Member for Western Ballarat Jaala Pulford has taken on three new portfolios in a Victorian government reshuffle following the political demise of Adem Somyurek, Marlene Kairouz and Robin Scott in a branch-stacking scandal.
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Ms Pulford will now have ministerial responsibility for Employment, Small Business and Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy, three crucial portfolios, she says, as Victoria both recovers from the first wave of COVID-19 and faces a potential second outbreak.
"I'm energised by the challenge," Ms Pulford told The Courier, saying there was no existing plan which could have foreseen the challenges now facing Victoria and Australia generally.
"It has been an incredibly difficult period for all employers, employees and small business owners. The first thing I will be doing is receiving a detailed update from the department, who have been doing a lot in the past few months to deal with what has happened.
"There is so much energy and ability in our small businesses, and I will be listening to those in industry and innovation, and asking exactly what do they need to rebuild."
Asked whether the coronavirus crisis and the changes it has wrought on society in short period of time was a chance to reconsider governmental approaches to many areas and perhaps find better ways to do things, Ms Pulford said the COVID-19 experience had been a day-to-day and week-to-week challenge to maintain optimism.
"It's been heartening to be in our local community and watch businesses adapt and keep going," Ms Pulford said.
"There is honestly so much creativity in what they are doing, and it is a very powerful force in recovery."
As Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy, Ms Pulford readily proclaims she is an innovation enthusiast. She points to her previous work as agriculture minister, saying in that time the department was digitised to a degree never before expected.
"As minister I oversaw the introduction of the electronic ID tag program as well as a digital agriculture strategy overall," she says.
"I do love innovation. In the roads portfolio we again went in new directions. I like learning and seeing how things develop; I'm not technical but I love creativity and entrepreneurship."
On the more vexed question of morale within the Andrews government following the recent revelations, Ms Pulford is more cautious, saying she won't be drawn on the afternoon's cabinet deliberations.
"Look, the government is focussed on the tasks at hand," Ms Pulford says.
"There are some very challenging numbers on coronavirus in the past four to five days. The sooner we manage those back down, the better. I understand how tantalisingly close people were to realising a return to freedoms, but the reality is this virus will be with us until there is a vaccine.
"Our scientific and medical research minds are some of the best in the world, and Victoria will be at the forefront of this and other research," Ms Pulford says of her work in her new portfolio.
