Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

My electorate of Fisher has benefited significantly from the coalition government's Stronger Communities Program. The program has been a huge success in delivering on the coalition's commitment to supporting social benefits in communities all over Australia. Just in rounds 2 and 3 in my electorate, the program has funded 45 separate community projects, with grants of between $2,600 and $20,000. As the minister well knows, sporting clubs can be a particularly valuable way of bringing the community together. Young people, parents, volunteers and older-life members—sporting clubs often attract local residents from all walks of life in a common cause.

For many people a sports club provides the heart of their social activities. As such, sporting clubs in Fisher have benefitted especially from previous rounds of the Stronger Communities Program. Caloundra Junior Rugby Union Club received $6,000 towards a PA system, while the Caloundra City Boxing received $5,000 support for new equipment. Ten thousand dollars went to Kawana Park Junior Australian Football Club for new undercover areas, and Caloundra Mallet Sports Club got $4,000 to renovate their clubhouse. Maleny District Sports and Recreation Club won a grant of $12,000 to improve their fencing, while Kawana Waters Swimming Club, Maleny Golf Club, Caloundra Cricket Club, Suncoast Hinterland BMX Club and Outrigger Caloundra Canoe Club have also benefitted from grants. Would the minister please outline for the House what benefits sporting clubs in Australia can expect to see from round 4 of the Stronger Communities Program?

Personally, one of the communities that has been most important in my own life is surf lifesaving, in particular the club where I'm a patrol captain, Alexandra Headland. Surf clubs engender the spirit of volunteerism. They provide young people with important life skills and make beaches safer for all of us. In Fisher, our surf clubs have also been beneficiaries of the Stronger Communities Program. Kawana Waters Surf Life Saving Club received $10,000 for a new IRB and an upgrade to their patrol shed, while Surf Life Saving Queensland in Mooloolaba got $5,000 for equipment for their little nippers challenged youth program. Alongside the surf clubs, our coast guard volunteers do a tremendous amount to keep our boaties safe. The Australian Volunteer Coast Guard in Caloundra have a new trailer for a search and rescue vessel as a result of the Stronger Communities Program. Would the minister please outline for the House how surf clubs, our local coastguards and other community organisations throughout Australia will be able to get involved and apply for a grant under round 4 of this program?

A strong community depends on its volunteers, Mr Deputy Speaker Gee, as you well know. It depends on the people who are willing to give up their time to help those less fortunate than themselves, to provide much needed facilities or to preserve a community's heritage. In Fisher, many of these groups have also received grants under the Stronger Communities Program. Caloundra Woodworking Club, which brings local seniors together to socialise and work with their hands, has received two grants under this program to replace an important lathe and refurbish its kitchen facilities. Our vital Rotary clubs in Alexandra Headland, Maleny and Caloundra got more than $30,000 worth of support in total for new storage, storage containers and a cover for a netball court. The CCSA Hall, a much loved local landmark in Caloundra, was provided with the $5,000 it needed to get curtains to keep the midsummer Queensland sun off the young dancers who use that space. Peachester Community Hall will be better able to preserve our local heritage with their new archive room, supported by a $15,000 grant, while, nearby, the Maleny Cultural & Historical Society received $2,600 towards the refurbishment of Lawley House. Celebrate Glasshouse Country upgraded their park facilities. Diggers Rest in Beerwah, which operates a 22-acre place of respite for former and currently serving members of the ADF, used its grant of $2,500 towards the construction of a children's playground. Minister, would you update the chamber about how round 4 of the Stronger Communities Program will work and benefit all Australians?

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