I had already been inducted into Parliament so I knew something of what to expect, but nothing could really prepare me for standing and speaking on the floor of the NSW Parliament for the first time.

What a privilege, and I thank the people of the Dubbo electorate for giving me that privilege.

I was the first of the so-called new brigade to speak in the 57th Parliament of NSW.

I think people right across the electorate want to feel like they're being listened to and represented by someone who cares and has their back - and that's exactly what I'll be doing.

My team and I will be out and about in the electorate as much as possible and our door is always open.

As I mentioned during my speech, I've had a fantastic chance to connect with people right across the region through radio over the past decade - but I'm now looking forward to providing a tangible link between problems and solutions, and providing help in a whole new way.

I want to be accessible to people across the region and I am honoured to be their voice. I've been told quite a few times in the past few weeks that now the 'real' work starts.

I suppose that's true, but it's also worth recognising that there's been a huge amount of work that's gone into getting this far.

The way I see it, now is the start of making the 'real' difference!

I heard a great quote the other week about the fact that although Rome wasn't built in a day, they were laying bricks and pavers pretty much every hour.

That's what I'll be doing, working with all of my colleagues across the board in laying those bricks every hour, as we work towards a bright future for this incredible part of the state.