❓ Mrs O'Malley asks the Premier about the State Government's $11 million donation to Telethon, seeking details on its impact. The Premier responds, outlining the donation's beneficiaries and highlighting the government's commitment to medical research.
AnsweredQoN 630Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
TELETHON — STATE GOVERNMENT DONATION
630. Mrs L.M. O'MALLEY to the Premier:
On behalf of the member for
Southern River, I acknowledge Mr Colombini and the students of Ursula Frayne
Catholic College, which is the former school of the members for Southern River
and Victoria Park.
I
refer to the state government's commitment to making Western Australia
a world leader in medical research and the record donation of $11 million
it pledged to Telethon this weekend. Can the Premier update the house on what
important work this donation will fund and outline how the state government has
been able to provide such a significant contribution?
630. Mrs L.M. O'MALLEY to the Premier:
On behalf of the member for
Southern River, I acknowledge Mr Colombini and the students of Ursula Frayne
Catholic College, which is the former school of the members for Southern River
and Victoria Park.
I
refer to the state government's commitment to making Western Australia
a world leader in medical research and the record donation of $11 million
it pledged to Telethon this weekend. Can the Premier update the house on what
important work this donation will fund and outline how the state government has
been able to provide such a significant contribution?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Bicton for
the question.
I indicate to the house that we are
very pleased to be able to make an $11 million donation, on behalf of the
people of the state, to Telethon, which is the biggest donation in the history
of Western Australia by a long way. That is going to a very worthy organisation—Telethon—that
delivers real health and research outcomes for children not only in Western Australia,
but also around Australia and the world.
The donation itself will support 97
grassroots organisations. It will deliver critical services and equipment for
children in hospital and will also support health and medical research in Western
Australia. On top of that, certain things
will be funded as part of this. Professor Fiona Wood is studying the lifelong
impacts of paediatric burns on health and why some children cannot
respond to vaccines after a burn. There is the preclinical assessment of
age-appropriate immunotherapies for childhood cancers led by Telethon Kids
Institute and the University of Western Australia, and, as I said, there is a range
of organisations that provide equipment, therapy and the like to children suffering
from medical conditions or disabilities.
In terms of medical research, as
the member is aware, we have an unprecedented record. We established the future
health research and innovation fund, which is providing grants of $80 million
for medical research over the first three years.
We created the Western Australian office of medical research and the first
Minister for Medical R esearch in Western Australia.
In closing, I acknowledge Telethon.
It was a great weekend. I do not know how many people went. It is remarkable
how it was done. I thought it was a terrific change to use RAC Arena. The
donations, big and small, from people around
the state were terrific. I was in the phone room talking to people who were
donating $20 and I was at a function at which people were donating $1 million.
There were lots of donations, big and small. The good thing is that everyone
plays a part and puts something in. The event raised $71.4 million, which is a record
by a long, long way. It took 55 years to get to $500 million; I suspect that it
will probably take only another five or six years to get to $1 billion, so that
is a remarkable achievement. I acknowledge the people behind Telethon. There
are many, but I especially acknowledge Richard Goyder and Kerry Stokes. As I said,
we were very proud to provide $11 million on behalf of the state and the people
of WA.
the question.
I indicate to the house that we are
very pleased to be able to make an $11 million donation, on behalf of the
people of the state, to Telethon, which is the biggest donation in the history
of Western Australia by a long way. That is going to a very worthy organisation—Telethon—that
delivers real health and research outcomes for children not only in Western Australia,
but also around Australia and the world.
The donation itself will support 97
grassroots organisations. It will deliver critical services and equipment for
children in hospital and will also support health and medical research in Western
Australia. On top of that, certain things
will be funded as part of this. Professor Fiona Wood is studying the lifelong
impacts of paediatric burns on health and why some children cannot
respond to vaccines after a burn. There is the preclinical assessment of
age-appropriate immunotherapies for childhood cancers led by Telethon Kids
Institute and the University of Western Australia, and, as I said, there is a range
of organisations that provide equipment, therapy and the like to children suffering
from medical conditions or disabilities.
In terms of medical research, as
the member is aware, we have an unprecedented record. We established the future
health research and innovation fund, which is providing grants of $80 million
for medical research over the first three years.
We created the Western Australian office of medical research and the first
Minister for Medical R esearch in Western Australia.
In closing, I acknowledge Telethon.
It was a great weekend. I do not know how many people went. It is remarkable
how it was done. I thought it was a terrific change to use RAC Arena. The
donations, big and small, from people around
the state were terrific. I was in the phone room talking to people who were
donating $20 and I was at a function at which people were donating $1 million.
There were lots of donations, big and small. The good thing is that everyone
plays a part and puts something in. The event raised $71.4 million, which is a record
by a long, long way. It took 55 years to get to $500 million; I suspect that it
will probably take only another five or six years to get to $1 billion, so that
is a remarkable achievement. I acknowledge the people behind Telethon. There
are many, but I especially acknowledge Richard Goyder and Kerry Stokes. As I said,
we were very proud to provide $11 million on behalf of the state and the people
of WA.
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