The Glen Waverley district is home to some of the best schools in Victoria, and recently I had the pleasure of welcoming one of those schools here to Parliament. I want to thank Gillian Prentice and all the teachers that accompanied the grade 6 students from Vermont Primary School. They put me through my paces, asking questions about the history of the building and the operations of government and politics, and it was great to see so many young people engaged and interested in politics. There were also several budding candidates for your role, Deputy Speaker, who brought order to this place.
I was also delighted to welcome the members of the Forest Hill Probus Club for a tour of Parliament. Thank you to the secretary Chris McCarty and the organising team for a wonderful event.
On another matter, I was delighted to host a women’s health forum and morning tea at Vermont South Neighbourhood House. It was wonderful to have the Parliamentary Secretary for Women’s Health the member for Northcote, and I thank her for generously making the time to attend. We also heard directly from Bella Zheng from BreastScreen Victoria, and I want to give a special thanks to Megan Wallace for bravely sharing her lived experience in her battle with breast cancer. It was an insightful discussion followed by a panel Q and A session, and I thank everyone for coming along. I would also like to thank Mr Leane in the other place and his electorate office for co-hosting this event.
Women’s health for far too long has been considered a niche issue, to be put on the backburner of priorities. The Allan Labor government takes a different approach because we understand just how important it is to so many Victorians, and that is why I am proud to be part of a government which is taking proactive and strong action to address the challenges that Victorian women face.
