Commentary
The composition of the 47th Australian parliament has its fair share of new members who have been making their maiden speeches. While the gaggle of “teal” Members of Parliament and their fellow travellers in the Greens have received plenty of attention, there were two maiden speeches given last week that deserve not just attention but praise.
The first of these was given by Dai Le, the newly-elected independent member for the seat of Fowler.
Le pulled off a result many so-called experts deemed impossible at the May 21 federal election; defeating the ostensibly popular former premier of New South Wales, erstwhile Labor Senator, and opposition shadow home affairs minister, Kristina Keneally, in the seat of Fowler. Located in the southwestern suburbs of Sydney, it has always been a safe seat for the Australian Labor Party (ALP). Keneally had been parachuted in by the ALP as its candidate for the seat from her rich Scotland Island enclave 70 kilometres away….