Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Gold Coast's many community organisations make an invaluable contribution to our city. Staffed predominantly by volunteers, they make up the fabric of our community, and they bring together Gold Coasters from all walks of life.

I was so pleased, therefore, to be able to support a number of these groups under the coalition government's Stronger Communities program and, through this program, to be able to deliver essential funding to help boost their capabilities and to support the invaluable activities they undertake across the Gold Coast.

I particularly want to take this opportunity to thank Nick Scott and Lucy Cole, who joined with me on the Moncrieff Stronger Communities program committee. Alongside me, they helped to identify and assess the various applications that came through from the community groups and, of course, the all-important volunteers that comprise these community groups. Both Nick and Lucy are incredibly busy people, and I was very grateful that they were so generous with their time in relation to this committee.

The Moncrieff Stronger Communities Program has supported surf clubs, P&Cs, sporting clubs and community groups. If we take one example, the Southport Surf Life Saving Club—one of the oldest surf clubs in my electorate—was successful in receiving a Stronger Communities grant of some $16,624. It means the club can now finally renovate the old toilet and amenities block and provide better facilities for the nippers. It was great to visit the club and hear first hand from the club's president, Bill Gordon-Thomson, about how important this facility is going to be for the club.

I also took the chance to drop in to the Gold Coast Bridge Club during one of their very busy sessions and present club president Di Hodges with a cheque for $5,114 to upgrade their IT and educational resources. The club has been teaching people to play bridge and has been bringing locals together for over 50 years. I am proud the funding will help them to engage in the next generation of bridge players. At the other end of my electorate, the Carrara Community Centre received $8,666 to refurbish the fantastic local facility. I was pleased recently to hold my annual Moncrieff Community Awards at the centre. I would encourage anyone looking for a great venue to consider those facilities.

Speaking of great facilities, I was pleased that we were also able to support the Gold Coast's fantastic Police-Citizens Youth Club. That was the Gold Coast PCYC at Broadbeach Waters. I met with Sergeant Linda Baade about how the Turnbull coalition government's $20,000 grant will help them. It is a great job. I was pleased as well that we were able to support Surfers Paradise, Northcliffe and Broadbeach clubs with projects including the purchase of an all-terrain vehicle and new equipment for a storage facility at Broadbeach. These are great examples of local clubs succeeding because of this program.