Public life is a privilege – and I have been privileged threefold.
I was privileged to serve the people of Melbourne as Lord Mayor. I was privileged to serve the people of Australia as an advisor to one of Labor’s great reformers, former Deputy Prime Minister Brian Howe.
And I have been privileged to serve the people of Abbotsford, Burnley, Clifton Hill, Collingwood, Cremorne, Fitzroy, Fitzroy North and Richmond as the Member for Richmond.
When I was first elected in 1999, I said my ambition was to help re-establish the blocks of a civil society. I want to thank the three Premiers I have served under as a Minister – Daniel Andrews, John Brumby and Steve Bracks – for giving me the opportunities to do just that.
I particularly want to acknowledge and value the almost 25 year political and personal relationship that the Premier and I have enjoyed.
I also want to thank Daniel for asking me to stay on in the role as Minister of Planning, Housing and Child Protection until the 2022 state election.
And I want to thank my family – particularly my wife Svetlana Karovich – for their love and support.
As the son of a waterside worker, it has been an honour to serve the Australian Labor Party at a local, state and national level.
I’m proud to be part of this socially progressive, reforming government – but I am focusing on the next 12 months.
I look forward to getting on with the job of rolling out the $5.3 billion Big Housing Build, making major planning decisions such as the EES for the Suburban Rail Loop, and keeping our children safe.
If you believe in social progress, there is always more work to be done.
Reviewed 25 November 2021