Ms JODIE HARRISON (Charlestown)—17 September was Australian Citizenship Day. One of the best parts of being an MP, and one of my favourite aspects of the job when I was Mayor of Lake Macquarie, was getting to take part in citizenship ceremonies.

On 16 September, I once again got to go along to a citizenship ceremony at Rathmines and be a part of welcoming more than seventy new Australian citizens, who came from all over the world. Congratulations to all of those who became citizens.

Australians come from so many different backgrounds, and each new addition makes our community richer, stronger and more vital. I spent some time with a couple of our new citizens, including Paola Kabalan Baeza and Evelyn Palominos Letelier, originally from Chile, and Dr Jean-Paul Chung Pin Yong, originally from Mauritius.

It was also great to hear students from Dudley Public School speak about the joys of being an Australian at the ceremony. Thank you to Elizabeth, Mia and William for helping to welcome our new citizens.

A Community Recognition Notice is an opportunity for an MP to submit a short statement praising the work of an individual or group in the local community. If you have any ideas about people I can recognise with a Community Recognition Notice, please email and let me know!