John Murphy (Lowe, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to pay tribute to the former Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Kim Beazley. It has been an honour and a privilege as his parliamentary secretary to serve such a decent human being. In recent times, he has had many achievements in keeping the government honest in the areas of national security, interest rates, industrial relations and global warming. This morning Kim made a very moving concession speech in the caucus. He highlighted the fact that the Prime Minister is the most formidable conservative political opponent he has faced in 26 years.

Australia is restless for a change of government, and we on this side of the House would all do well to heed the wisdom, words and advice of Kim Beazley and ensure, with the manoeuvring at the moment in the factions, that we put the best team forward on the front bench to make sure we win the next election. I am calling on everyone on this side of the House to eliminate the factional bastardry to ensure that Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard have the best people to take the battle to John Howard on 13 October next year and give Australia the government it deserves.

See this speech in context