ADJOURNMENT

Mr DAVID SMITH (Bean—Government Whip) (19:55): Firstly, well said, member for Groom. What a great tribute to both your father and the people who gave him great care. I was fortunate enough recently to catch up with Val Dempsey, Senior Australian of the Year in 2022 and five-decade volunteer for St John's Ambulance, and she has asked me to issue a challenge to my colleagues across the House.

Sudden cardiac arrest can impact people of all ages, genders and lifestyles. It does not discriminate. Approximately 10 per cent of people who experience a cardiac arrest outside of hospital survive.

However, if good quality and timely CPR and AED are utilised, survival rates can increase to 70 per cent. That is where Val and St John's Ambulance come in. St John's Ambulance ask governments, partners, funders and communities to get behind public access to defibrillators.

I've had the opportunity to sponsor the installation of a defibrillator down at the Learn to Ride Centre at Lake Tuggeranong, and, with Val's assistance, I've been able to get a defibrillator installed in my electorate office in Greenway. With my office being located along the main street in central Tuggeranong, we knew it would be the ideal location for this life saving technology.

Whilst we hope no-one will ever need to use it, we know the difference it can make. This is where I come back to the challenge. If I can get one installed in my electorate office, I encourage everyone in the chamber and across this parliament to do the same.

Our offices are all centrally located within our communities and offer ideal secure locations for AEDs to be installed. Operation Formal Wear is a community program run by Lake Tuggeranong Lions Club dedicated to allowing students to attend their school formals and events with confidence. All students across our community deserve to feel confident and like they belong.

Running over the past four years, the program allows for the collection of formal wear so that it can be redistributed to students across our community who face financial or similar barriers when wanting to celebrate these important milestones. I'm happy to say my office is accepting donations as part of this drive and will continue to accept them through till early September.

Once donations are made, they are sorted through and prepared so that students can, at no cost, select an outfit at one of a number of free shopping events, with the main event being hosted at the Lions Youth Haven on Kambah Pool Road in Kambah on the 10 and 11 October 2026. I'm proud that my office can play a part in this drive and continue to be used as a hub in our community.

Geoff Bennett has been barbecuing almost every Thursday for the Tuggeranong Valley Australian Football and Netball Club for over three years ever since his two sons began going to the club. His contribution was recently recognised through the Legend of the Tongs initiative, an 18-week long event hosted by Bunnings Warehouse recognising their efforts of volunteers.

Geoff was nominated as a legend due to his role in creating a positive experience every Thursday alongside his unwavering dedication to the club. I've seen this dedication first-hand from Geoff and the countless volunteers that make our community sport possible. As Geoff said, 'football is not just a sport but a full-on community'.

And speaking of my community, I want to take this chance to thank Gus Filmer, a student from Caroline Chisholm School in my electorate, for not just writing sections of this speech but for joining us last sitting week. Thank you for joining my office, Gus, and for being one of the team. I hope this experience has given you some insight into how special our community is and the honour that it is to represent it.

Finally, the Albanese Labor government has passed a landmark package of reforms in the House of Representatives to further protect Australians from the harms of gambling. We are taking the strongest action ever to tackle the harms of gambling, and the legislation I voted for in the house represents the most significant reform to online gambling in Australia's history.

I acknowledge the hard work of those who have driven these reforms, including many across my community. Now that the bills have passed this House, I hope my colleagues in the Senate ensure these vital reforms are passed through the parliament. House adjourned at 20:00