Mrs PHILLIPS (Gilmore) (19:07): As the re-elected member for Gilmore, I am honoured to give this address-in-reply to the Governor-General's speech to start the 48th Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. I want to start by thanking the people of Gilmore, on the South Coast of New South Wales, for re-electing me as your representative in the Australian parliament and for the privilege of fighting for you every single day.

I am so thankful to have been first elected in 2019, then in 2022 and now in 2025. It is not something that I take for granted any single day. I have relished the opportunity to stand up for people and fight for more services, roads and community infrastructure. From Moruya and Batemans Bay in the Eurobodalla to the Shoalhaven and Kiama regions, this is a place I am so proud to call home. It's where I was born, where I was married and where I've raised my four now young-adult children, who also live locally. It's where I want all children to be able to grow up, have access to a good education, go to TAFE or university, and work and live locally so they can enjoy this most beautiful part of the world.

When I embarked on this journey some years ago now, to be perfectly honest I didn't know what really lay ahead. But I knew I had, and still have, a yearning thirst and undeniable determination to make sure people in my communities get the best possible support. It was my way of giving back to my community, which I eternally loved and which had provided me with so much. But nothing could prepare me for those first years.

From the significant drought in 2019 to the Black Summer bushfires, floods, COVID and natural disaster after natural disaster, people in my communities have gone through so much. They have given so much. Every day we see the selfless sacrifice of volunteers, essential workers, emergency service volunteers and workers, and people in our communities working so hard together to help make our communities even better. Those are communities that I'm proud to be a part of.

I stand with all people in Gilmore as we face many hurdles moving forward, whether it's helping ease cost-of-living pressures, providing better access to health and mental health services, providing more access to affordable and social rental housing or helping more people into homeownership. We are moving forward and delivering on major road projects, such as the Jervis Bay flyover, the Princes Highway duplication to Tomerong, the Milton-Ulladulla bypass and the Nowra bypass, and we are supporting many community infrastructure projects, which, in turn, support people and families.

This election was an excruciatingly tough one, but it was a critical election in Gilmore and returned the Albanese Labor government to continue with the job of providing important cost-of-living relief. There are some people who wrote Gilmore off, but luckily I have never been a person to listen to idle chatter and sometimes even threats.

I thought I had seen it all through many elections, but this one really surprised me. I was simply stunned by the scale and ferocity of personal threats. I never knew that we even had woke-culture wars in my own little village of Callala Beach and Callala Bay. This was not the place I knew and loved; it's like someone had invaded it. I remember driving around thinking, 'I just really hope people see through all of that over-the-top, horrible and self-indulgent signage.'

I'm pleased to say they did. There are many great outcomes of this election, but, apart from all the terrific things I'll be able to continue to deliver for my communities, for me, it was knowing that good had prevailed. You don't need to be nasty, to lie outright, to backflip on your views for a vote or to be misogynistic to succeed. And, just because some of the nastiest people might be the loudest, they are, in fact, not the normal. It really is a victory for kindness, for what is right and, ultimately, for what will help people best into the future.

I have been strengthened by what I have learnt over the last three years and before that as well. I have tested my own inner strength to the absolute max and beyond what I could imagine, but I've done this because I want the best for our community.

I want to take the next moments to highlight some of the positive measures coming to Gilmore. Health is always No. 1 in Gilmore. With one of the highest numbers of age pensioners in Australia, access to health services is key. That's why I'm proud to be delivering a second Medicare urgent care clinic at Nowra, providing bulk-billed urgent care every day of the year with extended hours. Importantly, this will also take pressure off our busy emergency department at Shoalhaven Hospital.

At Batemans Bay, we saw the first Medicare urgent care clinic established, which has now seen over 17,000 patients, all fully bulk-billed. We're extending the hours of the Batemans Bay Medicare Urgent Care Clinic even further so it will be open from 6 am till midnight. That's 18 hours a day—the longest opening hours of any Medicare urgent care clinic in Australia. Again, we're supporting this community, taking pressure off the EDs and supporting local GPs as well.

I'm also proud to say that we're upgrading the existing Medicare mental health hub at Nowra to a full Medicare mental health centre, which will provide extended services and access to psychiatry and psychology services. I have had so many people approach me quietly and tell me that the mental health hub at Nowra and the mental health centre at Moruya have literally saved lives. They are much-needed services and ones I'm proud to deliver, supporting local families and individuals and, again, supporting our local hospitals as well.

Our South-Eastern NSW Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Clinic at Milton has been so successful, and I'm pleased that the Albanese government has a comprehensive women's health package that provides greater access to menopause support as well as greater access to women's services.

I know people in Gilmore love the changes to make medicines cheaper. Of course, we have introduced 60-day prescriptions. We've also reduced the maximum price of a general script down from $42 to $30, and we're slashing the PBS script price further to $25 from 1 January. We've frozen the cost of PBS scripts for pensioners and concession cardholders at $7.70 until the end of the decade, further helping pensioners with the cost of living.

When it comes to education, I'm immensely proud that our government will deliver fair, needs based funding for our local public schools. This is something I have been campaigning for a very long time. Importantly, it means students will get greater needs based support because education really is a human right. Not only does it support students but it benefits our entire communities.

Thanks to the Albanese Labor government, 14,000 people with student debt in Gilmore will have 20 per cent of their student debt slashed. Importantly, the legislation also changes the repayment system to a marginal system, which will reduce minimum repayments required and further help people with the cost of living. We're extending energy bill price relief, and our Cheaper Home Batteries Program is going gangbusters, with the take-up in Gilmore the highest in New South Wales.

Community infrastructure is vital in Gilmore, and I'm thrilled that I'll be delivering $1.39 million to help build a new pilot house for Marine Rescue Shoalhaven at Crookhaven Heads, $3 million for the Batemans Bay Seahawks Football Club to build a new clubhouse, $512,000 for Kiama Surf Life Saving Club to help with their amenities, $840,000 for the Gerry Emery Oval clubhouse upgrade at Gerringong and $5 million to help with the upgrade of the Shoalhaven riverfront at Nowra.

When it comes to roads, we've made great progress. The Jervis Bay Road flyover is under construction and going well, with $100 million in federal funding. The Princes Highway, from the Jervis Bay Road flyover intersection to Hawken Road at Tomerong, is also progressing well, with the concept design being refined, enabled by $400 million in federal funding. The Milton Ulladulla bypass, with $752 million in federal funding, has moved forward to a contract being awarded for concept design.

The Nowra bypass, with $97 million in federal funding, is also progressing and expected to enter the development phase in 2026. I have also been really pleased to have secured and delivered federal funding for a wide range of local road projects which are much needed. Whether it is disaster recovery funding, infrastructure betterment funding, Roads to Recovery funding, black spot funding, safer roads funding, the Shoalhaven local roads package or more, federal funding is assisting our local councils and state government with local roads.

When it comes to housing, you can feel the change happening. The momentum is growing, and we are seeing more affordable and social rental housing, more build-to-rent premises that have started and been completed. Importantly, the incentives provided to the state governments are resulting in this uptake of affordable and social rental housing projects and planning reforms, which is allowing more medium-density housing. One such example of this is the Nowra riverfront project, which in one precinct will see an additional 650 medium-density homes, including social and affordable rental housing. This will also assist with frontline worker accommodation, a significant upgrade for Shoalhaven hospital.

Defence and the defence industry is crucial in Gilmore. I am pleased that infrastructure upgrades are occurring at HMAS Albatross in preparation for further upgrades to house additional Seahawk Romeo helicopters. All of this means additional ADF members, squadrons and the training and maintenance to support this increase in capability for our Navy's Fleet Air Arm based at HMAS Albatross.

We're home to many terrific defence industry businesses, and we're working to support defence industry employers as well. We're Navy and Defence proud, and it's the reason why we're bringing the 'chopper on a stick' back at its iconic gateway position, which says, 'We are a Navy and Defence town'. Shortly, nominations will open for the community to decide whether the new chopper should be the Huey or a more contemporary Seahawk Romeo that is currently operated by our squadrons.

During the 47th Parliament, I had the honour of participating in the ADF Parliamentary Exchange Program at my local ADF parachuting school just outside HMAS Albatross. The ADF Parliamentary Exchange Program is something I definitely recommend to new MPs. I tell this story because of the immense lessons it has taught me and the deeper understanding I have gained of Defence generally.

I participated in the exchange because the Gilmore electorate is home to thousands of serving Defence members, veterans and their families. We're mostly Navy, but the Australian Army's Special Operations Command runs the ADF Parachuting School. I simply wanted to gain a greater understanding of what goes on there, and I wanted to encourage every child locally to consider an ADF career. The reality is that we need more people to join the ADF to fly and maintain our helicopters locally but also to take up a range of roles to provide the integrated and ready capability that Australia needs.

During my exchange, I undertook a tandem ADF parachute jump around 5,000 feet above my beloved electorate, with a very experienced ADF tandem parachuter. While my parachute jump did not quite go as expected—we had a canopy malfunction and a cutaway parachute, we came down on the reserve chute, and I fractured my ankle on the landing—it actually taught me so much. Our ADF members put their lives on the line every single day. They train for every situation possible. But, as I was told later, you can mitigate risk as much as possible but, when you step off the back of a plane, anything can happen. I also came to realise that Defence members and MPs possibly do have some similarities. They both protect and help people—just in different ways. Thank you again to the ADF parachuting school.

I have so many people to thank with this campaign. Thank you to my campaign team, led by the amazing Amy Knox and Simon Zulian. Thank you to Jess Malcolm-Roberts, who has the best political know-how. Thank you to my awesome electorate office team, who just kept things going and kept me on track.

Thank you to our most wonderful branch members and volunteers, who were out there every day talking with voters, phone banking, doorknocking, and doing mobile offices, coffee clubs and election day. You name it; they were there. Special thanks to Gwen, the most sensible sounding board, and Lizzie. Michelle Miran, this speech is also for you. While I know you are so unwell, I will always be thankful to you for your unwavering support over many years. You are indeed a Labor legend.

Thank you to the best dedicated CPSU doorknockers, Young Labor and everyone who helped. Special thanks to George Simon, assistant general secretary of New South Wales Labor, and to my colleagues for their support during the campaign, for visits and, yes, for more doorknocking.

Thanks to the Prime Minister for visiting multiple times, always being there when needed and providing the steady guidance. I think we both agree that the impromptu visit to Alfresco Coffee Roasters at Moruya on Easter Monday, where you were mobbed in a good way, was a highlight and perhaps the only poll we really needed to listen to.

My final thanks go to the people of Gilmore. Thank you for putting your faith in me, for me to support you over the next three years and be your voice in the Australian parliament. I love supporting people in Gilmore because I love the community I grew up in and always will.