Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last Saturday night, 24 May, I along with my wife, Vicki, attended on behalf of the Prime Minister the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Italian-Australian welfare organisation known as Co.As.It. The gala ball, which recognised the Co.As.It volunteers in New South Wales, was held at the Sydney Convention Centre. The occasion was also used to raise funds for the Italian Bilingual School. As part of the event, a publication was produced which documented the resettlement journey of Italians since the arrival of the first Italians to New South Wales. The pictures and the stories told could be the same for the history of migration by Italians to all parts of Australia, including my own home state of South Australia. In fact, they would be very similar to the stories of the many other migrants who came to Australia from all parts of the world.

Today some 800,000 Australians are of Italian heritage, and I understand that around 200,000 of them were actually born in Italy. As we approach the national day of Italy on 2 June, when many Australian Italians will celebrate their Italian heritage, it is pertinent we also recognise the significant contribution Australian Italians have made to Australia’s development and to our way of life. Whether it be in food, music, the arts, architecture, building and construction, engineering, the sciences, agriculture, medicine, law or politics—or any other profession, for that matter—Italian migrants have made a notable contribution to our country and to our culture.

Of course, many of the first-generation arrivals here have passed away or are now elderly. Where in earlier days they had the strength and resilience to forge a new life for themselves and their future generations in a new land, today they are in need of the aged-care services that all older Australians are in need of. Co.As.It is responding to their needs by providing a range of services to older Australians, regardless of their ancestry, in many parts of Australia. In fact, only last Tuesday I attended another Co.As.It function in Adelaide where local volunteers were also recognised.

The Italian Bilingual School has a special role in the provision of those services, because language can often be a major barrier in both the provision of services and maintaining family relationships between older and younger generations. Interestingly, last Thursday the member for Hindmarsh, Mr Steve Georganas, and I met with a delegation from Co.As.It to discuss the needs of older Australians and how services for older Australians of non-English-speaking backgrounds might be improved. An issue raised was that one of the key impediments to the provision of services is language.

I take this opportunity to thank Co.As.It for their initiatives in responding to the needs of older Australians who today need our support. I also congratulate Lorenzo Fazzini and the New South Wales Co.As.It branch for their bilingual school program and for their 40 years of service to the wider Australian community.