken the gender pay gap to a record low and made a difference on gender equality. And I commend the work that you've done through the Australian Multicultural Women's Alliance, focusing on ending gender-based violence as well as improving access to healthcare, valuing care work and advancing economic quality and leadership.

Yet as you point out, there is more urgent work to do. Nearly 350,000 migrant and refugee women work below the skill level that they have. One of the reasons why we're working through those issues is an opportunity.

Only 41 per cent work in roles matching their qualifications, and they earn 31 per cent less than Australian born women with equivalent qualifications. So, that is a significant potential for our nation to tap into. One practical and meaningful measure is to more readily recognise the skills and qualifications that people have.

That is why as part of this year's budget, the Government announced an $85 million investment in migration skills recognition reform. I want every Australian to be able to add to our country and feel proud of what they bring and to maximise that. I want every Australian to leave behind as well the idea that we should have intolerance.

A joyous celebration is something that I see every time I go to a multicultural festival. I'll be at the Norton Street Festa in, I think it's in a couple of weeks time, the celebration of the Italian community there in Leichhardt, in Haberfield, around my part of the world. The festivals that are held are extraordinary celebrations, whether it is the Lunar Festival or other activities based upon particular communities.

What a privilege it is to go down for the breaking of the fast during Ramadan, whether it be in Lakemba or in Dandenong. I went to both areas this year. The fact that we have so many, I think next week, I think it's the hundredth anniversary of the Hellenic Club in Australia, that will be a fantastic celebration as well.

All of these activities are so important and they are things as well that it's important to recognise that there's a common theme as well for those who argue that this is about separation. My experience, I'm sure it's the experience of everyone here, is there's no one more welcome at an event celebrating a particular culture than people from outside that culture.

No one more welcome than someone who isn't Asian going to a Lunar Festival. No one who's more welcome going to a breaking of the fast than someone from outside the Muslim community. These are things that characterise us and they bring us together because what people have in common is their commitment and love for Australia.

And I see that as part of the heart of the Australian covenant as well. It's a covenant that says when you come to Australia, you continue to attribute to your heritage, but you leave any grievances or shadows of past generations at the door. It's a fresh start.

It's why people come for a better future. Recently I saw just this week, Peter Gutwein, the former premier of Tasmania who's now chair of the Australian Multicultural Council. This is what he said in the Nine newspapers earlier this week, his opening statement, "I'm a migrant.

As a child, along with my parents, we came to Australia seeking the opportunity that this country offered. And like the millions of others that have made Australia home, I will never forget what that opportunity meant to my family." And that is an energy that can power generations. It's an energy that is an essential part of a viable economic future for our country.

The energy and indeed the courage that drives people to carve out a future in a new land that can manifest itself in so many ways. We see it as ambition, innovation, aspiration, adaptability, resilience, the determination to turn vision into reality and the energy and hard work with which to back that determination. As a consequence, we have communities that are in crucial ways living bridges, connecting Australians to the rest of the world through culture, through economics, through sport.

And that is worth celebrating because that is something that in the end brings benefits to all Australians. It struck me when Auntie Serena was up here with – and she's still there – her niece and nephew up here, that there you have a First Nations person doing what I think characterises every Australian, which is they want something better for their next generation.

What my mum, single mum – it upsets people to talk about this apparently – single mum, proud houso. There, I said it again. My mum wanted something better for me than she had.

Didn't have the opportunity to finish school because of health reasons. It's what every mum wants, from First Nations people to people like my mum, who was here for my family on her side, go back to the 1800s, here in Australia, for the people who've arrived as first generation migrants. They're here because they want something for themselves, but what drives them is they want something better for their kids, for the generations to come.

And the other thing that unites us is they want something better for the whole country. That is why you are here. That's what makes Australia the greatest country on earth.

I want to thank you for everything you do for your communities. I wish you a wonderful conference and I'm sure that in spite of some of what is going on in some of the debates, the targeting of communities can create real difficulties, as I say, let's not just aim for tolerance, let's aim for celebration. Let's celebrate who we are as modern Australia and your part in it.

Thanks very much. PM&C acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of country throughout Australia and acknowledges their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay our respects to the people, the cultures and the elders past, present and emerging.