Page 4227 - Week 13 - Thursday, 14 December 2006
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bring the hard sauce. That is something that cannot go cold, because he will probably be coming in a taxi.
I thought about what Ms Porter could bring. She is very hospitable, so I thought she should supply some of the drinks. My favourite one, of course, on this occasion, especially if we are in another climate, would perhaps be Porter gaff.
Mr Gentleman is a bit of a white bread man. You cannot really have bread at Christmas dinner, so you get to bring the Yorkshire pudding. Mr Stefaniak gets to bring the turkey, stuffed. Mr Smyth gets to bring some cold soup. I think it is always important to have soup. Perhaps something like vichyssoise. What goes in vichyssoise?
Mr Hargreaves: Leeks, mate.
MRS DUNNE: And potatoes. For Mr Pratt, something to reflect the cultural diversity in his family. Perhaps some sort of skewered meat like shish kebab. Dr Foskey should bring green salads but, since no-one is really very interested in greens at this time of year, one will be enough.
Mr Seselja has been very busy this year improving his TV performance and the number of hits he gets on TV. He has been too busy to cook anything, so he gets to bring the ham. Mr Mulcahy gets to bring the drinks. We have to make sure that all the seals are intact so there is no fear of drink spiking beforehand.
Mrs Burke brings throat lozenges to make sure that, when we are doing the Christmas singing, everything is in tune. Ms Gallagher as the health minister gets to bring the antacid. As she knows, the Italo-Australian community have generously offered Mr Barr a porchetta, which translates as roast pig on a spit. All he has to bring is the apple. I think I shall bring the knives.
Valedictory
MS PORTER (Ginninderra) (6.00): Mr Speaker, as many before me have said, this is an opportunity to wish everyone a happy Christmas and all the best for the holiday season and for 2007, and to thank many people, including your good self, all members of this place and all of the staff of this place, in their various and vital roles, for their support. I would particularly like to thank Sandra Lilburn, who is the last of a very, very long line of secretaries to the Standing Committee on Education, Training and Young People. I am very glad to see that we have not frightened her away and so I am looking forward to working with her again in 2007. Of course I would like to thank my staff for the contribution they have made to ensuring the business of this place continues, along with everybody else that does that.
Instead of giving virtual gifts like the Treasurer gave last year to members, I thought I would encourage us all to donate to a charity or a community organisation of our choice, which is becoming quite popular at the moment for people to do as a Christmas gesture. I gave some considerable thought to this, and I thought that Mr Pratt could donate to an overseas aid organisation as I know he has a keen interest in this area. I thought Mr Berry and Mr Seselja could both contribute to the southern
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