Thursday, 18 June 2026

 Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) incorporated the following (2617):

My action is to the Minister for Transport Infrastructure and the action I seek is to explain why the government is hell bent on failing growth area communities.

I believe that part of the fracturing of our politics is due to this government’s failure to adequately plan for growth. This government has allowed the social license for a well-managed immigration program to be broken.

I wanted to speak to a speech at the National Press Club this week by Senator Pauline Hanson.

As the Shadow Minister for Multicultural and Multifaith Affairs, and as someone who proudly represents the Northern Metropolitan Region – one of the most vibrant, diverse, and hard-working communities in Victoria – I feel it is my duty to draw a line in the sand.

Senator Hanson used her platform to argue that Australia must choice between a rigid monoculturalism or a fractured multiculturalism. She painted a picture of a nation divided, suggesting that diversity is inherently incompatible with a cohesive national identity.

Mr President, the Liberal Party completely rejects this false dichotomy.

Our party has a proud history of building the modern, successful immigration story of this country. It was the Menzies Government that began dismantling the White Australia Policy. It was the Fraser Government that welcomed Vietnamese refugees with open arms, our own colleague Trung Luu was part of that intake, and codified a model of integration that demanded commitment to Australia first, and it was the Abbott Government that began the single largest humanitarian intake in Australian history of 12,000 persecuted minorities intake from Syria and Iraq after the ISIS crisis.

Senator Hanson decries identity politics but weaponises the very same identity politics she decries from the left.

We do not view multiculturalism through the lens of modern identity politics. We don’t see it as a collection of separate, siloed grievance groups, which is how the hard left often seeks to weaponize it. But neither do we see it through the lens of fear and exclusion, which is the path Senator Hanson invites us down.

True Liberal multiculturalism is built on a simple, enduring bargain: Integration, not segregation.

We value the great Australian value of egalitarianism, where everyone is equal under the law, regardless of race, background, belief, preference, culture.

When people come to this country, we do not ask them to erase their heritage, their faith, or their culture. Those traditions enrich our suburbs, power our small businesses, and strengthen our communities. But we do demand an absolute, unwavering commitment to Australian values: the rule of law, democracy, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, a fair go, and a fierce loyalty to our nation.

Senator Hanson’s speech ignored the millions of migrants who have integrated seamlessly, who love this country deeply, and who want nothing more than to work hard, buy a home, and give their children a better life. In places like Craigieburn, Roxburgh Park, and Reservoir, I see families from every corner of the globe who are living the Australian Dream. They are building small businesses, volunteering for the CFA, and contributing to our economy. They are not a threat to our way of life; they are actively building it.

I still carry my Italian heritage like a badge of pride, when I go back to visit my family, it feels like home. Every migrant share that sentiment. It doesn’t mean they love Australia any less.

When communities are targeted with implicit support of Senator Hanson, I recall stories my late Nonno used to tell me about his time on the factory floor in Campbellfield in Melbourne’s North, where shop stewards would call him a Diego and it was completely acceptable to bully those of Italian and Greek background.

When we hear rhetoric that treats entire faith communities or ethnic backgrounds with sweeping suspicion, it doesn’t protect Australian culture – it undermines the very fair go that defines us.

While Senator Hanson was quick to hype her electoral achievements like in South Australia, which after a whole lot of hype didn’t amount to the media briefing, and the seat of Farrer, there was one electoral outing they didn’t mention, that was the seat of Nepean. As much as they hyped it up. The good people of Nepean didn’t see them as a credible alternative.

Mr President, Australia is the most successful multicultural and multifaith nation on earth precisely because we are not a monoculture, nor are we a collection of warring tribes. We are a single, united people bound together by a shared future, not just a shared past.

We face real challenges today. We face challenges with social cohesion, and we must be clear-eyed about demanding that everyone who lives here respects our democratic institutions. But the answer to those challenges is more integration, stronger citizenship standards, and a renewed pride in our shared Australian identity, and making sure we are prioritising infrastructure that supports growth – not the politics of division.

The Liberal Party will always defend an Australia that is free, safe, diverse, and united. We reject the politics of fear, and we will continue to stand up for every single Australian who works hard and pledges their loyalty to this great country.