Page 1659 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 2 June 2021
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engage in activities that promote their welfare. I remind my fellow MLAs that the community is our object of service and also very, very frequently our greatest resource. There is so much expertise and so much commitment in each of our electorates, and I encourage any MLA to be an active participant in their community. As I have said before in this place, the Canberra community are a very capable bunch and it is always a pleasure to hear about their efforts, especially in Ginninderra.
I congratulate inaugural chair of the African Australian Council ACT, Dr Yvette Djomani, and wish that organisation all the best as it draws together several different African community groups in our great city.
I also thank the Canberra Organic Growers Society for their constant support for Canberra community gardens. It was a pleasure to join them last Saturday at the Charnwood Community Garden. It was a pleasure to be invited to visit one of the local primary schools in my electorate, and I thank Principal Lina Vigliotta for showing me around St Vincent’s Primary School in Aranda.
It was a pleasure to talk to some local experts—I will not name them, because I did not seek their permission to do so—in urban planning and design. I really appreciate the support they gave to me in developing a planning vision for this great bush capital. Of course, I am a contributor to and attendee at Belconnen Community Council meetings, and thank that council for its ongoing commitment to this electorate.
I also acknowledge a growing and enterprising business in Belconnen, the Bharat International Indian restaurant and grocer. I appreciate their enterprise and desire to expand the diversity of food offerings both in dining and in shopping options in that community.
I have to mention the SMILE initiative in Melba—the Support Melba Inclusive Learning Environment—which is seeking to turn an abandoned play area into something beneficial to local families and local schools.
Just this week I had the opportunity to speak, with some concern, about the pending closure of the West Belconnen waste facility and the uncertainty in the community as to the government’s plans for that part of our city in terms of waste management.
I have mentioned many times that I am committed to being engaged with the community, and that included last week a full day of doorknocking in one of our suburbs. Learning so much about the local district from local residents is part of what makes this job so fulfilling.
Digital technology—jobs growth
MS DAVIDSON (Murrumbidgee) (5.43): On 26 May, I attended the launch of ACS Australia’s Digital Pulse report for 2021. This annual report highlights the importance of the digital technology workforce in Australia and provides insights into areas for improvement and emerging trends. The report showed that ACT workforce growth over 2020 was significantly higher than the national average of 4.3 per cent. In a year
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