Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I want to support the remarks of the Prime Minister in regard to the passing of Sir Allen Fairhall and Sir Harold Young. They are, of course, two of our opponents’ substantial figures and, therefore, not necessarily well known to people on this side of the House—though, as it happens, over time, I met both of them.

As the Prime Minister said, Allen Fairhall was the last of the Liberal class of 1949, who entered federal politics in the election that started the Menzies ascendancy. He was born near Maitland in the Hunter Valley. He trained as an electrical fitter but his first passion was radio. He was one of the pioneers of the Australian radio industry and, as he founded a radio station, he performed the roles of engineer, announcer, disc jockey, copywriter and salesman. This led to a very unusual career, during World War II, after he had been rejected by the RAAF in World War II on medical grounds.

In 1941 he was coopted by the Ministry of Munitions as supervising engineer of the Radio and Signals Supply Section in New South Wales. He was responsible for the production of wireless signals and radar equipment for the armed services. In 1941, as Australia was rapidly gearing up for the Allied war effort, he was coopted by the Ministry of Munitions to become supervising engineer; and, in World War II, he was responsible for a fair proportion of the equipment that was produced in those new areas of technology, in particular in relation to radar. In those three years, he worked for the ministry in an honorary capacity.

He won the seat of Paterson in 1949 and, seven years later, was the Minister for the Interior and the Minister for Works. In 1961 he was promoted to cabinet as supply minister. When Harold Holt succeeded Menzies, during the turbulent years of the Vietnam War, he was moved to defence. In those days, I understand, the defence minister had three junior ministers beneath him. In Mr Fairhall’s time these included Malcolm Fraser as army minister and Peter Howson as air minister. Both were ambitious. Fraser was scathing about what he viewed as Mr Fairhall’s inability to resolve interservice disputes. That may well have said more about Mr Fraser than it did about Mr Fairhall; nevertheless, there was a clash of opinions.

That clash of opinions was not as substantial as the clash of opinions that occurred after the death of Harold Holt. That placed Mr Fairhall firmly in a position of disagreement with Mr Holt’s successor, Prime Minister Gorton. He was worried that Mr Gorton was going down what he perceived to be an isolationist road. He was concerned that Mr Gorton did not share the strong sense of commitment he felt for the Vietnam War effort. He also believed, of course, that Prime Minister Gorton was increasingly making announcements without consultation.

The upshot of all of that was that Sir Allen Fairhall left politics. He had a lengthy career in politics of 20 years. He has had a lengthy time since politics to enjoy a retirement which he identified as enabling him to devote himself to business interests, family life in Newcastle, amateur radio broadcasting and deep-sea fishing. On behalf of the opposition, I want to express our deepest sympathy to Lady Monica and their son, Allen.

South Australian Harold Young was elected to the Senate in 1967 and was Government Whip from August 1971 until the coalition lost office in December 1972. He was Opposition Whip during the terms of the Labor government and opposition spokesman on the media in 1975. He was Senate President from 1981 to 1983. Before his election to the Senate, he was a wheat farmer and grazier at Gilberton in South Australia. He was regarded as a tireless advocate for primary industry. On his departure from the Senate in 1983, Senator Button said:

Senator Sir Harold Young was, I think, regarded by all senators as a very fair and decent President of the Senate.

Senator Don Chipp said:

He was a great fighter for the Parliament and the Senate against the greedy clutches of the Executive. I think all honourable senators should thank him for that.

Senator Messner said:

To my mind he was one of the most popular politicians in South Australia. Whenever we travelled together throughout the State, however remote the locality, he would either have a relative in the immediate vicinity or be well known to people in the area.

Our sympathy goes to his widow, Lady Young, and his four children. Unlike Allen Fairhall, whom I met once or twice around Parliament House as a boy, Sir Harold I did know as a senator. In the very short acquaintance that I had with him—and in the acquaintance that I had with him at airports, where one meets folk around the country from time to time—those judgements made by Senator Button, Senator Chipp and Senator Messner have, in my experience, been amply borne out. Our sympathy is with his widow and four children.

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