Wednesday, 10 September 2025

 Gary MAAS (Narre Warren South) (09:59): It was a pleasure to be joined by the Premier and the member for Cranbourne, who visited the ‘Bring your bills’ event at Arthur Wren Hall in Hampton Park last week. We saw firsthand the impact that this initiative has on my electorate of Narre Warren South and surrounding areas. The fantastic event was organised by South East Community Links to provide easy access to organisations from financial to legal to utility, including private and government sectors, which delivered practical in-person advice, just simply helping people to navigate financial challenges on the spot. In light of recent attempts by others to divide and incite fear, the event displayed the very best of Victoria. The room was filled with people from all walks of life and backgrounds and different faiths, cultures and languages, connected by a real sense of respect and care for one another.

A really big thankyou to Peter McNamara, who is the CEO of South East Community Links, and his incredible team for delivering this event, including the many volunteers from across the region who helped on the day as well. The impact was real. There were some 400 community members who attended, and $3 million in debt was addressed and $200,000 of debt was wiped from the day. I thank the Premier for attending and the community for their very warm welcome. Community is about caring for one another, and care and compassion will always outshine hate.