Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Action, Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I wish to raise a grievance in relation to the treatment of a beautiful young family on the Mornington Peninsula by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. Secondly, I wish to raise a grievance about the treatment of another family in a bureaucratic nightmare involving the Victorian government. Thirdly, in a more positive step forward, I wish to help a family who have suffered a very sad loss. All of these come together under the theme of protecting families on the Peninsula.

Let me begin with the case of Helen Coates and Stuart Kruse. Helen and Stuart are Australian citizens and have spent 10 years in the United Kingdom. A year ago they adopted a beautiful five-year-old Rwandan girl called Isimbi. They brought her home to Australia to live at Mount Martha. I know Isimbi because she was in the ballet class for five-year-olds of my daughter Poppy. I did not know there was an issue until one day my five-year-old came home and was drawing a picture. She wrote ‘Love Poppy’ on it and I asked her what it was about. She said that it was for Isimbi. I said, ‘What has happened?’ and she said that they took Isimbi away. This beautiful Rwandan girl, who had obviously been through traumatic circumstances at home in Rwanda and who had been adopted by Helen and Stuart—a wonderful Australian couple who had given her hope and a sense of future—had been, with her father, deported.

Because the adoption process is still under way in the UK, the family had to apply for a temporary 12-month visa for Isimbi to enter Australia. That expired in October and in order for Mr Kruse to finish his Australian work contract and for the family to spend Christmas with their Australian relatives, they returned briefly to London to apply for a further three-month visa for Isimbi. That was refused by Immigration officials who deemed Isimbi to be an unacceptable immigration risk at age five. Mr Kruse was forced to abandon his work contract, Isimbi was prevented from completing her preschool year and her life in ballet, and it was quite a sad class. I know this because I discovered the problem from my five-year-old daughter Poppy, who was drawing pictures to send in cards to Isimbi. The whole class could not understand what had happened to one of their friends.

The family were separated while Helen Coates returned to Mount Martha to pack up their home. The family will now be forced to spend Christmas in London, away from their extended family and friends. On behalf of Helen Coates, Stuart Kruse and Isimbi, I wrote to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen. We learned from Mr Kruse late last week that the family had received a formal apology from the immigration department and had been offered a visa for Isimbi. However, it is now too late for the family to change its plans. What we have seen is a ridiculous example of bureaucracy, with real human consequences, without ministerial oversight. It has separated a family and brought an injustice to a young girl whose life has been difficult but who has found joy and a home with her adopted parents.

The family is understandably furious and Helen and Stuart want an investigation into how this decision could have been made in the first place. I will again be approaching Minister Bowen. It is not a promising start to his administration that these things are occurring on his watch. I would like the minister to speak with the family, directly and personally. I would like him to call them—we will provide the details—firstly, to apologise but, secondly, to explore rapid solutions. This is a fine Australian family, with an adopted five-year-old, with everything in order. This family has been treated roughly, rudely and badly and great distress has been caused within the community of Mount Martha generally and most specifically within the family of Helen Coates, Stuart Kruse and Isimbi. I will be writing to the minister. I hope that he will have the decency to speak with the family directly.

The second grievance I have in relation to the protection of peninsula families concerns the bushfire planning permit process. Michael and Leigh-ann Stokan of Rye have found themselves caught in a bureaucratic nightmare, and it shows no signs whatsoever of ending. They want to build a home in Rye on a block of land adjacent to the freeway reserve owned by the Mornington Peninsula Council and VicRoads—nothing unusual or untoward in that. They applied for a planning permit but were told they had to get a CFA report first. To this point in time, nothing unusual. The CFA then told them that the freeway reserve, owned by the council and by VicRoads, posed a wildfire threat to their property and had to be cleared. This is a reserve owned by a state instrumentality and a municipal authority, and the property had to be cleared. So the freeway reserve has not been cleared or maintained to any specific standard. The couple were then told they would have to pay up to $5,000 to get a bushfire consultant to write a report about the freeway reserve. They were told that even if they did hire a consultant there was no guarantee that they would get their planning permit. The council has agreed to talk to VicRoads about the condition of the freeway reserve but has refused to say how long this will take or what the outcome will be.

I myself have spoken with an officer of the council, who is doing a very decent job but who is caught in a bureaucratic bind without leadership from the state. Every day that passes is costing the Stokans significant additional funds. Meanwhile, the council continues to issue fire abatement notices to residents warning that they are required to keep their own properties clear of vegetation, whilst the municipal land and the state owned land is not in a fit state, is not considered to be acceptable and is considered to be a fire risk. We in our office know of at least three other residents going through a similar battle—what you might call a bureaucratic nightmare—with the state authorities due to their proximity to state and council owned land.

I call on the council, for whom I have great respect—I think the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council is one of the finest municipal authorities in Australia—to meet with state officials, and I ask the Premier to intervene to ensure that the ridiculous situation of private citizens being caught in a bureaucratic nightmare because of a dispute between two levels of government is resolved.

The third local family issue that I wish to raise this evening is in relation to Heath Langdale. The Westernport Warriors is a Hastings based football team. I know it well. It is aimed at enhancing the lives of people experiencing disadvantage, unemployment, homelessness, mental illness, disability, addiction, substance abuse and social and economic hardship. All of these elements combined make the catchment for the Westernport Warriors. The Warriors were formed in 2005 by Andrew Brady, who was previously a local policeman. He was helped by Peter Edhouse and Harry Witfield and many other local supporters.

This year the team had tremendous success and won the premiership. The team dedicated its premiership to the memory of its former captain, Heath Langdale, whom I knew. Heath collapsed and died suddenly at training in February. The coroner could find no reason for death, but a condition called long QT syndrome is suspected. I have dealt with another family recently that has had the tragic loss of a young boy, about 20 years of age, who was fit and healthy and who suddenly passed in the night in a similar circumstance.

Long QT syndrome is caused by a fault in the electrical system of the heart. It makes the heart develop arrhythmia, which means that it beats too fast and the electrical impulses can simply collapse. It is a common cause of sudden death in young people, but it is not well understood and it is difficult to detect. I would urge more generally the need for greater research on a bipartisan basis. I think it is important that we support this.

Heath left behind a partner, Cassie, and two beautiful young children. To honour his memory we are working with the Westernport Warriors to initiate an annual award in Heath’s name. I would be privileged to donate that award. It will be an encouragement award for the player who has put in the best effort over the season and it will be in the form of a trophy for the player, plus a shield engraved with each player’s name that will be kept at the club.

I am honoured to be able to recognise Heath. He was a very good member of our community. To Cassie and your family: I am sorry that you have lost such a good man, but he made a big difference and he mattered. (Time expired)