Juliana ADDISON (Wendouree) (09:53): It is an absolute honour to be re-elected to represent the electorate of Wendouree in the 60th Parliament. Thank you to the Ballarat community for your strong support, and I promise to work hard every day to make Ballarat an even better place to live.

Ballarat is a growing city, with more and more people choosing to call Ballarat home. It is becoming a more culturally diverse community, and there is no place I would rather be.

Thank you to Simran Singh and the Ballarat Sikh community for inviting me to attend the ceremony to establish holy scripture in Ballarat, a very special event and significant day for the Ballarat Sikh community. It was a privilege to be a part of the celebrations welcoming the nagar kirtan from Melbourne to Ballarat and to meet the very respectful high priest Sant Baba Avtar Singh Ji from Sur Singh, Punjab, in India.

I wish to congratulate all the newly elected officers of the Filipino Australian Association of Ballarat for 2023–24, including president Gersen Wardlaw, vice-president Rose Boquida, secretary Josephine Crowe, assistant secretary John Burford, treasurer Dionesia Muaje, assistant treasurer Clarence Nielsen, public relations officer Frank Williams, property custodian Urbing Duffin and assistant property custodian Dion Thorp.

The Ballarat Filipino community is inclusive and welcoming. It does great work. I look forward to continuing to support FAABI to grow a deeper understanding of the Filipino culture.

Finally, congratulations to Ballarat-born Sydney Kings captain on your NBL MVP.

Watch and read more of my speeches to Parliament here, including responses from ministers on how we’re working for Wendouree.

You can also view videos from Parliament, browse Hansard transcripts, learn about bills and legislation, and much more at the Parliament of Victoria’s website.