Zoe McKenzie MP
Shadow Assistant Minister for Education and Early Learning
Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health
Federal Member for Flinders
CONSTITUENCY STATEMENT – FEDERATION CHAMBER – SOUTHERN PENINSULA INDOOR SPORTS FACILITY
Wednesday, 8 October 2025
Ms McKENZIE (Flinders) (09:42): October is Mental Health Month, so I want to talk about something very important to the mental health of my community in the electorate of Flinders, and that is sport. Last week, I met with the amazing Dave Burt from Sport and Life Training. It’s a not-for-profit health promotion organisation working in local sporting clubs to address the issues of mental health and wellbeing. SALT works with clubs across the peninsula to set young people up for success in every aspect of their life, using sport as a vehicle.
Last week, I also met with the Southern Peninsula Basketball Association, who are keen to establish a southern peninsula powerhouse in this sport. Between 2000 and 2025, my region received no funding for indoor sports facilities. Over the same period, Frankston received $60 million; Ballarat, $29 million; and Whitehorse, $18 million. Our local basketball association wants to expand its modest facility at Dromana Secondary College with three new, fully-compliant indoor courts to meet the needs of its 3,000 members and 335 teams across all levels. Membership of the Southern Peninsula Basketball Association has grown by 41 per cent since 2021 alone. In the past year, female participation is up 18 per cent, and male participation is up 7 per cent. How very good is that! This expanded facility would provide a much needed all-weather space for a wide range of community sports—not just basketball but also netball, volleyball, badminton, table tennis and more.
The lack of indoor sporting space is a bottleneck on sporting participation, limiting opportunities for our players, referees, coaches, volunteers and the broader community. The lack of indoor space means that we miss out on hosting major sporting events that can bring substantial economic and social benefits to the southern peninsula region. It is time for all levels of government to get behind this idea, and I commend the association on the great work that it has already done with our local council. The southern peninsula deserves the same opportunities and infrastructure as every other community in Victoria, and I’ll be working with my state MPs Sam Groth and Chris Crewther on commitments to support our sporting assets.
My community punches well above its weight when it comes to participation in community sport. We have the fourth-highest rate of sport participation of all local government areas in Melbourne, at 20 per cent, according to VicHealth’s Sport participation in Victoria 2015-2022 report. The physical and mental health benefits of sport are nearly endless—increased cardiovascular fitness, reduced risk of obesity, reduced risk of developing high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Simply being in a community of mates where you can call on others to support you, especially in a world that’s increasingly isolated and dependent on technology, plays a big role in combating mental health problems.
I’ve been nagging the Minister for Sport here to support local infrastructure in my electorate and will continue to do so, particularly to fight for this endeavour on the southern Mornington Peninsula.
ENDS.
