David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It has been nearly three months since the 47th Parliament rose, and in that time I have met Canberrans here at Parliament House, where a thousand people turned up to listen to Dr Mo talk about his experiences as an emergency doctor in Gaza, at town halls, roundtables, mobile offices and in the community. From every conversation, one message is clear: we need a parliament with courage, not caution. We need a parliament tackling the hard reform, not just chasing the headline. But in this place I'm concerned that urgency is lacking, that the big vision is missing. Canberrans aren't asking for miracles; we're asking for a government that matches the magnitude of the challenges with the strength of its response.

The first issue Canberrans raise again and again is housing, because, without a safe, affordable place to live, nothing else works for people. More than 3,100 Canberrans are languishing on the waiting list for public housing. That's not a waiting list; it's a warning sign. And, if we're not treating housing as a human right, what kind of society are we building? When it comes to urgency, you just have to look at the CSIRO Ginninderra site. This is well located, previously used land that has been sitting idle for a decade. We heard so much about federal and territory Labor working together on these sorts of issues, and, after three years, nothing. It's time to get on with this and other projects to make housing more affordable.

Just as urgent as the need for shelter is the need for a liveable planet. We're part of nature. We cannot lose sight of that. We are part of nature, and, if nature goes down, we are going down with her. The very first act of the Albanese government was to approve the expansion of the biggest fossil-fuel project in this country. Had they taken that to the election, in places like Bean, where they won by 350 votes, this could have been a very different story. We need better from our elected representatives.

The parliament has an opportunity to deliver reform that measures up to the scale of the crisis. Just look at what's happening in South Australia. We can start with an ambitious 75 per cent floor on our 2035 emissions reduction target, and Canberrans know that climate action is good economics. In all of this is an opportunity when it comes to electrification and the democratisation of an energy system, to actually make it work for households, to save thousands of dollars every year if we get it right. What we need is political courage. There are the numbers in this parliament to do exactly that.

On health, Canberrans have very high hopes from the very welcome announcements from the Labor government about affordable and accessible health care. We have the lowest bulk-billing rate in the country. It's cheaper to drive to Goulburn to get an MRI if you live in the ACT. That's disgraceful, and this parliament is the opportunity to fix that. The promised nine out of ten GP visits to be bulk-billed has to apply to people living in the ACT.

Good health depends on good government, and Canberrans know the value of our democracy, but when we have whistleblowers like Richard Boyle being prosecuted and the NAC failing to hold one single public hearing, public confidence is eroded. We have to get on with the job of establishing a whistleblower protection authority and reforming the NAC so that there is confidence in our institutions. Canberrans also deserve fair representation in this chamber. Territory rights should be protected, and additional senators for the territories should be part of Labor's agenda this term.

Gambling advertising is where community good butts up against vested interests. Almost two years from the landmark Murphy report, silence. That's not good enough from a Labor government that has such a whopping majority. Use your political capital for something. Leave a legacy when it comes to gambling advertising in this country, where you have more people under the age of 18 betting than playing basketball. That's the country we live in. Let's change that.

On AI, we've got to be clear-eyed about productivity gains but also the real risks to jobs, privacy and democracy. We have an opportunity to harness the potential of AI, but we have to safeguard against these risks. These are all things that this government can and should do, and at every turn I will be pushing the government for more ambition and putting forward good ideas from the people I represent.