Torrens Electorate

Ms WORTLEY (Torrens) (15:14): The COVID-19 pandemic has brought with it some unprecedented changes to the way we live our daily lives. While some of these changes have created some uncertainty and isolation, along with my staff I have been in contact with many thousands of people in relation to having questions answered, supporting them in need and also providing assistance to them, many of whom live in my electorate of Torrens.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my wonderful staff for the amazing work that they have done during these very challenging times. I know that they have been faced with some very difficult questions. We have had people who have been very emotional contacting the office, and I have had a lot of conversations with these people as well. Into the future, this is something that we will be continuing with. I would like to acknowledge the great work that they have done.

We have had some interesting conversations. It was heartwarming to hear some of the stories of what people in isolation were doing to keep themselves occupied. There was also some humour. Many of them were telling us that the roles had changed between them and their children—that now their children were grounding them. I understand that because I had that very conversation with my father, who is in his 80s.

Throughout the area we saw many different innovations taking place. We saw a bear hunt around the neighbourhood, where people were placing bears in windows. People going on their daily exercise, along with children going out for a walk, were counting the number of bears.

The Hon. J.A.W. Gardner: It is very popular.

Ms WORTLEY: It is. Leading up to Easter, we also saw painted and decorated Easter eggs that appeared in windows. We had some neighbours who were having driveway coffees and drinks. They would pull up a chair at the end of their driveways and speak to the neighbours across the road or across their driveway just to keep up the social interaction while physically distancing.

Many learned to use online platforms and social media. They were teaching themselves or they had their children or grandchildren contact them and explain how to work their way through it. Some of them were very proud that they had actually mastered it. We had residents who were celebrating birthdays and anniversaries connecting with families via FaceTime, Zoom, Teams and other applications.

Residents also spoke to us about their gardening. Some had renewed their interest in gardening and some had a new interest in gardening. I look forward to seeing those around the neighbourhood as we drive through. As the weather progresses, I am sure that their work will come to the forefront. I have also been in contact with many who have had difficulty dealing with some of the challenges that they have faced during these times, and I truly feel for them.

I have spoken with members of the community who have families in aged-care facilities, who were visiting them on a regular basis. They were heartbroken that they were not able to visit their mother, father or grandparent in the facility—we were trying to look at all the ways that this may be able to occur safely, and I really felt for those people—and I know that that continues because there has been some confusion with what the Prime Minister was saying and then what the actual aged-care facilities are doing. I have spoken to some of the facilities and I understand the need to keep our people in these facilities safe, but it has brought a lot of heartbreak to families. They are concerned that perhaps their parent or grandparent is not able to understand why they are not visiting.

There have also been deaths in the family and funerals. I know in my own family we have experienced this. Because only nine people can attend a funeral, in some cases family have chosen to postpone funerals, which is very difficult. It is something that we have had to do to ensure the safety of our community. There are many others that I would like to speak about today, but time does not permit, so I will continue on another occasion.