Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tomorrow, 29 October, is the Day for Daniel, which remembers Daniel Morcombe. Daniel, as anyone familiar with these tragic events would know, was a wonderful teenager full of life who went missing in December 2003. For the Sunshine Coast community, the shock of such a horrific and yet unresolved event is still evident today. For all of us who are parents, all of us who are members of families, these are the tragedies that we hope will never strike us or any family, because all children deserve protection in every way possible. They deserve to be protected not just by their families but by their communities. They deserve to be educated also on how to protect their personal safety.

The Daniel Morcombe Foundation works to educate children about personal safety and to continue the search for Daniel. The foundation is run by Daniel’s parents, Bruce and Denise Morcombe, and a board of very dedicated committee members. In 2009 it is believed that 500,000 schoolchildren participated in education activities around personal safety as a result of the foundation’s efforts. I am sure that this year the important work of the foundation will be just as successful. The foundation is a proud reflection of the close community that is the Sunshine Coast in Queensland—a community that, having grown up in that part of the world myself, I still call home. I also wish to acknowledge the Sunshine Coast Daily, a strong supporter of the Sunshine Coast community and a strong supporter of the foundation. The Sunshine Coast Daily has helped not only to raise awareness of Daniel’s disappearance but also to support the ongoing activities of the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.

On Friday we wear red as part of the Day for Daniel activities. Today, as the last sitting day of the week, many of us are also wearing red. My sincere thanks go to the Deputy Speaker, the member for Fisher, for his ongoing support of Daniel’s family and of the work of the foundation and for bringing this matter to the proper attention of the Australian parliament. Today and tomorrow, as they have been throughout every year since 2003, my thoughts will be with Daniel, his parents, Denise and Bruce, and his brothers, Dean and Brad. This is an event which should not fall on any family in our country and our thoughts and prayers continue to be with them.