Portfolio — 28 August 2026

The dominant thread across the Kalkallo window is the Member for Kalkallo, Ms Spence, connecting district community life with substantive law reform — moving between local recognition in the Assembly and a significant contribution to a family violence and coercive control bill that carries direct consequences for victim-survivors across Victoria.

Ms Spence spoke in support of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Family Violence, Coercive Control, Good Character, Risk Assessment and Other Matters) Bill 2026, framing the legislation as a direct response to victim-survivors' needs [TA-260826-vichns-9f81c0b98fb9:s073]. The bill's scope is substantial: it abolishes good character as a mitigating factor in sentencing across all offences, removing the burden on victim-survivors of hearing their offenders' character championed in court [TA-260826-vichns-9f81c0b98fb9:s073].

It criminalises coercive control as a standalone offence, introduces victim-centred processes for extending family violence intervention orders, enables personal safety intervention orders against adults engaging in grooming behaviours, and permits electronic signatures for intervention order documents [TA-260826-vichns-9f81c0b98fb9:s073]. The bill also introduces family violence as a protected attribute against discrimination — a structural recognition of family violence's place in anti-discrimination law.

Alongside that legislative contribution, Ms Spence used Assembly time to recognise Kalkallo district community achievement. She acknowledged the Coles Craigieburn Central team's DIY Big Freeze FightMND fundraiser, which raised more than $5,000 with support from multiple tenants [TA-260730-vichns-06b70b591935:s032], and thanked four work experience students — Ahsen Uslu, Ayor Luk, Asma Al Noman and Jacob Peck — describing them as a reminder that the future is bright [TA-260730-vichns-06b70b591935:s033].

She also congratulated Wayi School's School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support Award winners from term 3, noting the specialist school's framework supports students to develop voice, choice and independence [TA-260813-vichns-ff06af361824:s029].

The Assembly records also show Ms Spence presenting a petition bearing 2,879 signatures on the proposed wallan wallan Regional Park — a 3,000 hectare parkland in the upper reaches of the Merri Creek. The petition called on the Government to commit to establishing and adequately funding the park, to complete research studies addressing knowledge gaps, and to include priority projects in the 2026–27 State Budget [TA-260811-vichns-559d5117f54a:s023].

Petitioners cited the State Government's concurrent pursuit of housing and industrial projects in the region as context for the urgency of their request. The park's identified functions span threatened wildlife and migratory bird habitat protection, shared cycling trails, and flood mitigation through water containment and treatment — a multi-function environmental case sitting directly against the district's growth pressures.