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

I move:

That the member for Longman be elected Deputy Speaker of this House.

The make-up of the Australian parliament should be a microcosm of the broader Australian community. Only 1,276 people have ever served in this place. Since 1901, there have been people of different colours, ethnicities and backgrounds. There's a common misconception that the vast bulk of people who have served and continue to serve here are former professionals—doctors, lawyers, bankers and the like. The member for Longman does not fit that mould. The member for Longman does not have a series of letters after his name like many people in this place. He never went to university. In fact, he left Dakabin State High School at age 15 with the intention of starting a motor mechanics apprenticeship. But the member for Longman has much more than a degree or two to his name.

He's a man of the utmost integrity. He is a man of principle and honour. He is a man that has deep roots within the community that he serves. The member for Longman would make a fine deputy speaker. You cannot learn the concept of integrity, honour and loyalty. These are qualities that one possesses or strives to possess, or they don't. The member for Longman, from humble beginnings, worked as a petrol station attendant. He then moved into retail, selling power tools and equipment, and then into household appliances. He then went on to own his own Good Guys franchise in Morayfield and later to combine his love for business and his passion for golf when he owned and operated his own Drummond Golf franchise shops.

I dare say that the member for Longman has employed more people than have many of us in this chamber put together. He deeply understands the trials and tribulations of what it is like to try and run a profitable business in this country, with its ever-increasing and crushing industrial relations complexities and other government red tape. When the member for Longman speaks, his coalition colleagues listen. He is a wealth of knowledge on small business and industrial relations.

At the church service this morning, the Vicar-General of the Catholic Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, the Very Reverend Richard Thompson, preached in his sermon about the importance of listening as leaders. As you would know, Mr Speaker, the Deputy Speaker does a lot of listening. It is somewhat curious, therefore, that the tradition calls these roles 'the Speaker' and 'the Deputy Speaker', for they involve a lot more listening than they do speaking, but this is where the member for Longman's qualities would shine through.

Since being elected in 2019, the member for Longman has served with integrity on key parliamentary committees and is already a valued member of the Speaker's panel. He's proven himself to be a fair, respectful and impartial member, able to work across the aisle. I have no doubt he will keep the chamber in good order in your absence, Mr Speaker. As a family man with strong ties to faith and community, he brings a real sense of compassion to his work and is always focused on doing what's right for the people he serves. His values and sense of personal responsibility inform everything he does, including his deep respect for this institution as the bulwark of our democracy.

The member for Longman is humble, hardworking, passionate, consistent and deeply respected across this chamber. The member for Longman brings real-world perspective to this role. As someone who speaks plainly, listens carefully and treats others with decency, he will approach the Deputy Speaker's chair with the same calm, measured approach that has defined his service to date and would complement the fine work that you have done, Mr Speaker. In a chamber that needs more common sense and civility, the member for Longman is the right man at the right time and—if you'll pardon the pun—he is a good man.

It is with great confidence and deep respect that I nominate the member for Longman to serve as the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.

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