Josh Burns (Macnamara, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Macnamara is a proudly diverse and wonderful place. Sitting in the heart of Macnamara is the Victorian Pride Centre. Sitting in the heart of the Victorian Pride Centre is JOY Media, which is Australia's premier community LGBTIQA+ radio station. It was founded in 1993 amidst the AIDS crisis, with its original purpose of bringing together an isolated community through connection and inclusion. It amplifies the incredible voices of the LGBTIQ community both inside and around Macnamara.

It also brings people across the political divide. I've co-hosted shows on JOYwith the member for Goldstein, for a brief period the other member for Goldstein and now the original member for Goldstein. There's Senator Smith and, of course, many other crossbenchers as well. It is an outstanding organisation, and we were proud to support it with a $250,000 election commitment to ensure that JOY Media can thrive, survive and expand its reach and network so people can hear the voices, the views and the good and welcoming nature of the LGBTI community. That grant process is underway, and I'm pleased to report good progress on it. We will fulfil that election commitment as per we set out in the election. I want to say to all the team at JOY Media that we are proud to support you. We look forward to it growing, and we look forward to JOY Media entering into the next chapter.

I also want to take this opportunity to congratulate the parliament on the passing of the Fair Work Amendment (Baby Priya's) Bill. This is a bill that will mean a lot to families. We are ensuring that any family that has a stillborn child or a child that passes away, tragically, after birth, is still able to take paid parental leave. I think that some of the contributions across the chamber have really been outstanding, on all sides of politics, and I congratulate the parliament for passing this.

I do think it's worth mentioning the fact that, as is often the case, these sorts of sensitive topics have been hijacked by people with their own agenda. They're putting misinformation and, frankly, damaging and hurtful information into these sorts of bills. The four Liberal members who decided to make this about something that it's not—to make it about late-term abortion—were really hurtful. It was really hurtful to those families who are in those positions and hurtful to those people who actually and devastatingly need this bill, and it also is a very bad reflection on the way in which this debate is often warped for the interests of people who have their own agendas. So I just want to say that those views and those members should really reflect on that moment of raising those issues. I've seen some of the ways in which this debate becomes toxic and very personal, and I just want to say that, for the members who did the right thing, thank you.