Page 3998 - Week 10 - Thursday, 28 August 2008
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pay tribute to Jan, who made an enormous difference to our community in so many ways. They are too many to mention here in the short amount of time I have available.
He was a man of vision, passion and drive, whose life touched our lives. I got to know Jan and his wife, Anne, and his stepson, Carl, through his work at the Belconnen Community Service as arts officer. As a result of his drive and commitment, the Belconnen Arts Centre was established. The centre will be large and well resourced and will have all the facilities he envisaged.
I know that many would like to see Jan’s commitment to us all recognised in the centre in some tangible way as an ongoing legacy. I value very much his friendship and the friendship of Anne and Carl. Once more, I extend my condolences to you, Anne and Carl, and to the rest of your family and your close friends. I know that Anne and Carl will continue to be fully involved and influential members in this community, and I thank them.
I wish everyone well as we go forward from this place. I am sure that I will be seeing lots more of you again, whether it is here or in other places. I am looking forward to the seventh term of this Assembly.
MR PRATT (Brindabella) (7.48): I will start by thanking my constituency, the Brindabella community: in particular, the Tharwa community, which has suffered so much, the Lanyon Valley community, the Macarthur and northern Tuggeranong communities, which I have had a great deal to do with, and I wish them all the best.
I also take this opportunity to thank the retiring MLAs. I give Dr Foskey my warmest regards. She is a gentle, thinking woman. I just hope that she serves the national interest in environmental matters. I reckon she would serve us wonderfully in that capacity. But that is not for me to say. That decision is up to her, of course.
Wayne Berry, I wish you all the best. I will not forget, on our return trip from Kiribati, Tom and me watching you jogging down the hill like a praying mantis. I do not know how you do it but you go on forever. All the best, Wayne.
I say to Karin MacDonald and her husband, Brendan, that I wish you all the best.
Bill Stefaniak, unfortunately, has gone, because I really wanted to say this to his face. Bill is a larger than life character. I can remember being cleaned up by him once in a parliamentary Rugby game ruck. It was like being hit by a white pointer shark. The trouble is, of course, that he was on my side.
With respect to my Liberal colleagues, I share a range of sick jokes and a dry sense of humour with Vicki, but I admire her for her procedural tenacity in this place. I admire Jacqui for her compassion, Brendan Smyth for his wonderful backing up of Zed—what a team these two guys have become—and, of course, Zed, for steering the Liberal ship of state. I see good things coming; well done.
I would like to thank my family. My wife, Samira, had a birthday two days ago, and she received her roses when I woke her up at midnight. I was so proud of my little
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