Federal Member for Gilmore Fiona Phillips has been appointed to three Standing Committees in the 48th Parliament of Australia.
After being elected as the Gilmore MP for her third term, Mrs Phillips has been appointed chair of the Standing Committee on Regional Development, Infrastructure & Transport and a member of the Standing Committee on Primary Industries.
Mrs Phillips is delighted to have also been appointed to the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, of which she is chair of the Trade Subcommittee and a member of the Defence Subcommittee.
The committees are appointed at the beginning of each Parliament.
The Standing Committee on Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport, which consists of 10 MPs, may inquire into and report on any matter referred to it by either the House or a Minister, including any pre-legislation proposal, bill, motion, petition, vote or expenditure, other financial matter, report or document.
Mrs Phillips said, as a regional MP, she was thrilled to be appointed chair, because infrastructure projects and transport were high priorities in Gilmore.
“I have a keen interest in any proposals, bills and expenditure that will impact regional areas, such as looking at ways to make local government expenditure more sustainable,” she said.
The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Tradeconsiders and reports on such matters referred to it by either house of the parliament or a minister.
Made up of 32 MPs, the committee may also inquire into matters raised in annual reports of relevant Australian Government departments and authorities or in reports of the Australian Government Auditor-General.
“Nowra is a defence town, and defence and the defence industry is something that has always been very important to me as a local MP, so I’m proud to have been appointed to this role,” Mrs Phillips said.
The committee has adopted a new inquiry into the Department of Defence Annual Report 2023–24 which will resume the inquiry that commenced prior to the 2025 federal election.
“As chair of the Trade Subcommittee I’m really interested in strengthening Australia’s trade and tourism opportunities, particularly in regional areas like Gilmore,” Mrs Phillips said.
Having grown up on a dairy farm near Nowra, Mrs Phillips said her membership to the Standing Committee on Primary Industries also held special interest.
“I’m really proud to be on these committees which play an important role in monitoring the work of all federal government departments and instrumentalities,” Mrs Phillips said.
“Being part of this process will allow me to gain a detailed understanding of issues that impact my community and to gain a wide range of views from the community, organsations and experts in their field.”
