Peter Hendy (Eden-Monaro, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One of the most pleasing aspects of my role as a representative of the people of Eden-Monaro is to attend citizenship ceremonies. I place a very high priority on attending these very special events. I recently attended two such events in my electorate of Eden-Monaro, in Bega and Queanbeyan. On 7 April I was honoured to join Mayor Michael Britten in officiating as eight of our newest Australians living locally in the Bega Valley Shire became citizens. I passed on a message from the minister that reminded those present that 'people of all backgrounds and religions strengthen our country, and only together, united, will our future be as strong as our present and past.'

On 30 April, I joined Queanbeyan Mayor Tim Overall and Deputy Mayor Peter Bray in officiating at a truly remarkable ceremony. The Queanbeyan ceremony welcomed 59 people, from an extraordinary 22 countries. This strikes me as an 'only in Australia' moment. These new citizens become part of our great multicultural experiment that is the envy of the world. They become our teachers and technicians, our builders and barristers, our mechanics and musicians. They become our neighbours and our community leaders. They become us. Australian citizenship confers on them great benefits; but equally it confers rights and obligations. I thank the individuals and families in Bega and Queanbeyan for taking the important step of becoming Australian citizens.