 In June 2011 Parke publicly raised concerns about the government's proposal to send asylum-seeker children to Malaysia and in July 2011 Parke was one of nine backbenchers to raise concerns about the government's decision to resume the live export of cattle to Indonesia after the ABC "Four Corners" program exposed cruel and inhumane treatment of Australian cattle in Indonesian abattoirs.In February 2013 Parke was promoted to Parliamentary Secretary for Mental Health, Homelessness and Social Housing.Parke has previously sat on the Joint Standing Committee for Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Trade, the Joint Standing Committee for Treaties, and the Joint Statutory Committee