Zaneta Mascarenhas
Federation Chamber, Parliament House, Canberra
Constituency Statements
If you ever find yourself in Perth, there's a good chance that you'll end up in the electorate of Swan. Yes, the airport is in the electorate, but it's also a hub of activity. Just across the river from the Perth CBD is Swan. We stretch between the Swan and the Canning rivers. There are a bunch of diverse suburbs, from South Perth and Victoria Park to Belmont and High Wycombe, and there are many more, plus it's home to Curtin University and the industrial hubs of Welshpool.
Thanks to the Albanese Labor government, Swan is about to get a whole bunch more activity through energy efficiency grants. Energy efficiency is all about using less energy to get the same job done, saving money on bills and cutting down on pollution. Right now there are many products, homes and buildings that waste a lot more energy than they need to, but Labor is stepping up to change that.
I often think that, if people could actually see energy waste in real time, they would actively do actions to try to reduce that. We're not just cutting down greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants; we're also helping people lower their energy bills. This is through Labor's Energy Efficiency Grants for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises program, and I'm pleased to announce that 15 organisations in Swan have received grants to boost their energy efficiency.
In Swan, 15 organisations will receive a total of $370,000 in grants. These organisations will aim to make businesses more energy efficient. I recently had the pleasure of visiting one of these businesses with the member for Fremantle, the newly appointed Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy. This was his very first visit as an assistant minister. We visited Forest Fresh Australia honey in Bentley. This is an innovative company which is looking at the role of honey in natural medicines and at their role in the Australian market. But they also have amazing products which they are exporting overseas. Forest Fresh is receiving a grant of $25,000 to convert their warming room to solar generated heating for heat treating their honey. It's a fantastic initiative. Forest Fresh is an amazing family-run business right in Swan that is producing active forest-fresh honey from the pristine forests of Western Australia. It's a family of four generations of beekeepers, which includes new mum, Samantha. I also learnt that 90 per cent of their honey is exported to Asia and the Middle East.
Other local businesses have benefited from this grant: Barking Butler, a dog-grooming service in Como; Westindo in Rivervale; Phoenix steel sales in Welshpool; and Force Technology in Belmont.
