Page 3231 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 21 August 2019

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(2) calls on the ACT Government to:

(a) explore the feasibility of a large-scale venue suitable for hosting multicultural and other community events to be located at EPIC;

(b) include scoping of alternative potential sites for such a centre in the wider Gungahlin region; and

I rise today to speak to the motion calling on the ACT government to explore the possibility of a large-scale venue for multicultural organisations at EPIC. A multicultural community facility will greatly benefit the Canberra community by providing a quality venue for our wonderfully diverse Canberrans to come together and celebrate inclusivity and a harmonious society.

I am pleased to be working with Ms Orr on this motion calling on the ACT government to continue to invest in social infrastructure for our growing community which also responds to the needs of our multicultural community.

I have lived in Gungahlin for nearly 20 years. Gungahlin is one of the fastest growing regions in the country. Gungahlin is driving our capital’s growth, particularly in the northern area, which increased from 30,000 people in 2011 to more than 71,000 people in 2016. It is essential that our government is working to ensure that we have the appropriate infrastructure for services we rely on and that our city is ready to service new Canberrans in the next decade, and that includes our multicultural community.

I am incredibly proud to represent Yerrabi and the Gungahlin region. Canberra has a diverse and multicultural community who contribute so much and have had so many wonderful achievements in the ACT and beyond. Gungahlin is the most culturally and linguistically diverse region in Canberra, with 33.2 per cent of people born overseas and 33.3 per cent of people speaking a language other than English at home. I am very proud to stand here in this chamber as a multicultural Australian and represent such a multicultural electorate that I am a part of.

We have great facilities and structures in this city that support our diverse Canberrans. However, we can do more, and there is currently a need for a new multicultural centre in our society, particularly for events that can cater for groups larger than 350.

One of our more popular venues is the Theo Notaras Multicultural Centre, for example, which is across the road from us. Theo Notaras has had functions hosted by the Sudanese, Persian, Indian, Chinese, Congolese and Muslim communities, and it is a fantastic venue for diverse Canberrans. I have no doubt that we have all attended or been a part of an event at the Theo Notaras centre. The centre is a great place for multicultural communities to come together and hold events. However, its function room only has capacity for 300 people and it is consistently in high demand, particularly in peak times. The Theo Notaras centre has an average of six large events per month, for example.

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