Questions to Govenment

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:50): My constituency question is for the Minister for Health and relates to a new northern hospital. The Northern Hospital has only 400 beds. It has the busiest emergency department in the state, treating approximately 100 000 patients each year. The Northern Health catchment includes three of the state’s six largest growth areas—Hume, Whittlesea…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:04): My question is for the minister representing the Minister for Health and relates to the parliamentary inquiry into the use of cannabis in Victoria. It was my referral and an inquiry that I indeed chaired. The report tabled on 5 August 2021 made 21 findings and 17 recommendations and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:50): (1969) My constituency question is for the Minister for Health and relates to robot-assisted surgery in public hospitals in the north of the electorate. Surgical cancer margin rates are consistently better where a robot is used. This has resulted in a progressively greater discrepancy between the public and private…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:19): My question is for the Attorney-General. A recent Fitzroy Legal Service and Latrobe University research report documented how women experiencing domestic and family violence are policed and criminalised. Amongst its various findings, the report highlighted police misidentification of victim-survivors as predominant aggressors as a problematic issue in the criminal…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:43): My question is for the Minister for Health. My constituent is a member of the Bars of the North, a collective of nightspot operators in Melbourne’s inner north. With the dangerous seizure of a huge quantity of fentanyl at our borders recently, Bars of the North have recommended that their…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:33): My question is for the Attorney-General and relates to sentencing. Victorian women prisoners are growing at the fastest rate in the Western world, with Aboriginal women being the most incarcerated group on the planet by population. As we heard in the justice inquiry and from organisations like the Health…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:38): My constituency question is for the Minister for Education. My constituent is a resident of Oak Park and a mother of two. She highlights that Glenroy College, John Fawkner College and Pascoe Vale Girls College are under-utilised, underperforming and have been that way for some time. She is one of…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:52): (1919) My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. As I mentioned previously in this place, the Preston Market is a gem of the northern suburbs. It has diverse stalls, great-priced produce and an incredible cultural mix in a COVID-preferred open-air environment. It is bustling and diverse and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:47): My question is for the Attorney-General. Only minutes ago on the steps of Parliament I received a petition of 65 799 Victorians, and this was from the Smart Justice for Young People coalition, calling on the government to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14 years….

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:49): (1896) My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. The Preston Market, established in 1970, is the heartbeat of the northern suburbs and is known for the open-air atmosphere, cultural mix and fresh produce at great prices. It is a defining feature of Preston, and its bustling atmosphere…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:16): My question is for the minister for early childhood and relates to kindergarten. Back in June with some fanfare the minister announced free three- and four-year-old kinder for Victorian families, but I would have to say even a cursory look at the detail suggests that kindergarten will not be…

  Incorporated pursuant to order of Council of 7 September 2021: My constituency question is for the Minister for Education and relates to Glenroy College. Glenroy College has faced declining enrolments since 2014, with current enrolments lower than the state average. This directly impacts school funding and the curriculum, with the school currently unable to…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:36): (1833) My question is for Minister Carroll, and it is in relation to the safety of Nicholson Street. There is a very active community group that has been advocating for changes to Nicholson Street up at the Coburg end, where in a 24-hour period just a few months ago there…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:24): My question is for the Minister for Suburban Development, Minister Leane, and it relates to Broadmeadows. Broadmeadows train station is rated 245th out of 249. It is dark, it is dangerous, it is covered with graffiti, and it is really symptomatic of the whole of the precinct of Broadmeadows. We have…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:56): My question is for the Attorney-General. Back on 7 April 2022 I asked the Attorney a question on the subject of women on remand, and in her reply she stated: … in relation to remand, there are too many women on remand. I completely agree with that. As we know, remand numbers…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:43):  My constituency question is for the Minister for Housing. My constituent is a single mum with two children, and she resides in one of the North Richmond towers. She observes what she describes as basically a free-for-all of non-residents accessing the building and using the lifts and stairs. This…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:03): My question is for the minister representing the Minister for Health. On 29 April the Coroners Court handed down its findings into the death of Mr S, who was 20 years of age. He died on 28 June 2020, and I would like to extend my sincere condolences to…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:39): (1780) My constituency question is for the Minister for Education. My constituent is a parent at Coburg High School. They ask why the following non-government Catholic schools have received capital funding since 2019—St Fidelis School, St Paul’s Primary School, Penola Catholic College and St Francis de Sales—whereas Coburg High…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:18): My question is for the Minister for Workplace Safety and relates to medicinal cannabis. As I raised with you in the house earlier this year, and you confirmed, 90 per cent of medicinal cannabis patients are being denied remuneration for reasonable costs resulting from their injuries when those costs…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:50): (1753) My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety and relates to the Bell Street bridge in Coburg. Local residents have welcomed recently announced traffic-calming treatments at this location but remain concerned about pedestrian safety. Their concerns include: footpaths that in some places are narrower…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:05): My question is for the Attorney-General. The Crime Statistics Agency has shown that between 2012 and 2018 the number of women entering prison increased from 333 to 825, with a percentage increase in women entering prison on remand and a percentage decrease in women entering under sentence. In fact…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:41): (1715) My constituency question is for the Minister for Resources and relates to the proposed quarry in Beveridge in my electorate. I have recently sat down with local community members who highlighted their concerns that the quarry will bring dust, noise, congestion, pollution and vibrations and be a significant…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:33): My question is for the minister representing the Treasurer and relates to tax exemptions for religious organisations. Currently the Duties Act 2000 provides an exemption for transfer duty to a corporation or body established for a religious purpose. Further, it provides an exemption from transfer duty for the so-called…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:36): My question is for the Minister for Multicultural Affairs. After the terrifying fall of Kabul to the Taliban thousands of Afghan refugees were welcomed into Victoria. Many have been staying in temporary accommodation in my electorate, including a group of journalists who fled the Taliban, to whom this question…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:03): My question is for the Minister for Higher Education. Last week I met with the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in relation to their state budget submission. One of their policy ideas that they presented to me was to provide financial support to internationals students so that they…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:57): (1656) My constituency question is for the Minister for Housing, and it is in regard to the quality and safety of public housing sites in Glenroy. My office has actually received a number of complaints from residents around that area about the poor quality and safety of the three…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:32): My question is for the Minister for Workplace Safety. Last week I met with a really beautiful man called Warren Brown, whose arm was really sadly very badly crushed in a workplace accident a number of years ago. He is like many other patients on workers compensation, who are…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (1623) Incorporated pursuant to order of Council of 7 September 2021: My constituency question is for the Minister for Health and relates to COVID regulations as they apply to a specific venue in my electorate. Simone Pulga, the owner of the Butterfly Club, a theatre venue in Melbourne’s CBD, has…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:38): My question is for the Attorney-General, and it relates to birth certificates. Currently in Victoria we do not allow a person who does not fit a very narrow and conventional relationship description to be listed on a child’s birth certificate. They have to be a spouse or they have…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:21): My question is for the minister for medical research, Minister Pulford. Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory condition that affects one in nine women. The pain is sharp, with sufferers describing it as like a knife twisting inside their stomach. Patients are typically prescribed opioids or even benzodiazepines, and these…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:52): (1570) My constituency question is for the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change. Kate Jost, a resident of mine in Reservoir, is really concerned that native birds and wildlife in her area are being attacked by domestic cats. Darebin council has introduced a cat curfew, but in her…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:21): My question is for the minister representing the Treasurer and relates to tax concessions for the so-called religious charities. Fairfax revealed several years ago that the Catholic Church holds assets in Victoria valued at over $9 billion, making it the largest non-government landholder in the state. Those holdings reportedly include banks,…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:48): My question is to the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change. Edwardes Lake was once a jewel waterway of the north. The 50-year-old boathouse stands as a reminder of its heyday, where water sports, boating, fishing and even swimming were popular for decades. However, pollution, sewage, industrial waste and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:00): My question is for the Minister for Higher Education. A recent survey by the Health and Community Services Union found 96 per cent of the workforce had witnessed violence in their workplace. The workforce identifies a clear nexus between addiction and this violence. Allied health workers say they need…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:24): (1511) My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. Safe Access over Bell Street Bridge for Everyone, SABBE, is a community group of school parents who are concerned about the longstanding safety issues in the Bell Street risk zone at the intersections of Bell, Elizabeth…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:16): My question is for the Attorney-General. Since 2015 the Mental Health Legal Centre and Bolton Clarke homeless persons program have delivered a unique health justice service to the most vulnerable people in our society. Much of their work has been to help women with PTSD from domestic violence and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:19): (1476) My constituency question is for the Minister for Creative Industries. On 27 May this year the highly anticipated festival, the Rising, of which the government is a principal partner, was cancelled due to the spread of COVID. This festival was going to be a kickstart for so many…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:57): (1436) My constituency question is for the Minister for Education, and it is in regard to John Fawkner College, which is just north of my electorate office. The college was very pleased to receive $50 000 in funding in the 2019 budget for a master plan for the school’s…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:36): My question is for Minister Pulford in her portfolio of medical research, and it relates to the neuromedicines discovery centre, which is a new and unique research venture by Monash University. Trials have shown that medically assisted psychotherapy is an effective and long-lasting treatment option for PTSD, depression and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:45): (1396) My constituency question is for the Minister for Community Sport. My office has been contacted by Steven Hazelwood, the operations manager for the Thornbury Turf Strokers Cricket Club. His club is in the difficult position of having to find a training ground for the upcoming season, because many…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:05): My question is for the minister representing the police minister. I have been contacted by Fitzroy Legal Service and a private criminal law firm who are acting for multiple clients of the medically supervised injecting room who have recently been charged with drug possession offences within the vicinity of…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (1369) Incorporated pursuant to order of Council of 7 September: My constituency question is for the Minister for Health and relates to the Services Victoria app. For many months now my constituent has been using QR codes to check in everywhere she goes in my electorate, believing that the purpose…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:33): My question is for the Minister for Health in the other place. The growing COVID outbreak in the north of my electorate has been hugely distressing for my community. My office spoke to Dr Umber Rind, a GP in Craigieburn, yesterday. She is incredibly concerned that GP clinics keep…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:14): My question is for the Minister for Workplace Safety. The recent outbreak at Royal Melbourne Hospital led to hundreds of staff being furloughed for two weeks. The system at Royal Melbourne that they had to manage the communications with the staff just failed. Workers were left confused, fearful and…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:17): My question is to the Minister for Small Business. The UK has invested in pathogen reduction ventilation, and a team of engineers, scientists and medical experts have developed a system that uses high-intensity UVC light to kill airborne pathogens. It removes 99.99 per cent of COVID, and the technology…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) Incorporated pursuant to order of Council of 7 September: My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. Our constituent reports a number of pedestrian and cyclist safety concerns with the new pedestrian crossing under the recently elevated Upfield line at Coburg station on Bell Street. It…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:26): My question is to the Leader of the Government. Over the pandemic we have obviously seen an increase and a spike in the need for mental health services in Victoria. We have also seen the government’s great commitment to the recommendations from the royal commission into mental health. But…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:28): (1288) My constituency question is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Jacinta Allan. The Shirley Robertson childcare centre, just behind my electorate office in Brunswick, have had their sunlight badly affected by the level crossing removal project. Children need sunlight, while the solar panels they recently acquired will be…

  MS PATTEN — To ask the Minister for Workplace Safety (for the Minister for Planning): My question is for the Minister for Planning. Many residents in the suburb of Fawkner have contacted me in recent times to make their voices heard at what they see as the continued overdevelopment of their area. The Fawkner Residents…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:20): My question today is for Minister Stitt in her capacity as workplace safety minister. Professor Johanna Maclean of Temple University in the US has just completed a landmark research paper studying the impacts of medicinal cannabis legislation on workers compensation claims. She found that there was a 14 per…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:27): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Education. Now, whilst I was really pleased to see good funding for Lalor Primary, Lalor Secondary and Peter Lalor College—in fact they are sharing tens of millions of dollars in funding—the Northern School for Autism in Lalor, however, has yet…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:00): My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. I have had several angry constituents contact my office after seeing reports in the media that the government-commissioned report on the North East Link has revealed the builders of the project underestimated the scale of tree loss by as much…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:04): My question today is for the Attorney-General. The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service stated in a recent budget submission that without adequate funding they may have to withdraw from the Victorian Aboriginal Justice Agreement and cut services, so it was disappointing to see that, despite VALS having developed their Aboriginal…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:16): My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety in the other place. Anna, a resident of Thornbury in my electorate of Northern Metropolitan, has approached my office regarding concerns about the ‘keep clear’ sign currently on the corner of Station Street and Collins Street in…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:02): My question today is for the Minister for Veterans. In what is the final step towards medical approval, a major study in the US has shown that MDMA brings relief to those suffering from severe post-traumatic stress disorder. Those who received MDMA in a test group experienced a significantly…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:06): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. I have had representations from constituents in relation to the roundabout on the corner of Gilbert Road and Henty Street in Reservoir. In the immediate vicinity of this roundabout are three schools, a childcare centre, assisted…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:30): My question is for the Attorney-General. We have recently had a case under the voluntary assisted dying legislation where a New Zealand woman who had been living in Victoria for 20-plus years and was a nurse here was denied access to voluntary assisted dying. The reason given was that…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:02): My question today is for the Minister for Planning, and it comes from a concerned group of citizens in Craigieburn. The Craigieburn West precinct structure plan is one of 19 planning and infrastructure projects being fast-tracked as part of the government’s response to the COVID-19 crisis. This precinct will…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:43): My question is for the minister for the digital economy. In the last few months we have seen an extraordinary rise in the value of cryptocurrencies, led by the continued heights that the most popular currency, bitcoin, has achieved. Today one bitcoin is worth over A$65 000. I have…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:37): My constituency question is for the Minister for Agriculture. My constituent, a greyhound owner, has a question on behalf of the thousands of greyhounds in my electorate—ruff! Under Victorian law greyhounds must be on a leash in public areas, making it very difficult for owners to responsibly give their…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:17): My question is for the Minister for Local Government. At the beginning of this month you announced the Gender Equality Advisory Committee, which among other things will drive the implementation of the Australian-first Gender Equality Act 2020 across local government. I think you spoke more about it, if I…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:44): My constituency question is for the Minister for Creative Industries. The Butterfly Club is a small theatre in the Melbourne CBD. Currently industry restrictions are written in such a way to limit their capacity to 75 per cent of the auditorium. They are also imposing a limit of one person per…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:33): My question is for the Attorney-General. The Public Accounts and Estimates Committee’s inquiry into the Victorian government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic found 39 985 fines had been issued to people in Victoria for breaches of the COVID-19 rules. 2806 of those fines have been paid in full and 4869 were withdrawn….

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:20): My question is to the Minister for Workplace Safety and relates to Central Pier in Docklands. A recent article in the Age revealed that Development Victoria, the agency in charge of Central Pier, knew for quite a few years that the 100-year-old structure was at extreme risk of collapse,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:54): My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. The MCG Trust, the Melbourne Cricket Club and the Yarra Park trust have changed the regulations for the precinct around the MCG known as Yarra Park to ban amplified sound. Yarra Park is an entertainment precinct. Under these changes it will…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:14): My question is for Minister for Local Government. When it comes to regional rates policy, governments of either colour have issued reports, reviews and recommendations but really taken very little action. In last Saturday’s edition of the Sunraysia Daily the editor wrote a column where he spoke about his sister,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:54): My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. Last year I joined the City of Whittlesea’s nightmare commute bus, and a nightmare it was—2 hours and 12 excruciating minutes from Wollert to the CBD. The fragmented Edgars Road has been a crucial missing link in Melbourne’s…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:17): My question is for the Attorney-General. Prior to the 30 June deadline for organisations to sign up to the national redress scheme, the Attorney-General said, and I quote, it is ‘just not acceptable’ that institutions do not sign up: We will be making it a condition of contracts with the…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:12): My question is for Minister Leane, as veterans minister. The RSL was founded during World War I to help care for returning veterans. A hundred years later these clubs are multimillion-dollar organisations. In Victoria a large proportion of the RSL’s annual income comes from poker machines. To be precise, RSL…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:51): My constituency question is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure. The Bell Residents Group has produced a rather annoying—you may have heard it, President—earworm video to the tune of Go West. It is an appeal from residents around the Bell Street station, currently under construction, and they would like to…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:06): My question is to the Minister for Small Business. Licensed brothels, escort agencies, strip clubs and adult service operators are concerned that because of the nature of their business they will be discriminated against during the reopening of Victorian businesses that has just been announced by the government. Like many…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:25): My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. Earlier this year we had the YMCA Youth Parliament here. It was not the normal Youth Parliament that we normally have, but it was still terrific for Coburg High School, who were able to take part in it and put…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan): My question is for the Minister for Community Sport, Ros Spence. Members of my community in Coburg have been blindsided by the proposal to install synthetic grass on the majority of Hosken Reserve, denying the community valuable green space. I understand the field will be used by the local soccer teams,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:10): My question is for the Minister for Veterans, Minister Leane. I actually probably would have written to you about this today, but seeing as we are here, it gave me the perfect opportunity to ask you about it. As we know, veterans face homelessness at a far greater rate than…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (11:39): My question is to the Minister for Higher Education, Minister Tierney. There are approximately 20 000 student accommodation placement places in greater Melbourne, and we do not expect our international students to be coming back at the fulsome numbers that we had in the past. So I am wondering if you…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:18): My constituency question is for the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Lily D’Ambrosio. Matthew Jenkins from Brunswick wrote to me outlining the trouble he and his wife have had accessing the solar panel rebate scheme. Matthew and his wife own an apartment in Manallack Street in…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:23): My question is for the Minister for Small Business. The government has a COVID-19 Business Support Fund for those operations impacted by stage 3 and 4 restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell shire area. These are $10 000 grants that are available until 14 September. I know many businesses…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) My constituency question is for the health minister, Minister Mikakos. A constituent contacted my office seeking clarification on the stage 4 directions. The reason I want to raise it here is because we have been unable to ascertain a clear answer from DHHS. Tylar is the executor of a deceased’s estate. He…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan): My constituency question is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Minister Allan. Several constituents of mine have contacted me to tell me about the horrendous noise created by the Level Crossing Removal Project in the early hours of the morning. I understand the government is looking to stimulate the economy by…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:27): My question is for the Minister for Health. According to estimates, of the 1000 or so homeless people currently in temporary housing in hotels during this crisis, at least one-third have significant issues relating to drug dependence. These also include the long-term consequences of some of their ongoing ill health…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Local Government, Mr Leane, and it’s a very simple question too. Candidates and constituents in my electorate of Northern Metro have approached me with various queries about the upcoming local council elections. The most common question is: is the government postponing council…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:10): My question was for the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, but I am going to redirect it now, as there is not one, to the Minister for Health. It comes from several brothel operators in my electorate of Northern Metro. Brothels are closed. They have been closed…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:25): My question is for Minister Tierney, representing the Attorney-General. On 19 April 2020 the Attorney-General announced via media release that: Victorian organisations Who do not sign up to the National Redress Scheme will risk losing government funding … Despite a 30 June 2020 deadline for institutions to join the scheme,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:21): I would like to ask a question, thanks President, and I would like to ask a question of the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council, representing the Attorney-General. As the minister would be aware, Victoria is the only state in this country without a spent convictions scheme despite…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:06): My constituency question is for the Minister for Education. A number of constituents have raised with me the matter of the amount and quality of hand sanitiser in our local schools in Northern Metro, and in particular in Brunswick. Some schools in this region have complained that they simply do…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:35): My question is to the Minister for Health. There seems to be a great deal of confusion right now in relation to the medication ibuprofen. We have been hearing stories circulating, particularly in the UK and in France, saying that it is dangerous to take if you have the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:10): My question is for the Minister for Public Transport. A recent RACV survey found South Kensington station to be the worst train station in Victoria—rated by commuters. The biennial survey saw commuters calling out safety concerns and complaining of a lack of shelter and lack of parking as their…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:54): My constituency question is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Jacinta Allan. An active community group in my electorate called the Upfield Corridor Coalition have been widely supportive of the Level Crossing Removal Project in their area; however, they do have some concerns. These concerns are centred around the design…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:39): My question is for the Minister for Health and concerns the closure of the catering company I Cook Foods. Dr Brett Sutton, who was the acting chief health officer at the time and ordered the closure, has stated that he was satisfied from the report of an authorised officer…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:24): Keeping with the theme, my question is for Minister Jennings. Last night on the ABC’s 7.30 report there were serious concerns raised about the hugely popular social media app TikTok. TikTok is a Chinese-owned organisation that is proven to have significant ties to the Chinese Communist Party. Some of…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:39): My question is for the Minister for Workplace Safety. My constituent Cameron badly damaged his foot after a workplace accident last year and is unable to attend work for some time. In order to be paid his salary he is forced to visit his local doctor at least every 28 days…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:43): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Public Transport. My constituent Darren commutes to work by bike and train each day, a practice this government has encouraged. Recently Darren became stuck in the city with his bike when buses were replacing trains due to works on the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (18:13): My question is for the Minister for Road Safety and the TAC and relates to roadside drug testing. A study published in the journal Drug Testing and Analysis last year called into question the reliability of the two drug-testing devices used by our police, the Securetec DrugWipe and the…

    GAMBLING HARM Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:26): My question is for the Minister for Health and relates to gambling harm. I refer the minister to the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2019–2023. In Victoria the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 imposes a responsibility on state and local governments to plan for,…

  Mr LIMBRICK (South Eastern Metropolitan) (12:38): Thank you, President. I appreciate your patience in allowing me to have another go at this unusual process. My question is for Ms Patten, regarding item 170 on the notice paper. This refers to her motion concerning the medically supervised injecting room. Given that this has been quite…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:12:19): My question is to the minister representing the Assistant Treasurer. The money laundering scandal that has been engulfing Westpac Banking Corporation has now forced its CEO, Brian Hartzer, and chairman, Lindsey Maxsted, to resign. The bank has been accused by the financial intelligence agency AUSTRAC of breaching Australia’s money laundering…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:11:22): My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. A resident of Nicholson Street has written to me in relation to Public Transport Victoria’s plans to close Nicholson Street for 17 days in January. The residents have been told that they will have no access to the street…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:13): My question is for the Minister for Local Government, Mr Somyurek, and it concerns allegations of corruption in the City of Greater Dandenong. Recently we have seen allegations of criminal behaviour by council officers in relation to the closure of catering company I Cook Foods. A whistleblower, Ms Kim…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:48:23): My question today is for the Minister for Education. Newlands Primary School is a small but important local state school that services the Preston, Coburg and Reservoir catchments. In just seven years the school has seen its population explode from 88 to 236. This is expected to increase beyond…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:41:26): My constituency question is directed to the Treasurer. Earlier this year I met with the Darebin group called Does Council Care. They have been campaigning to have council-run home support services quarantined from the application of national competition rules. They point out that mayor Susan Rennie wrote to the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:20): My question is for the Minister for Health and relates to access to abortion services in the public health system in Victoria, particularly for those who cannot afford to pay for them privately. You may recall I asked a similar question last year when you were acting for the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:06): My question is for the Special Minister of State. The Crown allegations are not going away. On Monday we had a former employee detail instances where he had witnessed illegal activity on almost a daily basis. On Tuesday we saw footage leaked by whistleblowers within the regulator itself, the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:56:24): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Police and Emergency Services. Recently I met with Peta Ferguson from North Melbourne. She has an acquired brain injury and is absolutely brilliant as an advocate through her work with Brain Injury Matters, which is a self-advocacy resource unit. Brain…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:21): My question is to the Minster for Small Business. The level crossing in Reservoir—High Street and Spring Street and Broadway and Cheddar Road— is currently under construction. It started in late November 2018, and I do agree: I am very pleased to see it finally happening. But Reservoir traders…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:04:35): My question is to the Minister for Roads and Minister for Road Safety and the TAC. Recently I met with a group of concerned traders called Revitalise Nicholson Street. They are a passionate group from local businesses who are attempting to ensure that the popular and bustling Nicholson Street in…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:56): My question is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure. I have been meeting with community as well as the team from the Level Crossing Removal Project in relation to the designs for the upgrades to the Upfield line. Of specific interest to the community is the area around the…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:27): My question is for the Minister for Health. Minister, the music festival season starts in just a few weeks and the Andrews Labor government still has not agreed to a pill testing trial, an initiative that we know can contribute to keeping young people safe. We saw overdose statistics…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:16): My question is for the Minister for Agriculture and follows on a little bit from my good colleague Mr Quilty. The Victorian government has been growing cannabis since 2016, and it has also licensed the Cann Group to provide flower and resin to it also. Given the relatively quick…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:52:41): My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. My constituent has been diagnosed with chronic pain disorder, which for her evolved out of severe endometriosis, which required a number of surgeries. Despite having a successful career, she suffers silently with daily pain as well as severe and debilitating…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:03): My question is for the Minister for Local Government. Unlike other local governments in Victoria, Melbourne City Council automatically requires businesses to vote in council elections. Not only that, corporations operating in Melbourne city are allocated two votes in the poll. When a company does not appoint its own representatives the…

  MS PATTEN: My question is for the Minister for the Environment. Recently there was a major landslip on the Yarra River bank close by the Glenvill residential development of the old Amcor paper mill site at Alphington. Two large gum trees have fallen into the river, and I am lead to believe that there…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:22:48): My question is for the Minister for Roads and concerns promises made by VicRoads for traffic improvements in the Brunswick district. I recently met with cycling and pedestrian advocate—and, I may add, part-time archaeologist—Nic Dolby. He has lobbied extensively in regard to issues facing both pedestrians and cyclists in…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:58:02): My question is for the Minister for Health. At a recent voluntary assisted dying information session the chair of the government’s implementation taskforce stated that two GPs could not complete the certification process as one of them must be a ‘specialist in the terminal disease under consideration’. That advice…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:27:52): My question is to the minister representing the Treasurer in this house, Mr Jennings. Cryptocurrency such as bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple and TRON are now accepted as legitimate forms of assets and as payments for goods and services in Australia. Digital asset trading is now regulated and monitored by several bodies,…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:54:31): My question today is for the Minister for Public Transport and concerns a substation due for construction in Pascoe Vale. Recently I was contacted by a constituent, Mr Nigel Lee, who brought to my attention that a Public Transport Victoria substation is planned to be built at 211 Reynard…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:05): My question is for the Minister for Health and regards e-cigarettes, or more properly called vaporisers. About one in eight cancer deaths in Australia can still be attributed to smoking, underlining the importance of cessation strategies to our health system. The UK medicines regulator has approved a brand of…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:51:17): My constituency question is for the Minister for Health and concerns the need for a transplant centre of excellence. I recently met with Gordon Jenkins. His wife is a lung transplant recipient—one of the many in Victoria due to the success of our transplant schemes here and the great work…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:35:24): My question is for the Minister for Corrections, represented in this house by Minister Symes. In Victoria about 54 per cent of prisoners reoffend and 45 per cent return to prison within two years, which is a staggering rate of reoffending. It is well understood that community safety is…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (17:58:55): My constituency question is for the Minister for Housing. A constituent of mine works in the homelessness sector and raises concerns in relation to the infestation of bed bugs at a number of low-cost accommodation premises in my electorate, including the Victoria Hotel in Victoria Street, North Melbourne. She…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:24:32): My question is for the Leader of the Government and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Mr Jennings. The President has, in my view quite rightly, recently requested that members stand up for the acknowledgement of country in recognition of our Indigenous brothers and sisters at the opening of each session. I,…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:56:51): My question is for minister for transport. Victoria claims to be a state of progress and innovation and a major powerhouse for the Australian economy. In fact the Premier has said that Victoria leads the way in innovative technology companies and is home to some of Australia’s most important…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:04:34): My constituency question today is for the Minister for Public Transport and is in relation to tram route 11. I understand that her department is discussing extending route 11 so that it terminates at Reservoir station. However, constituents of mine tell me that there is a far greater need for…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:09:31): My question is for the Minister for Health. I would like to pick up where Dr Ratnam left off yesterday on the issue of pill testing. Pill testing is used as a harm minimisation strategy and has been for decades around the world, including New Zealand, and the evidence…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (15:01:09): My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. My constituent phoned yesterday, having had her dental appointment cancelled unexpectedly at Merri Health in Coburg. I contacted Merri Health to inquire and now understand that the cancelled appointment is a consequence of a new enterprise agreement for community health…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:57:12) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. My electorate officer gave birth last week to a beautiful baby girl. She has alerted me to a wonderful innovation that actually won one of the Premier’s design awards last week. It is called Karitane Early Parenting Concept Store, and it…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:00:40) — My question is for the Minister for Planning, represented here by Minister Dalidakis, and it relates to the 290-metre floating gas terminal proposed for Western Port Bay. This has been raised in here before, but it was raised with me earlier this week. We know that Australia is the largest…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:01:21) — My question is for the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, represented by Minister Dalidakis, and relates to massage parlours — not assuming you have any knowledge of them here. Right near my electorate office on Sydney Road, near the intersection with Albion Street, there are three massage parlours. If…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:38:45) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. My constituent is a regular user of the Upfield bike path that runs along the Upfield train line, and he, like me, was pleased that the minister heeded the Reason Party’s call to extend the pathway 800 metres to link the…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:28:16) — My question is for the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, represented in the house by Minister Dalidakis, and it relates to poker machine reform. A recent Essential Media Communications poll which surveyed 1035 respondents found 63 per cent supported the introduction of $1 maximum bets and only 15 per cent opposed it…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:06:10) — My question is for the Minister for Families and Children, representing the Minister for Health. Women in Victoria have a lawful right to access a termination up until 24 weeks. However, I am increasingly contacted by women who have been unable to access terminations in public hospitals. These terminations are available…

  MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:51:12) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. One of my constituents is a resident of Mill Park and is deeply concerned about traffic congestion in our northern suburbs. Whittlesea, at the top of our electorate, has experienced rapid growth. The municipality is now bigger than…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:26:06) — My question is for the Minister for Health represented by Minister Mikakos. The Victorian Oral Health Alliance estimates that only 16 per cent of those eligible to receive public dental care actually receive it. In my electorate, at Your Community Health in Darebin the wait for eligible adults seeking general dental care is…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:35:23) — My question is for the Minister for Mental Health, represented by Minister Mikakos. On 6 August this year Coroner Audrey Jamieson reported in relation to the tragic overdose death of Samuel Jack Morrison. In her report she noted that, and I quote: Advocating for establishment of the North Richmond Community Health (MSIC) has…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:37:47) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. My constituent is a member of the tram 86 campaign group which rallied today at the last stop of the number 86 tram line. Their proposal is to extend the tram line to South Morang to address congestion and a heavy reliance on…

MS PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:22:20) — My question is for the Treasurer, represented in this house by Minister Jennings. There are 24 800 Victorians who are homeless and over 80 000 are on public housing waiting lists. In looking at creative solutions to this, I note the success of build-to-rent schemes in overseas jurisdictions, which provide affordable, long-term and flexible rentals….

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:08:05) — My question is for the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing, represented by Minister Mikakos. Somewhat arbitrarily the Epilepsy Foundation has historically been funded from the disability budget rather than the health budget. With Department of Health and Human Services disability funding set to cease in less than 12 months time and be…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:51:03) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Police. My constituent is a father of young daughters and is concerned around the protection provided to his children by the working with children checks and certificates. He points to Victorian Bishop Peter Hollingworth as an example. He stated to me that the Royal Commission…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:04:03) — My question is for the Minister for Families and Children. Minister, we know that alcohol and other drugs (AOD) treatment for young people works. Research indicates that each dollar spent on AOD treatment returns $8 in future savings to health and justice-related services. In another study it was found that residential rehabilitation achieves…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:34:54) — My constituency question this week is for the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing, and I would like to thank Dylan Cutifani, who has been working in my office, for the question. We spoke to a constituent who is 82 years old, is trying to sell her house and has been told that…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:01:36) — My question is for the Special Minister of State and relates to government transparency and accountability — something I know he is very keen on. Other Australian jurisdictions, including Queensland, New South Wales and the ACT, have policies of open ministerial diaries, where information about the Premier’s and the ministers’ movements and meetings…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:25:19) — My question is for the Minister for Innovation and the Digital Economy, and it continues to relate to innovation spending. There are some wonderful innovations taking place in the hemp space, like the development of bioplastic polymers that are incredibly light and strong but also biodegradable and renewable, unlike petroleum-based plastics that…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:32:32) — My question is to the Minister for Innovation and the Digital Economy and relates to medical technologies, including biotech and pharmaceuticals. I note that you made a statement that Victoria is one of the world’s leading locations for the development of these technologies and that it effectively has a head start in…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:51:58) — My constituency question is to the Minister for Education. One of my constituents is the father of six-year-old and nine-year-old daughters and is concerned about school cyber safety. His daughters’ primary school requires students to create online profiles on an Australian fundraising website that include their name, their school and their photo…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (13:02:24) — Similar to Dr Ratnam, my question is for the Minister for Public Transport. I too was contacted by a constituent concerned about the slow proliferation of fully accessible tram stops in Northern Metropolitan Region. We note that the minister proudly announced 10 additional stops and six on the number 96 tram route, which is…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:48:28) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Emergency Services. I had a constituent come and see me the other week, and he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He is a professional firefighter of 32 years. In speaking to me he showed me some research studies that show the prevalence of Parkinson’s…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:42:48) — My question is for the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, who is represented by Mr Dalidakis. On 24 April the minister announced a major new study into gambling and health to help prevent and reduce gambling harm in the future. Specifically the minister announced that the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation will…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:47:23) — My constituent is a resident of Epping and is concerned about the welfare of the kangaroo population that has been landlocked by the surrounding developments. On 25 July 2017, using a five-year-old piece of advice, the Secretary of the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning issued an authorisation to cull these 400 landlocked…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:00:31) — My question is for the Special Minister of State, representing the Treasurer in this place, and it relates to the fire services property levy. The 2016 annual report of Catholic Church Insurance, in its ‘Notes to the financial statements’ under ‘Other assets’, includes a line item ‘Deferred fire service levy expenses’ in…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:45:08) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change. This week my constituent Graham Habgood wrote to me regarding the energy rebate that the government announced in November 2017. That announcement was that from 1 January 2018 nearly 300 000 Victorians would receive an energy rebate of up to $720. The…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:01:37) — My question is for the Minister for Corrections. On Monday the opposition announced its plans for compulsory residential drug and alcohol treatment for young offenders. This plan was reportedly based on the proposal of the Churchill Fellowship fellow and magistrate Jennifer Bowles. As a member of the parliamentary inquiry into youth justice…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:06:02) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. I recently had a meeting with the Pentridge Community Action Group. They are pretty happy with the way the development of the Pentridge prison site in Coburg is going, except for D Division, which is up for sale again, and the asking price…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:48:24) — My question is for the Minister for Public Transport in the other house. Just like last week, I have got another constituent who has come up with some great ideas for the Upfield bike path that runs along the Upfield train line. The bike path effectively ends at the top of Sages…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:47:25) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. I have got a number of constituents who ride their bikes to work using the Upfield line bike path. It is taking longer and longer as it becomes more and more congested, and it has reached a point where it is at…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:39:23) — My question is for the Minister for Health, represented by Minister Mikakos. On the night of Australia Day nine people were rushed to hospital, several not breathing and critically ill, following a mass overdose at Festival Hall. One is still in hospital. In the 12 days since, no Victorian authority has released public health…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:39:23) — My question is for the Minister for Health, represented by Minister Mikakos. On the night of Australia Day nine people were rushed to hospital, several not breathing and critically ill, following a mass overdose at Festival Hall. One is still in hospital. In the 12 days since, no Victorian authority has released public health…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:03:18) — My question is for the Attorney-General represented by Minister Tierney. On Friday the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sexual Abuse will present its final report, ending that intensive and often traumatic four-year investigative process. One of the commission’s major recommendations is the creation of a commonwealth redress scheme. The scheme requires that each…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:18:56) — My question is for the Minister for Police, represented by Minister Tierney. Natural justice and the presumption of innocence are fundamental human rights and cornerstones of our legal system. The principle of sub judice is something that we are all very familiar with in this context and a principle that we deal with…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:42:11) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. A constituent of mine, having experienced a sudden health issue, recently found herself unexpectedly admitted to the Mercy Hospital for Women for several days. She was shocked to find that the pharmacy at this public hospital would not supply her with her…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:03:29) — My question is for the Minister for Education, represented by Minister Tierney. On Tuesday of last week I asked a question of the minister in relation to the roof condition of Westgarth Primary School, referring to a report commissioned in 2015 as a consequence of ongoing roof leaks throughout the school. That report…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:50:40) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. My constituent is a resident of Alphington and is very concerned about public transport in her area. She has mobility issues and lives some distance from the Hurstbridge train line, so she is reliant on the 546 bus, which services Heidelberg Road. The…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (14:19:21) — My question is to the Minister for Education, represented by Minister Tierney. In September 2015 a roof condition report for Westgarth Primary School was commissioned, and this was as a consequence of years of ongoing roof leaks throughout the school. These have been worsening. Most of the ceiling areas in the building have…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is also for the Minister for Public Transport. My constituent also happens to be the very keen bike‑riding mayor of Banyule. His question to me was quite simple and my question to the minister is quite simple: where is Victoria’s cycling strategy, which has been promised but not…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Families and Children, and the action I am seeking is in relation to Victoria’s leaving care age for young people on custody or guardianship orders. Under current Victorian policy about 1800 young people have their custody or guardianship orders expire each year when they turn…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:33:09) — My question is for the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, who is represented in this house by Mr Dalidakis. Poker machine losses exceed $2.6 billion in Victoria each year, exacting a terrible toll on families and communities. Four hundred gambling-related suicides occur nationally every year. In our crossbench briefing on Monday…

MsPATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) (12:00:11) — My question is for the Minister for Health, represented in this house by the Minister for Families and Children. In the heatwave of 2009, 361 mainly elderly residents died of heat stress during blackouts and brownouts. Fortunately since then we have had fewer hot spells and good electricity supply, but as we know,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Public Transport represented by Mr Jennings, and it relates to the duplication of the Upfield railway line between Gowrie and Upfield stations. The state government’s Level Crossing Removal Authority will commence work later this year to grade separate the existing Upfield railway as part of the…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing. My constituent, a resident of Redmond Park retirement apartments in Princes Hill, has contacted me in relation to an issue at that facility, but it also pertains to the retirement sector regulation more broadly. At the time of purchase in 2009…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Trade and Investment and Minister for Innovation and the Digital Economy. As you know, Minister, I have taken an interest in innovation and firmly believe that giving young and innovative companies the support they need now will drive innovation, productivity and prosperity into the future….

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Education. My constituent, a primary school teacher from Melbourne’s inner north, has contacted me to follow up on an issue raised in an Age article back in May 2016 titled ‘White flight: race segregation in Melbourne state schools’. That article reported on unofficial racial segregation that was occurring…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Attorney-General, represented in this house by the Minister for Corrections. The marriage equality debate is unearthing degrees of prejudice that I think we had all hoped would not exist in 2017. In recognising this the federal government is ushering through new laws that would penalise those who intimidate…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change. Mark Jones, the president of the Thornbury Turf Strokers Cricket Club, has contacted me outlining a number of issues regarding Parks Victoria, which reports to the minister. In 2015 Parks Victoria took control of Yarra Bend Park, which includes Corben Oval,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Treasurer, represented in this house by the Special Minister of State, and it relates to the government’s proposed sale of Land Use Victoria, also known as the land titles office. The land titles office generates $300 million in revenue annually. The office would generate significantly more than its purported…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, represented in this house by the Minister for Agriculture. Media reports this week suggest that a second expert hired by the government to review its proposed congestion-busting West Gate tunnel, Mr John Allard, was critical of the road’s claimed traffic levels as modelled…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Sport. Recently I surveyed sporting organisations in the Northern Metropolitan Region. In that survey several constituents, including the Brunswick Zebras Soccer Club, expressed concern about the extent of facilities for their female members. As the minister is aware, there has been a boom in female field…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Small Business, Innovation and Trade. I have a constituent who provides fresh produce at the Queen Victoria Market. She operates one of the 700 individual businesses at the Queen Vic market, which incidentally has the highest concentration of small businesses anywhere in the country. Many of these…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Families and Children, representing the Minister for Health. In October 2015 the government announced that it had accepted all recommendations of the Victorian Law Reform Commission in relation to medicinal cannabis. These included the extension of medicinal cannabis to adults with multiple sclerosis, cancer, HIV/AIDS, epileptic…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Small Business, Innovation and Trade representing the Minister for Planning. At least 79 people are believed to have died in the inferno that engulfed the Grenfell Tower in London. Those pictures of the high-rise ablaze, I know, horrified us all. Worryingly Melbourne is not immune. In 2015…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is to the Attorney-General. I have a significant number of licensed venues in my region as well as the training headquarters of a large private security company. They are concerned about terrorism and the training given to security guards. While more than 50 temporary concrete bollards were installed overnight across the…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. Today I have had a number of constituents contact me regarding the closure of the Oxford Scholar Hotel on Swanston Street. It follows an article in the Age today, in which Malcolm Wulf, who has operated the pub for the past 25 years, says business has…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Corrections representing the Attorney-General. After evaluating Victoria’s bail system the Honourable Paul Coghlan, QC, recommended reforming the current show-cause threshold to a show-good-reason threshold for what could be loosely described as those middle category offences. Changes proposed by the government have gone further, reforming the test…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport. A few of the businesses near my electorate office in Sydney Road have met with me and said that they are very concerned about proposals circulating in the media to permanently remove on-street car parking from Sydney Road and replace it with…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Training and Skills representing the Minister for Police. Just weeks ago police hit the streets with sniffer dogs as part of so-called Operation Safenight. Then over the weekend there was the announcement that new no-reason stop-and-search powers will apply to music festivals. These measures are billed…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Corrections representing the Minister for Police. The Minister for Police on Tuesday announced new powers for protective services officers (PSOs), including powers to arrest a person who has breached their parole and powers to conduct searches for illicit drugs. The Law Institute of Victoria has…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is to the Minister for Planning. My question relates to a very controversial site in Fawkner, which is the old Nufarm factory site. I have had a number of constituents ring me believing that it is filled with carcinogenic chemicals and that it is probably a very unsafe site,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the minister representing the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Ms Pulford. The Transport Accident Commission’s (TAC’s) latest drug-driving campaign features a young man, completely in control of his vehicle, driving his grandmother home after Sunday lunch when he is subjected to a drug-driving test. His grandmother looks on…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — I have recently been contacted by constituents regarding the significant concerns amongst traders and patrons of the historic Queen Victoria Market because of the lack of transparency surrounding the project. It appears the City of Melbourne wants to repurpose the market as a supermarket-style food precinct rather than support its current model…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Corrections, representing the Attorney-General. It has been reported this week that young Victorian schoolgirls are being unlawfully forced into marriage in record numbers, with authorities investigating dozens of child bride and forced marriage claims. I think we should call it what it is:…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My second question is for the Minister for Families and Children, representing the Minister for Mental Health. In response to my supervised injecting centre bill and the coroner’s related recommendations around a medically supervised injecting centre, the minister announced in February a $1.3 million package to subsidise the cost of…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, and it is an issue that has been raised with me by a number of legal businesses in Melbourne. A ministerial advisory committee is established under section 67 of the Victorian Sex Work Act 1994 to advise the minister and…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Special Minister of State. The purpose of parliamentary committee inquiries is to investigate issues before the Parliament and to help inform the legislation we are to vote on, but there is a trend of pushing ahead with bills despite committees being yet to hand down reports. Reforms to…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Police. Recent media hysteria and inflated figures have led to the illusion that thousands of Victorians are driving under the influence of drugs every day. Current testing regimes ignore the fact that the much larger problem is actually people misusing…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing. A statewide disabled persons parking scheme currently operates in Victoria. The permits are available for persons with an ambulatory disability, an acute or chronic illness in which minimal walking may endanger health, or a disability or illness requiring rest breaks when walking,…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Public Transport, represented by Minister Pulford. The government’s compensation scheme for taxi licence owners as part of the broader ridesharing reforms has caused a great deal of angst and is directly linked to the $2 levy that the government proposes to introduce. A significant part…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Public Transport in the other place. I was approached by a wheelchair-bound constituent who is very supportive of having more operators with wheelchair access in the taxi and limousine services. She contacted me regarding London cabs, which I saw outside this morning. She used…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Police, represented by Minister Tierney. On Friday I launched a campaign in Richmond to end the needle nightmare, where we are seeing thousands of used needles in streets, Richmond traders losing business, residents having to resuscitate people who have overdosed and, very sadly, 34 tragic…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Families and Children, Ms Mikakos. I have been contacted by a number of sex workers in my region and their sex worker organisations because they are greatly concerned about the $300 000 awarded to Project Respect to visit licensed brothels — where Project Respect is not welcome —…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to Minister Mikakos, representing the Minister for Ambulance Services. Reducing pressure on ambulance services and improving ambulance response times are stated priorities of the Andrews government. In October 2016 Turning Point released its report Ambo Project: Alcohol and Drug-Related Ambulance Attendances. The report shows that for the financial year…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Families and Children, representing the Minister for Women. Wicked Campers advertisements have been said to vilify and demean women and have been the subject of recent media attention, and it is stated that the government has been hamstrung in dealing with them, but I…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is also for the Minister for Planning. On Saturday it was announced that the minister had approved a 70-storey apartment tower at 383 La Trobe Street, Melbourne. This tower will be precisely double the height of its widely recognised and highly acclaimed neighbour the Republic building, which is in my…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Families and Children, Ms Mikakos. In December 2013 the Victorian Ombudsman reported on his investigation into children transferred from the youth justice system to the adult prison system. In that report he stated unequivocally: I am of the view that there are no circumstances that…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Health represented by Minister Mikakos. It is becoming clear that the tragic death of an elderly couple in Rosebud last Wednesday was a murder-suicide. While investigations by Victoria Police continue, what we do know is that both the victims, who were in their 80s, had…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is directed to the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing, Mr Foley. Recently I held a roundtable discussion to gauge the views of organisations providing services to Victorians who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. It included representatives of Melbourne City Mission, Salvation Army, Launch Housing and the Women’s…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Planning, represented here by Minister Dalidakis. Carlton’s Corkman Irish Pub has stood proudly on the corner of Leicester and Pelham streets in Carlton for 159 years. The building was recently sold to developers for $4.76 million, who then saw fit to tear the historic and much-loved building down…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Planning, represented here by Minister Dalidakis. Carlton’s Corkman Irish Pub has stood proudly on the corner of Leicester and Pelham streets in Carlton for 159 years. The building was recently sold to developers for $4.76 million, who then saw fit to tear the historic and much-loved building…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Police. In September of this year respected drug law reform academic Associate Professor David Caldicott was invited to address the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency. He was to brief them on the science of pill testing. It seems that, however, on direct instruction from…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan): My question is for the Minister for Small Business, Innovation and Trade. The Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) found just 12 per cent of the businesses that opened on the grand final holiday turned a profit. The Australian Industry Group (AIG) estimates the cost to Victorian businesses in lost production and…

Ms Patten (Northern Metro): My question is to the Minister for Sport represented by *Minister Deladakis. In the past few weeks we have seen how successful women in football can be. The public have voted with their feet attending games and watching matches in record numbers on television ahead of the commencement of the AFL…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Public Transport, represented by Minister Pulford. Having finally moved to regulate services like Uber following the robust debate on the Australian Sex Party’s rideshare bill a few months ago, the government seems to want to punish both taxi passengers and rideshare passengers with a $2 per…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan): Two weeks ago I visited the Brunswick Temple Brewing Company, an excellent establishment with great food and delicious beers. The brewery is energy efficient, reclaims wastewater from the brewing process and sends organic waste to farms. I was really impressed with owner Nicholas Pang’s dedication and commitment to his craft. The microbrewers of…

Fiona Patten MLC (Northern Metropolitan): My question is to the Minister for Education, represented in this place by Minister Herbert. Between Brighton Grammar’s ‘slut of the month’ account, a so-called pornography ring at Melbourne Grammar and now another at St Michaels Grammar, a pattern is emerging in Victorian schools. These incidents reveal a lack of understanding of consent…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituent matter is in regard to Terumo syringes of low quality that are being used in the Northern Metropolitan Region. The syringes are used in a range of needle and syringe programs in my area, and it appears the company has made changes to its manufacturing processes which have impacted on the…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to Minister Dalidakis representing the Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation. Recently Dr Meagan Tyler, the co-convenor of the Nordic Model Information Network — a global alliance of researchers focusing on sex work — has been touring the country discussing the pros of the so-called ‘Swedish model’. She has called for Victoria…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question today is for the Minister for Public Transport. High Street, Reservoir, is a major north–south arterial road which connects to the M80 ring-road in the north and Melbourne’s inner city in the south. The 2014 RACV red spot survey found that the level crossing consisting of the South Morang train line, High…

  Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Agriculture, the Honourable Jaala Pulford. Following the passing of the Access to Medicinal Cannabis Act 2016 earlier this year, the horticultural trial is underway at a secure facility. The cultivation trial will cultivate and extract cannabis for supply to the first patient group. Though the…

MS Patten — To ask the Minister for Training and Skills (for the Minister for Police): In relation to raids on suspicion of selling drug-related paraphernalia in the 2014-15 period — (a)    how many charges were laid for the offence of supplying under section 80W of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981; (b)    how many of…

Ms Patten  (Northern Metropolitan) — My question concerns the recent riots in Coburg and is directed to the Minister for Police in the other place. On the Monday after the riots I went to the wonderfully diverse Coburg shopping precinct to talk to traders forced to close down their businesses after radicals and racists decided to spend a…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Health, represented by Minister Mikakos. Yesterday the government introduced a bill to regulate the sale, promotion and use of e-cigarette products. Health minister Jill Hennessy has said that by bringing e-cigarettes into line with all tobacco products, the government is taking action to protect children from potential…

Ms Patten(Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. Last week it was really great to read that the Victoria Street Business Association had finally declared its support for safe injecting facilities. Since our inception the Australian Sex Party has been advocating for the implementation of such facilities, especially in Richmond, based on…

Ms Patten(Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Honourable Steve Herbert, representing our new Minister for Police. Recent reports by the ABC and other news outlets suggest that Victoria Police has purchased long-range acoustic devices (LRADs), or sound weapons. They can be used as tools for long-range communication but have also been used as weapons for…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. A mother in my region recently approached me to express her frustration about the lack of information about the upcoming medicinal cannabis program for children like hers with Dravet syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy. Parents want to know the details of what the…

My question is to the Special Minister of State Mr Jennings. Yesterday it was revealed that a Chinese based company – China Security and Surveillance Technology (CSST) – will purchase the Melbourne security firm Securecorp – for $157.5 million dollars. Securecorp has contracts for the MCG, Phillip Island Grand Prix, Spring Racing Carnival, Melbourne Museum,…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Agriculture, Ms Pulford, representing the Minister for Public Transport. Today the Federation of Community Legal Centres, together with Julian Burnside, QC, launched the Fare Go — Myki, Transport Poverty and Access to Education in Melbourne’s West. The report examined experiences of public transport travel, fares and infringements for…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Acting Minister for Police, Robin Scott, in the other place. We have just celebrated International Women’s Day, and yet we are providing lip-service rather than actual protection for women and staff seeking to access health services at their place of work. The East Melbourne Clinic is within…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Education, represented by Minister Herbert. Safe schools is an extremely worthwhile program that aims to stamp out homophobia and related bullying in schools but has recently been the subject of some outrageous and bigoted comments from members of this house. Clearly some members have a complete lack…

My question is to the Honourable Steve Herbert representing the Minister for Police. The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment Bill 2011 came into effect on 1 January 2012. This Bill banned the display, sale and supply of cannabis water pipes and components. This has impacted constituents in my region of Northern Metro, as restricting…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Education and is on the issue of access to and the overcrowding of schools in inner Melbourne. Today I attended a forum and met with the group City Schools 4 City Kids, which is concerned about the lack of schools in inner…

MS PATTEN My question is for Minister Herbert, representing the Minister for Police. Last Monday, 15 February, Four Corners aired Dying to Dance, an in-depth look at Australia’s dance party drug scene, and in particular Victoria’s. A number of eminent experts took part in the program, including a former Director of Public Prosecutions in New…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Agriculture, the Honourable Jaala Pulford. I visited the Lost Dogs Home in my electorate the other month. To my surprise I found that it cares for over 31 000 dogs and cats every year and is in fact Australia’s largest animal shelter. The…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for Minister Jennings, representing the Treasurer. Last year I asked if Treasury had done modelling to see what economic benefits there were to a cannabis economy in Victoria, and I got a firm ‘No’ back. Since then the federal government’s Parliamentary Budget Office has tackled the issue…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) My question is to the Minister for Agriculture, Ms Pulford, representing the Minister for Public Transport. Public transport has really been the backbone for Northern Metropolitan Region and its ever-growing population. We have been fortunate in that we have got buses, trains and trams, and I obviously note, and everyone else…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is to the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing. With over 1 million Victorians renting, the housing market is highly competitive and very volatile. Given the proximity to the CBD and universities, Northern Metropolitan Region is a very desirable area, particularly for students and low-income earners. They…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Training and Skills, representing the Minister for Police. A number of states held Stereosonic festivals over the weekend and the past few weeks, and with them came substance use. As we saw in the Age, there were reports of six suspected overdoses in…

MS PATTEN — To ask the Minister for Training and Skills (for the Minister for Police): How many people have been charged with cannabis possession in the first three quarters (January-March, April-June, July-September) of 2015. ANSWER: I am advised that: I am advised that the information to 30 June 2015 is available on request from…

MS PATTEN — To ask the Minister for Training and Skills (for the Minister for Police): Of the 218 people who allegedly returned a positive result for drugs over the recent grand final long weekend how many were found to have prescription drugs in their system. ANSWER: I am advised that: The Government is aware…

MS PATTEN — To ask the Minister for Training and Skills (for the Minister for Police): Of the 218 people who allegedly returned a positive result for drugs over the recent grand final long weekend how many were found to have methamphetamine in their system. ANSWER: I am advised that: The Government is aware of…

MS PATTEN — To ask the Minister for Training and Skills (for the Minister for Police): Of the 218 people who allegedly returned a positive result for drugs over the recent grand final long weekend how many were found to have cannabis in their system. ANSWER: I am advised that: The Government is aware of…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Public Transport and comes via the Friends of South Morang group. This group has been advocating for an extension of tram route 86 from Bundoora to South Morang railway station through Mill Park Lakes and back onto Plenty Road for some years,…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Leader of the Government, Mr Jennings. In 2014 Labor claimed it would have legislation before Parliament before the end of 2015 that allowed for the legalisation and regulation of medicinal marijuana. Premier Daniel Andrews claimed the current laws were outdated. As of today, the health.vic…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question today is to the Minister for Training and Skills who represents the Minister for Education. I recently received an email from a parent concerned that her son may be exposed to special religious instruction (SRI) whilst he is in enrolled in child care. As many people would understand,…

My question is to the Leader of the Government. With the announcement of the new Melbourne Metro rail project and that it will need to acquire over 40 sites to deliver the scheme in my electorate of Northern Metropolitan Region, many residents and businesses are rightly worried about this new project and how it will…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for Mr Herbert, representing the Minister for Police. The Premier, Daniel Andrews, said that yesterday was one of the proudest days of his political career as he was able to take on board the recommendations of the Victorian Law Reform Commission report into medicinal cannabis and announce…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Minister for Families and Children, representing the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing. The Australian Sex Party has previously called on governments at all levels to do more to ensure that employment opportunities are provided to those in our community who find it hardest to…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the Honourable Gavin Jennings, representing the Treasurer. Religious institutions in Victoria receive a number of exemptions to payment of taxes and rates that are not enjoyed by other organisations. These exemptions are included within the Stamps Act 1958, the Financial Institutions Duty Act 1982, the Debits…

Ms Patten (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Public Transport. The Broadmeadows train station has required urgent works for some years. The previous government cancelled the planned upgrade in what many saw as a desperate attempt to satisfy former MP Geoff Shaw by diverting the funds to Frankston…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My constituency question is for the Minister for Health. Last week it was really great to read that the Victoria Street Business Association had finally declared its support for safe injecting facilities. Since our inception the Australian Sex Party has been advocating for the implementation of such facilities, especially in Richmond, based on…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Education, Mr Herbert. The Fairness in Religions in School (FIRIS) organisation has been lobbying to reduce the influence of evangelical elements getting access to government primary schools via the special religious instruction (SRI) program — organisations such as ACCESS ministries. FIRIS has used freedom…

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is to Mr Herbert, the minister who represents the Attorney-General in this chamber. Each and every day across Victoria women are constantly harassed, threatened and intimated at fertility clinics by very misguided individuals as they legally access a termination procedure. Staff are also threatened, sometimes really seriously. Given that the government is…