Australia's Biggest Morning Tea

Hansard ID: HANSARD-1323879322-106221

Hansard session: Fifty-Sixth Parliament, First Session (56-1)

Australia's Biggest Morning Tea

Ms FELICITY WILSON (North Shore) (17:35:30):

The matter of public importance I raise tonight is Australia's Biggest Morning Tea, which is one of the Cancer Council's leading annual fundraising events. Cancer Council NSW is an independent charity and is 96 per cent community funded. I was pleased to see the large turnout this morning for our Australia's Biggest Morning Tea in the Speaker's Garden of Parliament House. I acknowledge the Speaker's many years of support for the Cancer Council, including the annual morning tea—which has raised more than $12,000 over the past six years—as well as her ongoing support as the member for the South Coast for events such as the Shoalhaven and the Milton Ulladulla Relay for Life.

Australia's Biggest Morning Tea began in 1994 to raise funds for the Cancer Council's work in cancer research prevention, education and support services. It was particularly powerful to see the large turnout today in the Speaker's Garden and to hear from Mary Boland, who shared the personal experience of the loss of her husband, Michael Anderson, to cancer in 2010 and the importance of palliative care. The funds raised from the morning tea will help the Cancer Council continue its vital work in cancer research, prevention and support services. Public support for this event is growing. Last year, Cancer Council NSW raised $5.1 million from Australia's Biggest Morning Tea—an increase of 6 per cent on the previous year. Other key Cancer Council annual fundraising events are Daffodil Day, Pink Ribbon Day, Girls Night In and the Relay For Life.

Looking back, a great deal of progress has been made in the fight against cancer. The late 1980s was a pivotal point in the fight against cancer. From that point forward, Australia began to introduce national screening programs and national prevention campaigns. In 1996 Australia finally recognised cancer as a national health priority and invested more in research, treatment, information and support. Since then, two of the biggest improvements, as measured by reduced death rates, have been in the fight against breast cancer and lung cancer. Early detection of breast cancer has led to significant reductions in the mortality rate and treatment has improved significantly over the past 20 years. Lung cancer rates have also declined significantly as the proportion of Australians smoking—men in particular—has decreased dramatically in recent years. The work done in discouraging tobacco use over the past 20 years should be applauded. However, more work needs to be done in the fight against this and other cancers.

The Cancer Council is a significant supporter of palliative care within New South Wales. I note that this is also National Palliative Care Week. The theme for this year's National Palliative Care Week is, "You matter, your care matters. Palliative care can make a difference." I note the future of palliative care services in New South Wales is under discussion at statewide roundtable meetings within the community and amongst health professionals. I acknowledge the work done in my electorate of North Shore for palliative care and mention the efforts of the Northern Suburbs Cancer Action Network, in particular its chair Liz Hing, which is currently running the "I Care for Palliative Care" campaign.

A metropolitan palliative care roundtable was held in the New South Wales Parliament in April this year, and Ms Leslie Williams, MP, the Parliamentary Secretary for Regional and Rural Health, is leading nine regional roundtables in Orange, Lismore, Kempsey, Broken Hill, Tamworth, Griffith, Queanbeyan, Kiama and Newcastle. I look forward to these localised discussions on what is working well, what needs improvement and innovative solutions to this very pressing issue. Once the roundtables have been held, I know that NSW Health will produce a discussion paper for public consultation in the near future, and I welcome that.

Like many members and others in the community, I have been affected by cancer, having lost family and friends to the disease. Therefore, I have personally taken up the challenge to raise funds for the Cancer Council by participating in the Stars of the North dancing competition. I am not known for my skills on the dance floor, but I could not turn down the opportunity to fundraise for and to raise awareness of such an important cause. I have been promised by my wonderful dance teachers at Sydney Dance World that in exactly one month I will be a salsa star at North Leagues Club in Cammeray, where I will be raising awareness and money for the Cancer Council. I hope that I can get a great deal of support from members in this place and people in my local community for this very worthy cause.

Ms LIESL TESCH (Gosford) (17:40:25):e

This is definitely a matter of public importance. Tomorrow people across Australia will host Australia's Biggest Morning Tea. I thank Madam Speaker for hosting a morning tea today in the Speaker's Garden. Thousands of Australians across the country will crowd into the living rooms and gardens of friends, or in the case of the Central Coast attend a Biggest Morning Tea cake stall outside Bankwest and Supr at Erina Fair and the Coast Community Connections Morning Tea at the Peninsula Community Centre. They will all help to raise money for the Cancer Council to support cancer research and services.

In Australia, one person is diagnosed with cancer every five minutes—about the time of the average tea break. On the Central Coast, 2,600 people will be diagnosed with cancer this year; that is nine every day. On the Central Coast, we will lose 907 people to cancer each year. No community is immune from the effects of cancer, and it is a condition that brings us all together. Whether it is us personally, a family member, a friend, a co‑worker, a neighbour, one in two Australians will be diagnosed with cancer. Cancer touches all in our community. It is no wonder then that Australia's Biggest Morning Tea is the leading fundraising event on the coast, and this year we hope to raise $200,000.

Every little bit helps: $15 can help provide easy-to-understand information on treatments, practical advice and emotional support to cancer patients and their families; $50 can ensure there is a cancer nurse available on the phone support hotline 131120 to offer information and support; $150 can help provide transport and accommodation for people who need to travel for vital cancer treatment; $500 can help fund a support group where people can meet and share their experiences in an emotionally supportive environment; and $1,000 can help support groundbreaking research into new and better ways to prevent, to diagnose and to treat cancer, with the potential to save thousands of lives. Imagine what could be done with the close to $2,000 that we raised today. With their key events at Erina Fair and the Peninsula Community Centre, and the dozens of other morning teas being held in the Gosford electorate alone, I know that the giving spirit of local residents will see that target smashed. That money will go to ensuring that locals and people living with cancer across the State are able to live with dignity and that they receive the support and treatment they need.

I was talking only yesterday in this place about the great work my predecessor, Kathy Smith, did to bring cancer treatment services to the Central Coast. It was only through her tireless campaigning, as chair of Cancer Voices NSW at the time, that the Federal Government and the State Government came together to provide $55 million for the Central Coast Regional Cancer Centre at Gosford Hospital. Before 2012, people living with cancer locally would have to travel to Sydney or Newcastle to receive public radiotherapy treatment, or they would have to fork out tens of thousands of dollars for private treatment. Most people could not afford that, so they were forced to make the trek to the city. The cancer centre has made a massive difference.

Patients were away from their family and support networks when they needed them most. So bad was the situation that local community groups came together to provide transport services for people on the coast needing treatment. Driven by volunteers and supported by Community Transport, Cancer Council NSW, and Cancer Voices, the Shirley Shuttle ensured that people living with cancer were able to access radiotherapy services in Sydney or Newcastle and were cared for on those long trips after their invasive treatment. On a personal note, it is an honour to be here commending one of the main fundraisers for the Cancer Council, which continues to do the best work possible to improve the treatment options and to support of cancer patients and their loved ones. The positive developments in cancer control in Australia contributed to my sister Trudii and me sharing an additional 15-plus years of our mother' life with her.

Mum was a smoker for most of her adult life, and we would chuckle when she would confirm with her treating oncologist that she was now a non-smoker "since this morning". We now understand the risk of smoking and that breast cancer treatment has improved significantly in the past 20 years. That did not make it any easier when I was planning my trip to the London Paralympic Games. By that stage mum's cancer had metastasised into her bones. At a family discussion around her bed at home, we decided that I would sail the last race and then head home. I got a call from my sister in Australia after I had had my ice bath and was in bed after our first day of racing to tell me that mum had passed away. I was crying on the steps of our room when Dan, my sailing partner, turned up and said, "Liesl, I understand that the Paralympics are over for us." I looked at him and said, "More than anything else in the world, our mum would want us to race." The beautiful gold medal we brought home was not only for my mother, who fought cancer, but also for everyone who has died as a result of cancer. I commend the work of the Cancer Council in organising Australia's Biggest Morning Tea.

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER:

I congratulate Madam Speaker on her continued support of Australia's Biggest Morning Tea.

Ms SHELLEY HANCOCK (South Coast) (17:45:41):

I congratulate the member for North Shore on raising this matter of public importance. I also congratulate the member for Gosford on her heartfelt contribution to this debate. We all have similar stories to hers, but hers was particularly moving. As the member said, Australia's Biggest Morning Tea is the Cancer Council's major fundraising effort. Some things in this House make me very happy and some things make me very unhappy, on a daily basis. The things that make me happy are those which bring us together and which are above politics. We all talk from time to time about getting more funding for cancer treatment in our electorates. However, at the end of the day, we know that State and Federal governments—of whatever persuasion—are doing the best they can to provide the services we need.

That is certainly true in the Shoalhaven region. We have a beautiful new cancer care centre, which was opened in 2013. The centre has a linear accelerator [LINAC], and demand for the service was so great that only 12 months after it was installed we had to think about providing another one. The community has been behind and on board with this issue for a long time and has raised an enormous amount of funding to provide the equipment that we need. The Relay for Life in Nowra has raised $150,000 or more. Milton-Ulladulla, which is in only its third or fourth year of fundraising, has raised $53,000. These are extraordinary amounts of money to raise, and it happens in every electorate. Members participate in these events because we know how important it is to raise funds.

It gave me great pleasure to see so many members at today's Biggest Morning Tea in the Speaker's Garden. This is the sixth year in which we have hosted the event, and so far we have raised $10,000. I was hoping to raise $1,500 this morning, but we raised nearly $2,000. As the member for Gosford said, every small donation adds up and it all helps. I have seen firsthand the work the Cancer Council does, having been a regional member of the council for many years and having travelled to Wollongong to talk about allocating the funds that have been raised. They have been allocated to provide information and treatment advice for patients and transport and accommodation for patients living in regional and remote areas.

The member for Gosford and I know that if an electorate does not have a local cancer care centre then patients must travel away from their home and families. It is vital for cancer patients to be close to supportive friends and family. I congratulate everyone who attended today's morning tea. I also congratulate a fellow called Dick Manwarring, who lives in my electorate and who organises the Code C fundraiser night in the central Shoalhaven. Over the years that Dick has been organising the event he has raised $280,000. That is extraordinary. He brings the people of the central Shoalhaven together to raise money, and the Bay and Basin Cancer Support Group is now providing a bus service for people who want to travel to Nowra. Well done to everyone involved. We all play our part, and we all have a contribution to make as local members. This morning's event brought us all together, and it made me happy.

Mr MARK COURE (Oatley) (17:49:10):

By leave: Many members in this House know my background: my two younger brothers and I lost a parent to cancer when we were quite young. The struggles faced by people with cancer affect not just that person but the entire family and the community groups of which the family is a part, such as school and church communities. To watch the gradual decline of someone you live with and look up to is something I would never wish on anyone. I made it my goal to help the Cancer Council in any way I could. I thank Cancer Council NSW for the great work it has done over the years. I have supported the Cancer Council by selling daffodils on Daffodil Day at the local train station, chairing the Relay for Life for 12 years in the St George area, and raising much-needed money. Last Friday, I held an Australia's Biggest Morning Tea in my electorate which raised $2,500. The Cancer Council does an amazing job. Previous speakers have mentioned where the funding is spent, such as on medical research and helping those in need. I once again put on record the great work of Cancer Council NSW.

In Australia, 1.1 million people are either battling or have survived cancer, and there are 123,000 new cases each year. Since my mum passed away in the early 1990s, survival rates have gone through the roof. That is great news. Medical advancements, such as being able to pinpoint and treat the bad cells and not destroy the good cells, have seen an increase in the survival rate—and it will continue to increase. I am quietly confident that one day we will see a cure for cancer; I hope it is in my lifetime. Already there are vaccinations for young women at age 16. I think this is the start of things to come. I thank everyone who attended the morning tea I held and I thank the Speaker for holding Australia's Greatest Morning Tea at Parliament House. These fundraising efforts will not bring back my mum but they will help in the treatment and survival rates of people with cancer.

Mr ADAM CROUCH (Terrigal) (17:52:33):

By leave: I put on record my acknowledgement of the member for North Shore in bringing this motion before the House and my gratitude to Madam Speaker for her generosity this morning in holding the function in the Speaker's Garden today. It was well attended by all members in this place. I also pay special tribute to Roslyn English. Ros is a powerhouse of the Cancer Council on the Central Coast. She is a strong and worthy advocate for the Cancer Council. I note my appreciation for the hard work that she and the team of the Cancer Council Central Coast do to fight the scourge that is cancer. All members are fully supportive of all the Australia's Big Morning Teas around the nation. The ones that are held on the Central Coast are particularly well attended, as the member for Gosford highlighted earlier this evening. Once again, I congratulate the member for North Shore on bringing this motion and the Speaker on holding today's Australia's Big Morning Tea. Long may they continue.

Ms SOPHIE COTSIS (Canterbury) (17:53:50):

By leave: I acknowledge the member for North Shore for bringing forward this motion. I also acknowledge the member for Oatley who told us his personal experience of cancer as a teenager. Survival rates have increased and that is because of the funding that goes to research. It also goes to getting the message out there, especially in relation to preventative health. A few years ago my mother-in-law passed away from cancer. It is a very difficult time for families. I want to raise the importance of men and women from multicultural communities accessing information and getting cancer checks. Often, people from non-English speaking background, particularly women, delay going to the doctor. When they do go they have major issues or it is too late.

I also want to acknowledge the Bangladeshi Australian community, who held an Australia's Biggest Morning Tea last Sunday at Parry Park, which my colleague Mr Jihad Dib and I attended. The Bangladeshi community has been holding this annual event for the past 17 years and has raised over $150,000 in that time. They have done a great job and I congratulate them on their magnificent turnout at this event last Sunday. Both the men and women cooked for the thousands of people who turned up. I thank the Bangladeshi community for their contribution to this fundraising efforts and I also thank Cancer Council NSW.

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (17:56:06):

I note that an amount of $25 that was left in the House has been unclaimed. I suggest that the money be contributed to Madam Speaker's fundraising event that was held today. I acknowledge the work that my wife has done for the Cancer Council over 28 years. She was given a death sentence 28 years ago, and she is a cancer survivor. She is the regional patron for the Cancer Council in Coffs Harbour. She opened the Cancer Council shop in Coffs Harbour and has worked there gratis for many years. The work of Cancer Council NSW in all our communities is to be commended. I especially commend it on its research to find a cure. I once again commend the Speaker for her annual morning tea event—unfortunately I was unable to attend this morning—and also commend the member for North Shore for bringing this important issue to the House.

Ms FELICITY WILSON (North Shore) (17:57:31):

In reply: I thank all of the members who have contributed to this matter of public importance. It is very powerful to hear the personal stories of people affected by cancer. I think most people have been affected by cancer in different ways. We heard from members of this place who have lost mothers, fathers and parents-in-law and about the trauma and the impact that cancer has had on them as children or as adults and on their families. As members of Parliament, we must understand the impact of our decisions on government funding and investment in services and facilities for people accessing cancer treatment. The member for Oatley spoke about the goal of curing cancer. I hope that in the not-too-distant future that this is a fight that we, as a fairly advanced human race and with all the scientific advancements, can win and that we will defeat cancer.

I acknowledge the comments from the member for Gosford about the work that has been done in her local community in providing care for her constituents. She also spoke of the loss of her mother and the impact of cancer on her mother and her family. I acknowledge the Speaker, the member for South Coast, and the work that she has done in ensuring funding for the new cancer care centre in her area. She spoke of the significant investments to support members of her local community who need treatment who—as the member for Gosford also said—would otherwise have to travel for treatment. I also thank the Speaker for her many years of fundraising.

I am glad to hear that the work of the member for Oatley, who is deeply embedded in his community, extends beyond re-election campaigns. He has given more than a decade of support to the Cancer Council and other organisations in fundraising endeavours to defeat this disease. It was very powerful to hear him speak about losing his mother at a very young age and the effect on his family and community. I thank the member for Canterbury for her contribution. It was wonderful to hear about the money that was raised by the Bangladeshi community. I also thank Mr Assistant Speaker, the member for Coffs Harbour, for his contribution. It was wonderful to hear about all the work that his wife has done in this space. I also acknowledge the contribution of Mr Adam Crouch in support of this matter of public importance. In my own backyard, I am so fortunate that on the North Shore we do not have the challenges that people face in regional areas. We have a health super precinct in our backyard at Royal North Shore Hospital. I lastly pay tribute to everybody who works at Cancer Council NSW, who works in treating patients with cancer and who provides support at Royal North Shore Hospital in our precinct. Thank you all very much.

The House adjourned, pursuant to standing and sessional orders, at 18:01 until

Thursday 25 May 2017 at 10:00.