This week marked 100 days since the election of the Morrison Government. During that time we have been getting on with the job and delivering on our plan: we have passed tax relief on to 10 million Australians, lowered fees for aged care delivered to your home, taken action on lower electricity, child care and medical costs, and increased employment as part of our election promise to establish 1.25 million new jobs over the next five years.
We are also making sure we actually recycle plastic waste, rather than shipping it overseas or dumping it in landfill. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and I announced a new $20 million commitment towards innovative projects to grow our recycling industry and produce new jobs.
This month I also announced grants of up to $1.5 million to help establish and/or operate Small and Medium Enterprises export hubs in six Growth Centre sectors, including cyber security, medical technologies, and mining equipment, technology and services.
Locally, Round 5 of the Stronger Communities Programme has opened, with up to $150,000 to be shared across McPherson for projects that contribute to vibrant and viable communities. Expressions of Interest Forms are due back by 6 September 2019.
A real highlight for me over the past month was the launch of National Science Week right here on the Southern Gold Coast! All Saints Anglican School hosted myself and astrophysicist Prof Alan Duffy as we kicked off more than 2,000 Science Week events held across the country to demonstrate to children how exciting science can be.
I was also thrilled to be part of the launch of the inaugural National Innovation Games; aimed at helping small business to grow and create more jobs. The Gold Coast was once again the host for this launch, with another 30 events to be rolled out in every state and territory over the next two years.
Finally, as you may know, I am an engineer by profession, which has been incredibly helpful in my role as Minister for Industry, Science and Technology. I was humbled to be named the QUT Science and Engineering Outstanding Alumnus of the Year and proudly accepted the award which I hope inspires others to pursue a career in STEM.
Yesterday, I was proud to launch the Girls in STEM Toolkit, which is a useful online resource to encourage more young women to consider the benefits of gaining skills in these crucial disciplines.
