STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Ms RYAN (Lalor—Chief Government Whip) (13:41): Last Wednesday was the second round of the annual Lalor SRC Forum at Cambridge Primary School. This is where I pull together the student representative councils—the junior school leadership teams, if you like—from across the electorate. They come together and work collaboratively to further develop their leadership skills and share their work with other schools.

Our next generation of leaders is certainly being developed in the classrooms of the schools in my community. Students shared with me what they were most passionate about. What really stood out to me were their concerns around appropriate pay for their teachers, quality of education and fair funding for their schools.

They are passionate about education, these young people. As a former educator and principal, I know the importance of being able to share a day with the local schools and its ability to better inform how I represent them in this parliament. I want to thank all of the students who attended and all of the schools who facilitated their attendance.

I want to give a special thank you to Principal Jane Budd for graciously hosting at Cambridge Primary School. I look forward to joining schools in my electorate at their graduation ceremonies at the end of the year with bags full of Julia Gillard awards for exceptional students across my community.