Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to remember both the life and career of Mrs Andrea West, who preceded me as a coalition member of parliament in this place from 1996 to 1998. Andrea West will be remembered by many people here as an incredibly diligent, focused and committed woman. She was also a person who brought her teaching experience, which is often a very rare thing in this place, to the federal parliament. Andrea and I worked together in 2001 and I have remarkable memories of working together in the Redlands area. I only wish that I had been able to see more of Andrea’s time in the parliament in those two years and her successful campaign directed by her father, Bill.

Many on my side will remember that Andrea worked as part of the class of ‘96, with the incoming Howard government, to fight one of the toughest battles of all—to sell a new tax to a local community. Many would say that the battle to convince people of the merits of the GST was something that Andrea really took to heart and that it may have had something to do with the election results of 1998 in the seat of Bowman, which saw the Hon. Con Sciacca retake the seat. One thing is sure: Andrea always had a fantastic relationship with people on both sides of the chamber, in every corner of Bowman, groups like Zonta and Toastmasters as well as Con Sciacca and me. One thing that runs as a common thread through the seat of Bowman, even though its boundaries may have been reconfigured slightly, is that very close relationship between the people who have represented the area and between local members.

Redlands is a really special part of South-East Queensland. It sits with its own local jurisdiction. It takes its local representatives very much to heart and considers them as locals and part of a very tight community. The boundaries of the seat have moved very little and it gave Andrea the wonderful opportunity to represent this part of South-East Queensland. I remember she used to jump onto the ferries and make her way out to the populated North Stradbroke Island, which is the particular privilege of members of Bowman to do. When one is having a hard day one can always go there, sit at the Stradbroke Island Beach Hotel and gaze over to Moreton Island. Living at Wellington Point Andrea was really committed to work on the ground in that suburb, in Birkdale and Capalaba. Andrea was patron of a number of local groups and her family, her husband, Jeremy, and all of her children, lived, as I always say, in the nerve centre of Redlands and the seat of Bowman.

Andrea played a really consistent role even after she had lost that seat, and that is the mark of a good local member as well. Even having lost the seat she remained really active in and committed to the Liberal Party and made an enormous contribution to helping me run for that seat in 2001. I remember during that campaign that Con Sciacca said to me, ‘I wish you luck, son; I just hope it takes you more than once.’ I enjoyed sharing that with Andrea and all of my time working with her, as I know people on both sides of the chamber did. We offer our best wishes to her husband, Jeremy, and her children, Felicity, Anthony and Nicholas.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Indeed.