On Friday 11th October 2019 I was privileged to attend the awards night for the Hunter Manufacturing Awards. This eveningI was able to present a Private Member's Statement in Parliament celebrating the nominees and award winners of the Hunter Manufacturing Awards, and also raise important challenges facing the sector:



Manufacturing has changed the world, and today the manufacturing sector is in a process of change and transformation. In fact, we know that the changes taking place in the manufacturing sector now are more challenging and more fundamental than at any time since the industrial revolution. Against this backdrop of challenge and change both here in Australia and around the world, I am proud to represent an electorate that is intimately connected with the manufacturing industry of the Hunter. It is true that, whilst manufacturing jobs nationally dropped by 24 per cent between 2011 and 2016, manufacturing jobs in my electorate dropped by 36 per cent in the same period.

It is true that manufacturers continue to struggle with high energy input costs. It is true that manufacturers are being constrained by ongoing tighter credit conditions. It is true that manufacturers are continuing to grapple with the high costs of other inputs due to a low Australian dollar, the drought and high commodity prices. The good news for New South Wales, particularly the people of the Hunter, is that manufacturing is fighting back. Thanks to the combined Federal and State policies of the Morrison and Berejiklian governments the manufacturing sector in the Hunter may be down, but it is certainly not out!

On Friday evening I was privileged to be present at the 2019 Hunter Manufacturing Awards [HMA] in Newcastle. The awards highlight, showcase and champion the extraordinary resilience and adaptation that are hallmarks of the Hunter manufacturing sector, making it the country's leader in manufacturing innovation and transformation. They highlight the combined contributions of men and women from my electorate and from across the region who continue to be committed to making "things", even when it seems somehow oldfashioned to do so.

I am talking about leaders such as the workforce at the Chamberlain Group in West Gosford, a local business that began in 1914, which was recognised by the HMA as Manufacturer of the Year and which also received the award for Excellence in People and Skills Development. I congratulate the workers at the Chamberlain Group, who have been involved in longterm occupational health and safety reform to create a workplace in which the safety of workers is the cornerstone of all that they do.

I am talking about leaders such as Kara McDonald, who was recognised with the award of Apprentice of the Year; and Megan Crowfoot, who received the Rising Star Award. I congratulate Kara and Megan, who are reminding us all that the manufacturing workforce is changing.

I am talking about leaders such as the longstanding Newcastlebased steel maker Molycopwinner of the award for Environmental Excellence. Molycop traces its history back to the original Comsteel site in Waratah, Newcastle. Today Molycop is a pioneer in "green steel" technology and innovationa process that involves using old rubber tyres as a replacement for coking coal, diverting millions of tyres from landfill and working towards greater environmental stability. I congratulate Molycop.

In the Hunter, innovation, adaptation and transformation are hallmarks of a sector that is preparing itself for the future. But on Friday night, as I met with nominees and celebrated with award winners, Ialso heard stories of the challenges that the sector is facing: the challenge of energy prices that are, on average, 91percent higher than they were a decade ago; the challenge of workforce skills shortages, thanks to a lack of government investment in TAFE and apprenticeships; and the challenges posed by global competition. It was clear to me, as I listened to those stories, that the manufacturing sector in the Hunter is forging its new future in spite of, not because of, the policies of this Government.

To all the Hunter Manufacturing Awards nominees and award winners who were recognised on Friday night, I express the thanks and congratulations of members on this side of the House. I do so proudly because we are committed unequivocally to a strong manufacturing sector; we are committed to excellence in the standards of safety in the workplace; we are committed to the environmental revolution that needs to take place across all our industries; and, most of all, we are committed to strong and secure jobs so that workers and their families, like the workers and their families in my electorate of Charlestown, can succeed and thrive.

The manufacturing sector in the Hunter is fighting back, despite the challenges that it is facing. This evening I recognise and celebrate that fightback.