Page 5496 - Week 14 - Thursday, 30 November 2017
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conversations within government, across the community and with our stakeholders. This is vital work that I spoke about in my first speech in this place. We simply have to shift the dial on our focus on health. We must make sure we do everything we can to make our community healthy.
I am also very excited about our work to encourage kids to walk and cycle to school. Next year, 2018, will be a big year for kids in Canberra as we roll out more and better programs to encourage kids to walk and cycle to school. And next year, in addition to light rail and an upgraded bus station in the Gungahlin town centre, there will also be a big change to Hibberson Street, becoming a shared zone prioritising pedestrians. I first started working on this in 2012 and I am so pleased to see change on the street coming in 2018.
This year we have seen parliaments around the country at their worst and, more recently, at their best. Parliaments remain important, and it is great to have an enlarged Assembly here in the ACT. The role of representative democracy is a fundamental part of the success of our community, as somewhat old-fashioned as that may seem today.
I will say some thankyous. Thank you to the community of Yerrabi, which I think is Canberra’s happiest community, many of its residents pioneers of their suburbs, a wonderful mix of ages, ethnicities and professions. It is a great place to live. And thank you to the broader Canberra community for sharing your stories, for supporting us and for your patience with all of our roadworks.
Thank you to all my colleagues. As I said last year, we are greater than the sum of our parts. That is even more true this year. It is so great to have many new members out there chatting to people in their neighbourhoods, learning more every day about what matters to our community and getting to know them even better.
Thank you especially, Chief Minister, and you, Madam Speaker. You have been a terrific Speaker. I have really enjoyed seeing you thrive in this role, keeping us in order. Thank you for your good advice. Thanks to Shane and Caroline for being good colleagues and to the opposition for your participation and your humour. Where we do agree and work together, it is what we can collectively do best. Thank you to the directorates that I work with every day, who work so hard to deliver for our community in the roles that serve the community every day.
Thank you to Assembly staff. Yesterday it was great to get a glimpse of your amazing calm, with 55 pages of amendments. It was truly remarkable. Thank you to all those staff who sit in the clerks’ chairs. I do not know how you keep a straight face sometimes. Thank you to the attendants, who are so welcoming, and for your endless filling of my water glasses. Thank you to Bob, who cleans my office, and all the other cleaners. I arrive very early most mornings and it is nice to share these early hours with you.
Thank you to my office, without which I simply could not do this job. We have had a huge year. I will mention something about each of them. Thank you very much to the two Karens and to Ashleigh, our DLOs; to Vanessa, who has very smartly brought
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