Australia Day is a time for our community to come together in reflection, celebration and shared pride in our nation. This year, I was honoured to attend both the Rotary Club of Beecroft and Carlingford Flag Raising Ceremony and our local Hornsby Council Citizenship Ceremony, two events that beautifully capture the spirit of the day.

Welcoming new citizens who have chosen Australia as their home, remind us of the values, history and shared commitment that bind us together as Australians.

To view my Australia Day speech, please click here.

Australia Day Honours

Australia Day is also a time to recognise the extraordinary contribution made by people right here in our Berowra community. This year’s Australia Day Honours acknowledged several local residents whose service, dedication and leadership have made a real and lasting difference to the lives of others. I congratulate each recipient on this well-deserved recognition and thank them for the contribution they have made to Berowra and to Australia.

In the next few days, schools will commence the new school year. This is always a time of excitement and trepidation, with a few nerves for students and parents in our community.

For students commencing at a new school or a new phase in their education, this can be particularly daunting, particularly after the long summer school holidays. That's natural and normal, and many students will go through a period of nervousness as they commence school.

My hope for the students in our community as they return to school is that they strive to achieve their very best and they are given the opportunities to gain deeper knowledge, stronger skills that will help prepare them for the challenges they will face in the year ahead.

We are very fortunate in Berowra to have excellent government, Catholic and independent schools with wonderful teachers that support our students.

As families prepare for the new school year, the latest inflation data shows that Sydney has recorded a 5.6 per cent increase in education costs, the highest in the nation, highlighting just how much pressure families are under from rising living costs under the Albanese Government. In fact, education costs have risen much higher than any other cost in the economy.

This is on top of the 21.5% increase in electricity costs, the increases in rent, in housing and in food prices. One of the key things that I will be focused on over the next year is what we can do to put downward pressure on prices and ease the cost of living challenges that families face in their everyday bills.

Over the summer, I undertook a tech detox. It was a promise I made during a speech in early December. For that period, I used a phone that only handled calls and text messages and found it a liberating experience.

I've been very concerned about the effect of social media and smartphones on children's learning and their concentration spans.  The evidence demonstrates how deleterious it is. But it's not just children who are affected by it, I think we adults are affected by it as well.

So, what did I learn? I was more present for my family and less distracted in meetings and discussions. It was a powerful reminder of how much our devices can pull us away from what really matters.

Now that I've got my phone back, the question is what I, and others, can do to better balance the role of social media and smartphones in our lives.

The first thing I'm going to do is remove social media apps from my phone and only access them from my personal computer. Second, I'm going to silence a number of conversations and mute several WhatsApp groups in order to only see those messages that I need rather than have the light constantly flicker. Third, I'm going to institute a practice for when I get home, I will put the phone in a place where I don't access it when I'm spending time with the kids.

These are practical steps that I'm going to take to be more present to set a good example. I'm keen to hear how you manage the use of smartphone and technology in your family too.

Australia welcomes genuine tourists to visit our country, especially those wanting to see family members. But we take a strong line on people wanting to abuse the migration system.
My office is hearing from more and more constituents whose family members have had tourist visas refused. The most common reason for refusal is not proving strongly enough that the applicant genuinely intends to return to their home country.
If you have family planning to apply for a tourist visa, they must show that they are genuine tourists who have strong ties to their home country and reasons to return.
Ways of demonstrating that they are genuine tourists include providing information and documentation of their strong ties to their home country.
Some ways of demonstrating this include:
Financial evidence
Provide proof of regular income and financial capacity, such as:

• Itemised personal bank statements covering at least 3–6 months
• Payslips
• Audited accounts (if self-employed)

Personal and community ties
Evidence of personal ties is just as important as finances. This may include:

• Letters from community organisations, churches, or sporting clubs
• Proof of long-term volunteering or community involvement
• Statements outlining caregiving or family responsibilities

Travel plans

• A clear travel itinerary (tourism, family visits, dates)
• Evidence of paid return flights dated before the visa expiry

Strong reasons to return home
This is critical. Evidence may include:

• A letter from an employer confirming ongoing employment and approved leave
• Proof of study or enrolment in education
• Evidence of immediate family remaining in the home country
• Property ownership, lease agreements, or major assets
• Business ownership or involvement in a family business
• Assuming a family invitation alone is enough

The goal is to clearly show that the applicant’s life is firmly based in their home country — work, family, community, and obligations — and that returning home is the obvious and natural outcome.
In summary
A visitor visa application should leave no doubt that:

• The visit is temporary
• The applicant can financially support themselves
• They have strong, well-documented reasons to return home

If you seek further information or clarification of this please do not hesitate to contact my office on Julian.leeser.MP@aph.gov.au or 9980 1822.

Bondi Terror Attack

Chanukah is like carols by candlelight, there are candles, there are families, there is sweet food, there are rides, there's people singing hymns and just being together, enjoying the freedom of Australia. To target people for their religion is devastating for people's sense of what Australia is all about.

One of the things about Australia is that it has always been a country that uniquely in human history has been good to Jewish Australians and free and fair for all Australians. I'll continue in my work in the Parliament to stand up for the right of all Australians to practice their religion in freedom and security and to be provided with the protections of the law that we should all expect.

I called for the Parliament to be reconvened and to pass laws to protect Jewish Australians and all law-abiding Australians. And I spoke strongly in my speech at the Parliament about the need for moral leadership and about the growing threat of anti-Semitism that Australians have failed to heed. I encourage you to watch the speech below.

Kind regards,
Julian