Hansard debates

  Mr RAMSAY (Western Victoria) -- President, I congratulate  you on reaching the
high office of President  in this 57th Parliament. As  I stand to speak  for the
first  time  in  this  chamber  today I  am more  than  ever  conscious  of  the
responsibility and  honour that the people  of western Victoria have bestowed on
me, a responsibility and honour which I take very seriously.

All my life I have worked in rural and regional communities with and for country
people.  I am proud to  say  that my family history is  a story of many men  and
women  who have played an important leadership role  in their local communities.
The  church, politics, agriculture  and  the towns  and  communities of  western
Victoria have all been symbols of the life travels of my family.
My great-great-grandfather, the Reverend Andrew Ramsay, arrived from Scotland on
4 January  1847,  settling in Melbourne. In 1850, with three other ministers, he
formed the Synod of the United Presbyterian Church of Victoria. He was the first
minister at Port Phillip  of  the  United Succession and helped build St Enoch's
Church in Collins Street.
While the church played an important role  in the values of my family, it was my
great-grandfather,  Robert  Ramsay, who  forged  a  career in  politics.  He was
elected to the Legislative Assembly of the Victorian Parliament in 1870.

Over a long  parliamentary career he served  as Postmaster-General and  Minister
for  Education. For  a short  time in  1880 he  also served  as Chief Secretary.
History tells us that in this role one of his  most celebrated  achievements was
dispatching resources to capture the Kelly bushranger gang.
My  grandfather, Major Robert  Ramsay,  served in World  War  II before becoming
active in local government, most notably as mayor of Colac Shire over 

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successive terms.  He also served on  the Graziers Federal Council  of Australia
from 1939 to 1942 and played an important role with Sir William  Gunn in shaping
the wool industry at that time.
Here we have a mixture of three generations involved in religion,  politics  and
agripolitics, and a love of the land that was to shape my life.
My father, Andrew Ramsay, tragically lost  his life to cancer at  a young age. I
know  how proud he would have been to see me standing here today, advocating the
values that have been  passed  down through the generations -- the importance of
hard work, respect, fairness and equality  of  opportunity  -- all of this mixed
with the principles of liberalism and a passion for the land and its people.

Throughout my life I have been encouraged to speak out  for what I believe in --
that  so-called  political correctness  should  not sway  the  passion  of one's
convictions. I am  passionate  about speaking  out  for  the people  of  western
Victoria.  As  a third generation farmer from Birregurra, I learned from a young
age the  importance of standing up for  my community, whether it be in the local
kindergarten, school, the Country Fire Authority, the farming community or small
business. That work  continued  on behalf of  many rural communities  throughout
Victoria  when I served for four years as president  of  the  Victorian  Farmers
Federation.
There were many challenges through  that  time,  supporting  communities through
droughts,   floods  and bushfires, advocating for investment  in  research   and
development, fighting  for tax reforms, improving  sea freight lanes  to improve
export competitiveness, to name but a few.

I also fought  for sensible environmental  policies  which aimed to  strike  the
right balance in the preservation of our environment.
The region of  Western Victoria is rich and  diverse. It spans all the  way from
the western  suburbs of Melbourne  to  the South Australian  border. It includes
large  regional cities like  Geelong, Ballarat and Warrnambool, and many smaller
cities and  towns like  Colac, Ararat  and Mortlake, to name but a few.  Western
Victoria comprises the  iconic Great Ocean  Road  coastline, rich farmlands  and
magnificent national parks.
Agriculture,  manufacturing, tourism  and  small business  underpin the economic
success  of  this  region,  and so  too  innovation,  technology  and  education
services. It is also one of the country's most important food-producing regions.
Much of  our  produce -- dairy, wool,  beef and wheat -- is  exported around the
world.

Whether people live in large cities or  small  towns like the one I grew up  in,
job security, health, education, communications, public transport, better  roads
and  safety  are vital. Over the past 11 years  critical  services  in  regional
Victoria  have suffered, coupled  with  a failure to  make  proper investment in
infrastructure -- all of this while encouraging population growth at a rate that
is now  causing real  concern. Regional Victoria was not only crying out for big
improvements in basic  services,  it was looking  for  a government  that  could
provide  a vision -- a vision that would enrich our regional communities with an
improved sense of worth, security and hope.
It is clear that in 2010 the people of Victoria wanted change. But with a change
of government comes great responsibility. It is my solid commitment to fight for
all country communities throughout western Victoria.
Decentralisation of services is absolutely critical.

Business  and  industry must have  the  appropriate motivation  to  move country
communities and to provide jobs and opportunities.  Just as important is  proper
planning  to  ensure that  we  can  provide  affordable  housing,  safeguard our
environment and protect our food-producing regions.
I make  the commitment  to the  Parliament today that I will work tirelessly for
the  people  whom  I   represent  and,  in  doing   so,  with  no  parliamentary
representative from  the coalition, Ballarat  will become a particular  focus of
mine.
I take this opportunity to thank those who have been instrumental in my election
as  a member  of Parliament.  Thank you  to the many hardworking members  of the
Liberal Party  for their  support and  belief in  me. I  thank in particular the
Premier, Ted  Baillieu, the Liberal Party  president, David Kemp,  and the state
director, Tony Nutt.

I would also like to  acknowledge my  predecessor, John Vogels. I wanted to call
him honourable, but he did not want me to; however, I will, because I find him a
very honourable person. John was widely respected  for his work in  representing
the region.  He had  a great  ability to  communicate with  all sections  of the
community; he was a willing listener and a strong advocate for western Victoria.
John's political life has been filled with twists and turns: two  seats he  held
were abolished, and he retired  just  prior  to  the coalition being returned to
power. John says  he has no  regrets and to  me that is the measure of a man who
says it how it is.

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I also look forward to working alongside the other members of the coalition team
in  Western  Victoria  Region  --  David  Koch and David O'Brien -- and  working
constructively and respectfully with all members of this house to deliver better
government  and  improved services.  While  many  people have  helped  me  on my
political  journey, I  would  especially like to  thank  the Honourable Dick  de
Fegely, the Honourable Ian Smith, David Harris and Andrew Gubbins.
To  my immediate  family --  my mother, Gillian,  who has  been a  guiding light
through all of  my  life;  my stepfather, Geoff; my brother, Michael; my sister,
Serena; and my wonderful children, Nicola,  Tiffany  and Andrew -- thank you. My
father remains my great inspiration. Thank you to my partner Sarah, who has been
a rock of Gibraltar during my campaign and a wise counsel during  the good times
and the tough times.

I thank members of this house for  allowing me to express my pride and gratitude
today. It is with a great sense of duty and  honour that I embark on  my service
to the Victorian Parliament and to the people of Western Victoria Region.
Debate adjourned on motion of Mr O'DONOHUE (Eastern Victoria).
Debate adjourned until next day.