Tom Venning (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

This week, the Senate voted in favour of an inquiry into regional airport security fees. The cost of screening has made regional air travel prohibitively expensive. While travellers from capital cities pay no more than a dollar, regional passengers bear a cost of more than $50 in my electorate. Rex no longer services Whyalla for this very reason. It is simply not viable. It was disappointing that Labor, including Labor's duty senator for Grey, Senator Grogan, voted against the inquiry. Regional Australians deserve equal access to air travel, and I encourage the government to bring in a national screening levy.

I've been contacted by the Australian Breastfeeding Association councillor and Yorke Peninsula farmer Sarah Clifford, who has brought to my attention the wonderful work her ABA group in Kadina is doing. With groups like this in Kadina, Clare, Crystal Brook, Whyalla, Port Lincoln and Breastfeeding Everywhere venues in Port Augusta and as far north as Roxby Downs, this group is doing amazing work to support mothers. But this organisation needs assistance, because funding for ABA's national Breastfeeding Helpline and live chat services expires in 2026. Today I'd like to show my support for the ABA and the proposal it has submitted to the Australian government for a four-year, $14.8 million investment. I call on Mark Butler, the Minister for Health and Ageing, to grant full funding to ABA's proposal.

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