Wednesday, 18 February 2026

 Martin CAMERON (Morwell) (09:56): It is that time of year again where Kokoda is in the forefront of everybody’s mind in the Latrobe Valley, because the Marsh/Tierney scholarship, which is run through my office, is now open again for year 11 students right across the Latrobe Valley. There are a lot of people and members in this place that have actually been across the Kokoda; we bring children across in year 11 and they spend five days over there trekking from one end of Kokoda to the other. The greatest thing that the kids are most concerned about when we go over is their access to wi-fi. They are a little bit worried about that; I can say there is no wi-fi at all. But on the most pleasing side, when we get back from Kokoda we have to actually force them to let their parents know, by using their phone, that they have made it back safely. It costs $8000 to get a scholarship winner across there. The member for Gippsland East runs the show, and it is well worthwhile going over. His knowledge of what happened over in Kokoda and the way he relays and tells the stories brings a tear to everybody’s eye as they walk through. You are walking in the footsteps of soldiers from your electorate that have paid the ultimate price and sacrificed their lives. So the Kokoda scholarship is open.