STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Ms LE (Fowler) (13:29): I'm reading this winning speech my office selected, written by Cohyn, Sophie and Emily from Harrington Street Public School, who took part in the Raise Your Voice competition. Ben hiéu diau nay khöng? How many of you understood what I just said?

For those of you who didn't understand, how does it make you feel? We are 3 girls who come from three different families, but we all have something in common: our families struggle because of a language barrier. Australia prides itself on being one of the most culturally diverse communities in the world.

But do we really support all people who are from different cultures? Our most recent example is the census form. There are directions for online interpreting in only around 8% of languages spoken in Australia.

However, even this isn't effective because the majority of people who speak a different language aren't comfortable with devices that help with translating or cannot drive to a support hub. It isn't fair for those to get fined up to $3,000 for something they can't do. So what's the solution?

We should advertise for in-person translators that are more accessible to the local community. That way, the neighbourhood can easily get help with translation needs. This change will ensure that language will less likely be a barrier between interactions with others.

Everyone deserves to understand and be understood.