Tuesday, 4 February 2025

 Wendy LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (14:49): Today I would like to congratulate my constituents who were recipients of Australia Day honours. In all, 13 Northern Victoria residents received honours. Seven were awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia, including David Blackmore of Alexandra for service to the beef cattle industry; John Head of Shepparton for service to the arts and community; Alison MacGregor of Mildura for service to music and horticulture; Kay Martin of Merbein for service to the communities of Merbein, Mildura and the Mallee; Lynette Maskell of Elphinstone for services to the community of Brighton; the late Neville Seymour of Wodonga for service to the community of the Upper Murray region; and Debbie Lee Van Corler of Yarrawonga for service to the community through charitable contributions. Three were awarded a Member of the Order of Australia: Dr Christine Craik of Darraweit Guim for significant service to the community, to tertiary education and as a volunteer; Jodie Goldsworthy of Beechworth for significant service to primary industry in the honey bee and pollination sector; and Alister Purbrick of Nagambie for significant service to the wine industry. Timothy Smith of Hurstbridge was awarded an Australian Fire Service medal, Peter Weeks of Alexandra an Emergency Services Medal and Luke Wilson of Wodonga a Public Service Medal. Congratulations to all, and congratulations to all recipients of local Australia Day awards in each of the municipalities in Northern Victoria. It is your contributions that make our region such a great place to live.