This evening I have tendered my resignation as leader of the parliamentary Liberal party for Victoria and I will shortly visit the governor to tender my resignation as the premier for Victoria.
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Can I say, I love this state, I love the Liberal party and I love this role that I have had the honour to enjoy over the last 2 and a bit years. I have appreciated immensely the honour of being the leader of parliamentary Liberal party but it is apparent to me that a change of leadership is in the best interest of the government and hence I have made that decision.
I want to put my full support behind the new leader of the parliamentary Liberal party. Denis Napthine, and toindicate that I will be staying on in parliament to support him. I want to thank the deputy premier Peter Ryan in particular, members of the national party and the Coalition team. I want to thank members of the cabinet and our respective organisations.
I want to thank my staff, in particular my chief of staff and many other senior members of staff, they know who they are, I'm not going to go through them all. They have my deepest thanks and affection. I know what they have contributed, enormous hours.
I want to thank also my electorate staff who have endured while I have been on other duties and also my veryspecial friends, timeless friends who shall remain nameless. I want to of course thank my wife Robyn and our three children. I love them dearly. I also want to thank my extended family and I come form a large family.
I am sure I will be having a good close cuddle with many of them later this evening. I just want to say what is important in this state, to me, it is the great legacy of this state, Victorians enjoy a legacy I believe unmatched upon this country, unmatched upon this world, and it's an honour to stand in this room and understand this parliament has not just represented a beacon of democracy but also an icon of what is possible.
The core character of Victorians is one of aspiration and ambition and Victorians have since settlement days, when the first settlers blended with indigenous communities here, demonstrated that core character over and over again and it is character to raise families, to build for the future, grow business in a very special way. It is also about reaching out to the world.
We have a multicultural base here which I think is unprecedented in the world, it is our strength, it's our character, it's what brings us together and it is what will ensure that Victoria meets the challenges ahead. I simply say what is important in all of this is the people of Victoria and above all I want to thank the people of Victoria for the trust they placed in me over several years particularly those who were good enough to afford us the opportunity to be in government in 2010.
That trust is a trust so much attached to the core character of Victoria. I wish Denis Napthine all the best. He has my full support and is an outstanding individual and I know he will give the the job ahead his all. And also, I want to take this opportunity to thank all those in the arts and culutre community. I have had the joy of alsobeing Minister for the Arts and it is an enormous role for the arts and culture in Victoria along with everything else that makes this the most liveable state, the most liveable city. And we saw it on parade just a few nights ago in Melbourne and the hundreds of thousands who came to the city, with smiles on their faces, with their family, for me, that said so much about Victoria. Thank you very much.
The last group I want to thank is you guys, the media. You do your gig, we do ours and I wish you well in the future.
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