PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATION

Senator FARUQI (New South Wales—Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens) (18:13): Well, Senator Surfer, I can already see you riding away on a wave, and it's really well deserved as well. That was such a beautiful valedictory speech. I think it's really difficult to condense 14 years of politics and activism and life into 45 minutes or so, but you did it so beautifully.

You did it with such heart and soul. And you did it like you always do—by being yourself. And along the way you did give us a lesson in climate science and climate history, as well as the history of the Greens.

But some of us might agree to disagree with that. And you sure have given it such a good crack, Pete—an incredible crack. I actually didn't know you, Pete, until I got to this place in 2019, but I did know quite a few people who did know you, and this is what they always told me, 'You'll get what you see; you'll get a real human—a really nice bloke, someone who wears his heart on his sleeve, a bloke's bloke but also a person's person.' And now we know you are a little bit of a 'wife guy' as well in the best possible feminist way—and really good on you!

I was also told that you have humanity, integrity and honesty and a real fire to protect Mother Nature and the climate. I have only seen that fire burn even more brightly in the time that I have known you, and that has really inspired me. So thank you, Pete.

From day one, to be honest, I found everything that I was told to be exactly true. On top of that, I admire so much your commitment to really fight hard for the issues that you care about. I have been lucky enough to be part of those fights and partner with you in some of those fights about the common things that we both care about.

I'll just mention two of those things. One is, of course, the privilege to campaign with you protecting sharks in our oceans and the other is joining tens of thousands of people in New South Wales to protect our coastlines from that horrific PEP-11, which was going to blast and drill off the pristine coast of New South Wales. That was one of those fights we did win, alongside the fierce, fierce campaigning of communities.

PEP11 was indeed rejected in 2025. I've been very proud to stand alongside you and thousands of people in that fight, and I will continue the fight to end the barbaric cruelty against sharks while also making sure that people who love to go into the ocean are protected as well. One thing that I think I will never forget is the fierce passion with which you, Senator Whish-Wilson, have tried to unmask the perils of misinformation and disinformation in this age of AI slop and of bot farms funded by those which you so eloquently mentioned in your speech and who deliberately try to undermine climate protection and our democracy.

I do hope that there are others in this place who can assume the mantle in the way that you have done. So thank you so much, Pete. We love you.

Happy surfing.