Maria Vamvakinou MP

Ali Kitinas joined my office on Wednesday 28 November, 2018 as part of the Girls Takeover Parliament day organised by Jasiri Australia and the Alannah Madeleine Foundation. 

The Girls Takeover Parliament program is inspiring young women and girls to be our national leaders. In a time where we need more women in politics, this youth-led program is inspiring leaders and girls to represent and stand up for gender equality. It’s starting conversations, changing futures and removing barriers. 

Above: With Ali Kitinas. 

Expression of interests for the 2018 Volunteer Grants in now open. If you are a local service organisation or community group helping disadvantaged communities in Calwell, a Volunteer Grant can provide small amounts of money to support the volunteers. Grants between $1000 - $5000 are available to help non-for-profit community organisations or groups, to support their volunteers through practical measures. Apply and spread the word, as applications close on 18 September 2018. More program details and the application link can be found on this page.

I also rise today to join with my Labor colleagues in expressing my opposition to the Social Services Legislation Amendment (Budget Repair) Bill 2015 because the proposed budget repair measures contained in this bill target the most vulnerable people in our community by continuing this government's assault on the lives and wellbeing of the thousands of age pensioners and other welfare recipients who live in my electorate of Calwell. This bill reintroduces measures from the 2015 budget—changes to the proportional payment of pensions outside of Australia—and it also reintroduces measures in the 2014 budget, measures that the opposition will continue to oppose because they are unfair and heavy handed.

In my speech today I want to make some comments in relation to the 2015 budget measures that seek to reduce the payment of the age pension outside of Australia. This is a highly contentious issue and it has drawn widespread criticism and outrage from my constituents and from the broader migrant community, welfare agencies and non-English-speaking media for it unfairness and its implications. I want to join with the Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils, the Australian Council of Social Service, the Refugee Council of Australia and, more importantly, the many local pensioner groups and other welfare recipients in my electorate who have come out strongly in their opposition to this bill.

If this bill is passed, thousands of age pensioners in my electorate and across this country who have had fewer than 35 years living and working in Australia will have their benefits reduced if they travel overseas for more than six weeks in a year, according to the length of their Australian working life residence. Because these measures do not affect those who are born in Australia who have worked and lived in Australia for over 35 years this bill creates a discriminatory pension system that will disadvantage a very large number of Australian age pensioners for no substantive reason other than the estimated budget saving of $168.4 million over four years.

NBN is seeking to train 800 new workers in Victoria, over and above the jobs that will be created organically through the existing workforce.

There is a current gap in the workfoce that needs to be filled. There is a shortage of Australian people who have the skills to help rollout the NBN. The two current skills that are experiencing a shortage include Telecommunications Linesworker and Telecommunications Cabe Joiner.

For further information and/or to submit an expression of interest, see the link below:

http://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/careers/building-the-workforce/career-start.html