Senator McKENZIE (Victoria) (23:52): In schools across rural and regional Victoria, the obvious sports of choice are football, netball and cricket—and I know this because, prior to coming to this place, I happened to be a PE teacher. Whilst popular, they are not always every child's first choice. I notice you smile, Madam Acting Deputy President Moore. I know you have a strong passion for rugby—a passion I do not share; I do not quite understand, being a southerner, but I appreciate that you love the sport in your state. Rather, it is the highly skilled sport of competitive shooting in some areas which has great appeal. You would probably be surprised by the sport's popularity amongst rural and regional students, particularly in this day and age. The focus is not about moving a ball from one end of the field or court to another but on a brief intense moment when a clay target goes flying across the sky and there are only milliseconds to hit the mark. I hope I have gone some way to explaining how exciting this sport can be. The exhilaration many feel on the football ground kicking a winning goal or taking a hat-trick in cricket is the same as hitting the winning target after an exhausting day of competition. I hope that those who are listening tonight will appreciate that tomorrow out on the courts on the House of Representatives side here at Australia's Parliament House we have the parliamentary netball team playing the federal press corps at 6.45 am. I am really excited to put that on the record as a keen participant in the parliamentary netball team. Senator McEwen, I notice, is laughing—almost celebrating over there, given her current injury status, I am sure—go for it, Anne. That is fine; no worries we will do it for you. Going back to my speech, I think the chamber would be intrigued to hear that on August 16 this year, year 12 students travelled from Barham high to Cohuna to compete in the north-west zone down the line shoot. Some 91 students competed in the shoot, with the winners progressing to the next level, which was held in my own patron seat of Bendigo on 3 September. Jade Heffer was third in the senior girls competition and Emily Jones was first in the junior girls competition. It was a great effort in anyone's book. For those students who did not make it through, there was a Field and Game shoot in Swan Hill they could participate in. It was yet another opportunity for the students to celebrate and showcase their skills. I was fortunate enough to present the awards at the Bendigo shoot, and I was thoroughly impressed by the high-quality field of young shooters. I was particularly impressed at the senior level. These young people displayed a consistency of skill as they hit the target with round after round. I would like to highlight the skills of a young female shooter, Penny, who out-shot her male counterpart, Jake, after many, many rounds. There was absolute consistency as they kept hitting the target—five out of five, time after time. I was very impressed. It is particularly pertinent, given that a couple of weeks ago I was able to participate in the annual Pollie Shoot at the Melbourne Gun Club. I note Senator Ryan is in the chamber tonight. He was a keen participant in that day's proceedings. I was privileged to be a part of one of three National Party teams on the day. Predominantly federal National Party members were in that team, with Senator Scullion and shadow minister John Cobb leading the way. I must say that I did not let the team down. I did not get a full shot, but two out of five ain't bad! This event was run by Field and Game Australia to introduce and promote to politicians the joys and intricacies of shooting. My contribution requires the next 12 months to be spent in hard training at my local club, in Bendigo. It was at the Pollie Shoot that I was reminded of the concentration displayed by Penny and Jake in their shoot-out. As I raised my gun for round after round it was very heavy and I had to focus on the very intricate skill of getting it right. Just like their football, cricket and netball counterparts, these young students are dedicated to their sport and they practise diligently. Some no doubt harbour a desire to reach elite levels. There is no questioning how important youth involvement is to the sport of shooting. There are some 50 to 60 schools in Victoria that offer some form of shooting program, some as a curricular activity and others as an extracurricular one. This is often as a result of a single highly educated teacher within the school who has a passion for that particular sport. I think back to my own teaching experience down in South Gippsland, at Yarram Secondary College, where Eva Hirt had a particular passion for teaching our students shooting. She did it in her own time—taking them overseas—and a lot of young people who were not from shooting families got to participate in the sport, which they otherwise would not, had it not been for Eva's passion for it. The idea that regional and rural schools treat shooting like they would their interschool cross-country or swimming competitions is fantastic. Shooting needs youth involvement, whether it be at local fox drives, clay target ranges or wetland restorations, and I will have more to say on that point in a moment. We do not want to see the sport die out. Rather, it needs to grow. I commend the efforts of the Field and Game branches, which have worked hard to spike students' interest in the sport. The branches have been heavily involved in running secondary school competitions and wetland restorations, tapping into young people's desire to actually make a difference for their local communities. Host branches for major competitions featuring hundreds of participants have included Sale, Minyip and my old stomping ground of Benalla. At Minyip, school shoots have been held for five years and they have had over 300 entries from 22 schools. Benalla Field and Game and Benalla College hosted a Field and Game shoot for 270 students from 19 schools. This championship has run for 40 years, the last half under the Field and Game discipline. A very good friend of mine from my childhood years, Joanna James, known as Josie, was a key participant in that particular shoot, probably about 20 years ago. In anyone's books, these are astounding figures for participating in sport. This is the sort of interest we need to maintain in our budding young shooters. Field and Game clubs must be commended for their continued involvement and drive to promote the sport. Many offer junior membership fees and nominations. This is excellent forward planning. All they need to do is offer an opportunity for a young person that sparks their interest; and many clubs actually have club guns that young people can use as a way of developing their skills in the sport. Shooters not only display and hold the key skills required for pest eradication, or simply for the joy of the sport but they are also acutely aware of their role in conservation. That is why we need a lot of people involved in promoting the sport of shooting—those with a strong passion—so that young people can not only learn the skills but stick with the sport going forward. The Field and Game Australia website states: Field and Game Australia have consistently been at the forefront of wetland conservation … Wildlife scientists agree that the loss of habitat is the greatest threat to waterfowl, far greater than recreational hunting. In fact, Field and Game Australia was created by hunters concerned about habitat loss. A primary objective of Field and Game Australia is to preserve, restore, develop and maintain habitat in Australia. The Heart Morass restoration program is a great example of Field and Game Australia giving back to the environment and wetland communities. Conservationists, hunters and governments have joined together to develop a wetland at the border of the Gippsland Lakes and Gippsland Plains that can cope with variable conditions. The project is six years old this summer. Fifty thousand indigenous trees, shrubs and grasses have been planted, mostly by volunteers. In fact, more than 30,000 waterbirds can be found in this 1,080 hectare wetland—and yes, shooters have had a direct hand in this development. Young people who get involved in the sport of shooting are not only learning about the discipline of the sport, celebrating wins and dealing with loss, but also about actions and consequences. It is great to have the Minister for Sport here to hear about the great sport of shooting. Local gun clubs also have a hand in doing this. Guns are part of life in regional Australia. 764,000 people are licensed gun owners in Australia—that is nearly 275,000 more than played lawn bowls in Australia in 2011. Livestock, pest control, recreation and sport are all key reasons people hold gun licences.