Thursday, 24 February 2022

Ministers statements: major events

Mr PAKULA (Keysborough—Minister for Industry Support and Recovery, Minister for Trade, Minister for Business Precincts, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, Minister for Racing) (14:12): Yesterday I was delighted to announce the launch of Always Live, a festival of music that will open with Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters playing at Kardinia Park next Friday night on the same night that Amy Shark plays at Rod Laver Arena. It will come hot on the heels of the opening of the Melbourne Fashion Festival the previous evening at the Queen Victoria Market, and on the Saturday night the Oils will be lighting up Mount Duneed Estate, followed by shows at Rod Laver Arena and in Wahgunyah.

From there we will roll into the festival of footy, with the AFLW and every Victorian AFL team playing in Melbourne in round 1. Fabulous Flemington will host Super Saturday and the All-Star Mile, and while Moomba is crowning its monarchs, Her Majesty’s Theatre will be raising the curtain on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, Bendigo Art Gallery will be welcoming visitors to Elvis: Direct from Graceland and Nigella Lawson will be headlining the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. A few days later Formula One returns to Albert Park.

So, fashion, Foo Fighters, food and wine, footy, Flemington, fur shows and F1—it will be freaking awesome. And those opposite, who have spent months talking the joint down, barracking for us to fail and doing Sydney’s bidding, get a big ‘F’ too—flops and failures, flailing and floundering while we get on and bring this state back to life.