Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Agriculture, Ms Pulford. The action I call for from the minister is to examine the feasibility of legislation to create mandatory reporting of cases of suspected animal abuse — — The PRESIDENT — Order! Under the standing orders Ms Patten is not allowed to call for legislation, and therefore for a review of legislation, so I wonder if she could change her action. Ms Patten— Thank you, President. I will reword that. The action I call for is that the minister look at how we deal with...

My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Small Business, Innovation and Trade. One of the first institutions I visited in my region after being elected was, unusually, a convent — the Abbotsford Convent. I have always loved the space, regardless of its history of cruelty to women and children and the other nefarious things it was host to. It is beautiful. Since the CEO of the Abbotsford Convent Foundation, Maggie Maguire, made me aware that this not-for-profit community-run venue was being hit by a congestion levy, I have been campaigning for its removal. The convent attracts 1.3 million visitors every...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — I am very proud to be here representing the Australian Sex Party on the day the Aboriginal flag was permanently raised above this Parliament. As many people have said, it is a day that has been long overdue. Victorian Aboriginal history is very rich, and that is largely due to the people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to their ancestors and elders, both past and present. I would also like to pay my respects to the younger generation and the current generation who are carrying on this great culture. It was...

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence. On Friday, 31 July, I hosted a White Ribbon fundraiser to support the White Ribbon campaign. Although anyone can commit family violence, men are drastically over-represented as offenders in this area. During that time, I was able to present a submission to the inquiry into family violence, which covered the notions of relationship education, body safety and support for the LGBTI community. Men are drastically over-represented as offenders in this area — thus White Ribbon's focus on men's violence against women. That allows...

MS Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — The other week I was delighted to visit the Thomastown fire station to meet the inspiring firemen — they are all men; there are no women — of brigade A. In a few short hours I saw what state-of-the-art tools and gadgets can be found in the rescue trucks, some of which have been invented by the firemen themselves. I also learnt about the incredible work done by the juvenile fire awareness and intervention program, where firemen mentor young people convicted of arson. I even got to try on a fire suit and put out...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — Thank you, President, for your earlier birthday wishes that mark the anniversary of my 21st birthday. I could not be happier than to spend today with everyone in this chamber. I must say that when I had my 21st birthday I could not have imagined I would be celebrating it here. Ms Shing — Where else would you rather be? Ms PATTEN — Nowhere. I thank Ms Shing. I take this opportunity, as part of my adjournment contribution, to talk a little bit about the creativity and innovation I have found in Northern Metropolitan Region. I have...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the AttorneyGeneral. On Sunday of this weekend we are celebrating Bicycle Day. This is not the sort of bicycle for which you need to wear shorts or even a helmet; this is Bicycle Day to celebrate the first trip of LSD — lysergic acid diethylamide. LSD was discovered by Albert Hofmann. On 19 April 1943 he took some LSD. Mr Ramsay — Did he get a trip? Ms PATTEN — He did get a trip, and he rode his bicycle on that trip. He rode his bicycle home and discovered that during that journey he saw a lot of kaleidoscopic,...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Police and concerns Meet Us on the Street — International Anti-Street Harassment Week. From Australia to Zimbabwe, organisers are running a hashtag called #EndSH — end street harassment. This is a problem that tens of millions of people experience, sadly young women and members of the LGBTI community in particular. It limits people’s feeling of safety and their ability to get around in the evenings, and sometimes it inhibits people’s ability to live a full life. Basically it is a human rights violation. It is important to talk about this not...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Honourable Jill Hennessy, the Minister for Health. I call on the Minister for Health to formally allocate funding in the government’s 2015–16 budget to the Royal Children’s Hospital gender dysphoria service. Gender dysphoria is the formal diagnosis used by psychologists to describe people who experience significant discontent with the sex and gender they were assigned at birth. A greater awareness of transgender identities and nonbinary bodies has meant that the number of children accessing medical treatment to help them transition to the gender with which they identify has increased exponentially. In 2014...

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Planning. I ask him to intervene and to issue a refusal for the application for a permit for the Wesley Church complex at 118–148 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, which is the site of the Princess Mary Club. The demolition of this beautiful heritage building would be a disaster for Melbourne. It has great historical, architectural and social significance for women — and for everyone — because of the role it played in the early development of Victoria when single women came from country areas to Victoria, and to Melbourne in particular, after...