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Youth Homelessness

Mr MATT KEAN (Hornsby) [5.45 p.m.]: Every night of the week 32,000 young Australians are homeless: 14,000 of these young people will couch surf every night of the week—they are the lucky ones.

On 18 April I attended the launch of the Salvation Army Couch Project, where I gained a thorough understanding of the issue of youth homelessness. I was representing the Hon. Victor Dominello, the Minister responsible for youth affairs. The Couch Project was launched at the Salvation Army Oasis Youth Support Network's inaugural awareness and fund-raising campaign, in Surry Hills, Sydney. The Couch Project aims to raise awareness of youth homelessness and couch surfing. In a nationwide survey recently conducted by Pureprofile it was found that 64 per cent of Australians do not consider couch surfing to be a form of homelessness. Being homeless does not imply that you live on the streets. Couch surfing affects the lives of thousands of young people—many are vulnerable—and it is an unsustainable form of accommodation. Fortunately, though, there are services such as Oasis available to these young people in need. At the launch I was humbled by the dedication and service shown by Major Robyn Moulds of Oasis, as well as Oasis's other staff and volunteers. Their commitment to social justice and equality reflects the values that we should all aspire to embody. Despite the numerous challenges and hardships they face along the way, the staff and volunteers see the goodness in the young people with whom they work and they never lose hope. Their strong faith and energy warm those around them and should provide all citizens with a sense of optimism. I was inspired by their courageous efforts. Youth homelessness is not an issue exclusive to the inner-city suburbs of Sydney. In my community of Hornsby youth homelessness is also a major issue.

On 27 April I hosted an inter-faith morning tea bringing together religious leaders from across the Hornsby community. The leaders identified youth homelessness as the number one social justice issue affecting Hornsby. Hornsby, in Sydney's north, is an area regarded by many people as an affluent area of Sydney. Julia Gillard made comments in Parliament yesterday to that effect. The reality is that many people in that part of Sydney are also doing it tough. There are many people living on the streets, including young people. I applaud the work currently being undertaken in my electorate of Hornsby by organisations dedicated to alleviating the problem of youth homelessness. I acknowledge the work of Mission Australia in its efforts to alleviate youth homelessness in the Hornsby area. But more must be done.

It worries me that, despite living in one of the world's most developed and affluent advanced countries, thousands of young people are at risk on the streets or on someone's couch each night. It is not the role of government or of the community to solve this problem. We must all work together to find a solution to youth homelessness. We must ensure that young people who are living on the streets are accommodated. We need to help these young people to get the education and opportunities that the rest of us take for granted. It is only through sustainable and cooperative partnerships between the Government and the community that we will be able to speak about youth homelessness in the past tense some day. I hope to be a member of this place that contributes to making that a reality. I encourage New South Wales residents to support the Couch Project and the important work of the Salvation Army in addressing the needs of homeless youth across our community and raise awareness of youth homelessness by spending the night of Friday 8 June 2012 on the couch. All donations will go towards the Salvation Army Oasis Youth Support Network youth homelessness shelter. More important than raising funds to tackle this issue, we will be doing an important thing by raising awareness of the issue of youth homelessness so that we can encourage many more people, not just in this Chamber but outside in the community, not just in our church networks, to tackle this problem once and for all.

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