Paul Scarr (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Before I begin with my prepared remarks, I would like to compliment Senator Tyrrell on that fine contribution. I think all fair minded people in Australia would welcome that contribution.

I congratulate the National Servicemen's Association of Australia (Queensland) Inc.; its president, Tony Stevenson OAM; all of the members of the executive; and their wonderful patron Angela Owen, former Brisbane City councillor, for the unveiling of a memorial on 14 March 2026 to 20-year-old Queenslanders who were called up by birthday ballot under the 1965 to 1972 National Service Scheme and passed away in Australia while undertaking this service obligation.

The important thing about this memorial is that these national servicemen are not commemorated anywhere else. They were called up to do their duty under the birthday ballot, and they passed away whilst in service in Australia, but before this plaque was unveiled their names were not commemorated anywhere in Australia. That gaping hole in the commemoration of those who have met their service obligations in our armed forces has now been filled with the unveiling of this plaque by the Governor of Queensland, Her Excellency Dr Jeannette Young, on 14 March 2026 at the Wacol national servicemen's precinct in my home state of Queensland. I do recommend to all Queenslanders that they visit the Wacol national servicemen's precinct, which has some wonderful, engaging displays and has some very moving memorials.

I want to place on the record of this place the names of those 20-year-old Queenslanders who are commemorated on that plaque. I'm going to put these names up on my website so that former national servicemen and their families from across Australia can look up these names, because I've had inquiries from a number of former national servicemen across Australia who wanted to know the names on this list. I'm going to read those names now and put them on the record of this Senate, our home of Australia's democracy, for whom so many have given their lives: Peter Allan Amos, Paul Thomas Bailey, Gregory Ronald Baker, Ralph Norman Banks, Andrew Henry Barnes, Noel Thomas Beauchamp, Alfred Roelfin Beuker, Keith Bruce Burton, Henry John Cieslielski, Neville William Clifford, Brian Patrick Egan, Michael Joseph Gillespie, Robert John Giltrow, Brian William Gordon, William Francis Heinson, Peter Jacobus Hobbelen, Patrick Thomas Holden, Richard Drummond Jia, Christian Peter Jensen, Francis Patrick Joyce, Michael Krivoroutcho, Peter Barry Livingston, John Patrick McAlorum, Jabez Ernest Chester Merris, Bernard Thomas Persal, Donald Norman Ross, Laurence Thomas Schlecht, Richard Charles Barker Shaw, Bruce Thomas Strange, Harold Hugh Wagner, Gary Richard Whittle, Neville E Whyatt and Peter John Wruck.

I should note that three of those who passed away in Australia during their national service had actually completed tours in Vietnam. They had survived to return to Australia and, tragically, passed away through either drowning, sickness or motor-vehicle accident whilst in Australia. I should say that those national servicemen who passed who had served in Vietnam were Keith Burton, Michael Gillespie and William Heinson. I also note that the niece of Peter Wruck attended the unveiling of the plaque and laid a wreath. In discussions with her, she told me how much the unveiling of that plaque would have meant to her grandmother and to her mother—that is, Peter John Wruck's mother and sister. Congratulations to the National Servicemen's Association of Queensland, and thank you for making sure that those national servicemen from Queensland who were caught up in the birthday ballot during that period of time are now commemorated for all time.

There was an exciting piece of news this evening, and that is that the Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council's Doomadgee Future Planning Project won the Australian Urban Design Awards prize for strategic design and policy. This is an extraordinary achievement for Doomadgee, which is a township of approximately 1,800 people. It was formerly a mission and is a wonderful Indigenous community in my home state of Queensland. They previously won the Engagement Institute award in November last year for the community engagement around this project. That prize applied across Australia and New Zealand. Now Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council, with Circ Design and Meridian Urban, has won the Australian Urban Design Award. They were up against major projects across the whole of Australia—this township of 1,800 people in my home state of Queensland.

Doomadgee is a very remote Indigenous community of around 1,800 people. It's a former mission settlement. For decades it experienced fragmented planning and underinvestment. The Future Planning Project responded directly to that legacy, delivering an Indigenous led, place based framework aligning infrastructure, housing, economic development and cultural priorities into a single community driven vision. Projects are now moving into delivery, and they won the big prize tonight. Congratulations.

It was a real delight, prior to the awards ceremony, catching up with Troy Fraser, the Chief Executive Officer at Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council; Kelly Barclay, Community Services Manager at Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council; Toni Fraser, Youth and Economic Development Manager; Catherine Simpson, Director at Circ Design; and Upendo Kowero, Principal Consultant at Plan Locally, who previously worked at Meridian Urban. They were recognised with that award.

Speaking to them, I was so inspired by the acute community engagement they'd had. They made sure to hear the views of the elders, women and girls, workers. They even put on consultation events at 7 o'clock in the morning so workers could pop in, get breakfast and give their feedback. They made sure they timed the consultation so young children who were away at boarding school could actually participate in the design as well when they came back. This was a plan of the people of Doomadgee, by the people of Doomadgee, for the people of Doomadgee, and it won the award at this significant Australia-wide award ceremony tonight—an amazing achievement.

I say to the young people of Doomadgee: be inspired. Be truly inspired by this achievement. Be inspired that you've won this award against contestants around the whole of Australia. Doomadgee, a township of 1,800 people, has won this award. The young people of Doomadgee should be inspired by the fact that your community of Doomadgee is providing a strong example for all Australians.