Thursday, 5 February 2026

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:49): Victorians know where our Labor government stands when it comes to protecting their right to work from home: we back it and we will legislate to protect people’s right to work from home. We are doing this because we have listened to working people and families. We have heard how it saves them time and it saves them money. We have heard from the workers themselves how they say it means they are more productive and they can give more back to their employer. And we have heard from businesses as well – many are doing it – how it also means that their workforce is more productive. It is a meaningful difference for families. It means for families they are saving money, it means more time with the kids at home and it takes stress out of their lives.

We have well and truly seen, though, how not everyone agrees with my government’s move to make working from home a right that we will legislate and protect. Indeed I can reveal to the house today that there are some who recently came together in this very building and held a secret meeting behind closed doors with business leaders from across Victoria, and what was on the agenda – forcing workers to return to the office. I would be happy to make available to the house the Melbourne Revitalisation and Economic Growth Forum agenda, hosted by the Leader of the Opposition behind closed doors in this building – forcing workers to return to the office. Victorians know where my government stands in backing them every day.

Cindy McLeish: On a point of order, Speaker, on Tuesday you requested a written apology from every single member on the government benches for what had just happened, which was their appalling behaviour, and you wanted that in your office after question time. Would you please take the opportunity to update the house on whether that occurred?

The SPEAKER: I received apologies from every member who was present at the time on the government benches.

Cindy McLeish: On a further point of order, Speaker, at the start of question time today and just now we witnessed exactly the same behaviour by the government members. Will you again read those apologies to see whether or not they committed to not doing that again, because what we saw today from the government was appalling.

The SPEAKER: That is not a point of order.