In the air and on the road!

It’s been a busy and rewarding fortnight, with plenty of time spent in the air—and on the road—meeting the people and organisations who help to keep our communities strong.

On 20 February I travelled to Karratha for the Pilbara for Purpose Forum and Expo, where I was privileged to present the opening address. It was a terrific opportunity to hear directly from local community service organisations about the challenges and opportunities facing families and young people across the region.

I also visited the PCYC in Roebourne, where the team has done amazing work creating safe spaces, mentoring, and giving practical support for around 150 local kids.

Their commitment is exactly the kind of community‑driven initiative that provides hope, guidance and opportunities where few exist.

From there, I headed to Sydney for the Aspire Conference from 23 to 25 February—another chance to learn from an amazing group of social, cultural and political leaders at the cutting edge of social and economic development.

Meanwhile, Parliament resumed on 24 February. Although I was interstate on the Wednesday, colleagues tell me it was an eventful start to the year, with Labor losing their first division in the Legislative Council in five years. It’s a reminder that the parliamentary system is a powerful tool for accountability and the WA Liberal Team is well and truly back in action.

On my return Thursday I also spoke (very briefly) in the Chamber on the government’s outrageous demersal fishing ban, which I’ll cover in more detail later in this newsletter.

All signs suggest it’s going to be a very interesting year. As always, my focus remains on protecting the things that matter for all Western Australians.

Wars Past and Present

First Gulf War – 35 Years on.

February marked the 35th anniversary of the end of the First Gulf War with commemorations at the State War Memorial in Kings Park, honouring the 1,872 Australians who served in the 1990–91 campaign. The service offered a moment to reflect on the professionalism and courage of those deployed to the Gulf, including many shipmates and friends of mine.

Though  I never deployed to the Gulf, I still remember the announcement of the decision  to send RAN ships into the war zone with the Multination Naval Force  while deployed on HMAS Swan in the South China Sea—a sobering  moment for everyone on board as we contemplated what the future might mean for  all of us. The anniversary is a reminder of how quickly the current peace  can be shattered.

Operation Epic Fury

Over the weekend we all learned of Operation Epic Fury, where the U.S. and partner forces launched targeted strikes on the Iranian regimeaimed “dismantle the Iranian regime’s security apparatus, prioritizing locations that posed an imminent threat.”

Whatever you may think of the strikes on Iran and the reasoning behind them, war is never something to be entered into lightly and there will be a terrible cost to many. Australia as yet is not involved – and in fact was apparently not even informed, indicating a significant shift in our strategic relationship with the US.

It  is something I will be watching closely, as I like many parents out there, have  a young son in the Army who may well be sent into theatre. Currently  posted to the 7th Brigade – the “Ready Brigade” – he and many other  young men and women would likely be the first to deploy if needed. It is times like these you hope that the lack of adequate defence spending by the Albanese government does not risk the lives of those we may send into  harm’s way.

Demersal What?

Again, we see the practices of a government that appears to treat those most affected and least able to defend their case as an afterthought.

Forestry and firearms, and now fishery. What’s next? Four-wheel drives? Free access to the bush? What other words beginning with “F” does the Cook government plan to target for destruction! Freedom?

Once again, thank you for your responses to my newsletter.

As I’ve said before, don’t forget to speak up. You may not be particularly interested in politics but, as we have seen, politics is very interested in you. If you remain silent it will assume you don’t care and make decisions for you. (And we know what that looks like).

Get involved and encourage as many of your friends and family to do so as well  before it’s too late.

If you aren’t sure how, email my team and I will point you in the right direction.

Kind regards,

Phil