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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 2 Hansard (25 February) . . Page.. 359 ..

MRS LITTLEWOOD (11.02): Mr Speaker, I seek leave to make my inaugural speech.

Leave granted.

MR SPEAKER: Before I call Mrs Littlewood, I wish to remind members that this is Mrs Littlewood's inaugural speech, and it is traditional that it be heard in silence.

MRS LITTLEWOOD: Mr Speaker, as we are all aware, my election to this place came about through the resignation of the former Deputy Chief Minister, Tony De Domenico. While Tony would be the first to acknowledge his petite stature, his big approach to life will ensure that he will be remembered in this place. Love Tony or hate him, his effervescent personality will be missed. I wish Tony well in his new venture, and I acknowledge the contributions he made to this place. I would like to thank the Chief Minister for not having mentioned Tony prior to this, so that I could have the first bite of the apple.

It would be remiss of me not to acknowledge other candidates involved in the 1995 election and the recent countback. While having opponents is not easy, as I think you will all agree, it is a healthy sign for democracy when the community has a variety of people from whom to choose. It does take courage to place yourself in the public eye, knowing that any mistake will be pounced on. It is easy to criticise people in politics; but there are not too many people who are prepared to have a go themselves. So, to my fellow candidates I say, "Thank you for putting yourselves forward, and I hope that you will continue to be active in our community".

In particular, I would like to mention Brian Lowe, who, in fact, during the election, was my sanity check. I say thanks, too, for the tireless hours put in by party members who, election after election, are always there. Without their dedication and their unselfishness, the party just would not function. After all, the party is its members. Despite perceptions of the community of politics and the people involved, I think it fair to say that most of my good friends are people I have met through politics. Some of them are here today. They are people who have encouraged me and supported me. I think, quite often, they had more faith in me than I had in myself. I thank them for that.

Being here today is a far cry from the plans I had made as I sat quietly at Christmas contemplating 1997. I had intended to wind down from my normal hectic pace. Little did I realise what fate had in store. However, I must say that I am pleased to be here. I am pleased, because I look forward to serving the people of Brindabella - a role which is an honour and also makes me feel very humble.

My journey to this place has been an interesting one, and one which bears the imprint of a number of people. In some ways, it is interesting that I am here as a Liberal, given one side of my antecedents. I am the great-granddaughter of an active New South Wales Trades and Labour Council member and the granddaughter of a quarryman. With this background, it is obvious that I am not what my learned colleagues opposite so often paint all Liberals to be, namely, silvertails and the ruling elite.

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