Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

It is that time of the parliamentary year when we make these valedictory speeches and reflect on what has taken place both in this place and across the nation for which we work during the preceding year. Of course, this past year has been a year of triumphs and disasters. That is the Australian way, both in a natural sense and in a political sense.

In March this year Cyclone Larry caused more than $1 billion worth of damage in North Queensland, and our whole country reached out and poured out its heart to the people who were affected up there. The Prime Minister and I visited the area straight after the effect of the cyclone. Of course, one of the enduring features of Australia and Australianness is the ability of Australians to be able to reach out and help their mates and their fellow countrymen, as was the case then. Now, as the country is ravaged by arguably the worst drought that we have ever had in this nation, we are doing the same thing as a nation—holding out our hands to help the farming community to get through this difficult time that it is confronting.

This week, and it was recognised in comments in the House today, there are 37 fires blazing across the north-east and Gippsland regions of Victoria. These natural disasters are a common part of the landscape in Australia, and they are something that we need to deal with on a daily basis. Despite these disasters and the headlines of a troubled world, we have much to be thankful for, living in this country at a time when we approach Christmas, where we celebrate the birth of Christ and recognise the sacrifices he made for us.

Interestingly, this year both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition mentioned families. This year about 265,000 children were born, and they will grow up in a country that is free and prosperous, which is one of the greatest democracies on the face of this planet. Both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition mentioned the importance of family and the great joys of having children. This year, Wendy and I discovered another one—and that is having grandchildren. One of those 265,000 children born this year was our first grandchild, Jackson James Rapley. He was born in August and his parents were recipients of support from the federal government, for which they were very grateful at the time, as I am sure the parents of the other 265,000 children that were born were. It is appropriate that at this time we recognise those things that we value in this country, along with family, Australianness and how we treat each other.

This place, being the great clearing house of ideas in this country, is a place where we do engage in very tough debating battle on the ideas of the time. Of course, that is the pivotal point of our democracy in this country. We get to this stage of the year and it is appropriate that we recognise the fact that, whether we agree with each other on individual issues or not, we should all acknowledge that each individual in this place is doing what he or she believes is in the best interests of the nation. And we do do that. We do believe in that. That is one of the things that we absolutely love about our political process, our parliamentary process, and we should recognise that.

Can I recognise the great contribution that the Prime Minister has made as the head of the government and the leader of the nation, both nationally in the interests of over 20 million Australians and on the international stage as a well-recognised international political leader across the world. The contribution that the Prime Minister has made will be to the enduring benefit of future generations in this nation. Prime Minister, I wish you and Janette a very peaceful and restful break over the Christmas period and new year. I just hope for your sake that the fifth test in Sydney is not one that is for an academic result and that there is interest in that test. I am sure that, one way or another, you will enjoy that. I also extend all the best for the Christmas and festive season and the new year to the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party—our coalition partners—the Treasurer and good friend, Peter Costello, and his wife, Tanya.

Because of the changes in recent months my deputy leader, Warren Truss, and his wife, Lynn, have had to freshen up their passports and start travelling the world. I know that the Leader of the Opposition is well aware of the impact of this on your personal life and physical wellbeing, and I am at this stage still not missing the fact that I took a decision a couple of months ago to change portfolios, return permanently to Australia and reacquaint myself with my Australian habits. But I wish Warren and Lynn all the best. I know that next year is going to be a very busy year for him with the portfolio and as the deputy leader of our party, playing a critical role in the leadership team of government as we move into what will be a very important election year for the nation.

I thank the whips that have looked after us in our party, particularly Kay Hull and her predecessor John Forrest. During he last year they have done a fantastic job in looking after the interests of the party. It is not easy being from time to time the junior coalition partner, where the interests of the nation must always come first—and that includes the interests of regional Australia. The whips do a great job in working with our colleagues in managing the processes. While I am on whips, I mention the member for Macquarie, the member for Gilmore and the member for Corangamite, our colleagues in the Liberal Party, whom we work so very closely with.

It would not be appropriate for me to let the moment pass without commenting on a couple of my colleagues who the next time that we have an opportunity of participating in this debate in this place may not be with us. I speak of the current member for Gwydir, John Anderson, and the member for Page, Ian Causley, the Deputy Speaker, who have both announced that they will not be contesting the next election. The member for Gwydir has been a very good friend and colleague of mine for all of the years that I have been in this place. He preceded me in entering the parliament by a number of years, and we shared an interest in portfolios in agriculture and in transport and regional services and, of course, ultimately in the leadership of our party in government.

For the six years that John Anderson was the Deputy Prime Minister and led our party, I was his deputy and thoroughly enjoyed working with him. I learned an enormous amount from John. A lot has been said following John’s announcement of his retirement, but it goes without saying and needs to be put on the record again that, above everything else, John Anderson is a thoroughly decent human being and a decent Australian who loves this country and particularly loves the regional parts of our nation that we lovingly refer to as the bush.

I know that John will be sadly missed in this place and in our party and that the contribution that he has made will be recorded in the political history of this country as being one of great significance both in policy for agriculture—the AAA package comes to mind, as does the National Water Initiative—and, something that we have been having a bit of a debate about in the parliament this week, in the relationship between the Commonwealth and states in funding processes: the establishment of the AusLink program and beginning to remove those demarcation lines of responsibility in the hierarchy of the road structure and the rail structure in Australia. They were things that John Anderson achieved and put into place in a policy sense that he will be well and truly remembered for.

To John and Julia and to Ian and June, I wish you all the best. I know that we will be working with both of you, John and Ian, during next year, but in the circumstances I might not get another opportunity. We thank you for your contribution. Ian Causley had a very distinguished career in the state parliament in New South Wales as a very senior minister in the Greiner and Fahey governments. He served with distinction and came to this place with a great deal of experience in and knowledge of so many areas of public policy, which we have been able to draw upon very often. We appreciate the work that Ian has done. In latter years, he has been a very capable Deputy Speaker in this place, one who has occupied the chair for many hours, helping in the smooth running of this chamber and the rest of the parliament.

Beyond those senior colleagues, I wish my National Party colleagues, particularly Minister Peter McGauran and his wife, Trudy, Minister John Cobb, Parliamentary Secretary De-Anne Kelly and Senator Sandy Macdonald, and all of my other party colleagues in the House and in the Senate the very best for Christmas and the New Year. I also wish all of our colleagues both in the ministry and, more broadly, in the Liberal Party all the best for Christmas and trust they have a very restful break over the next month or so whilst we are away from this place so as to be ready to return to the fray in February of next year.

At the same time, I should acknowledge our party organisation, including both Andrew Hall from our federal secretariat here in Canberra and those executive officers in the state divisions of our party, for the work that they have done with me, my office, my colleagues and the party. I extend my best wishes, particularly to Andrew Hall, our party federal director, who works so closely with us and with Brian Loughnane from the Liberal Party in managing the orderly operations of the two parties in delivering good coalition government.

Mr Speaker, I take this opportunity to wish you and your good wife, Penny, all the very best for Christmas. I know that it has been just as challenging a year for you as the key occupant of the chair as it has been for the rest of us in this place. This place does not work as effectively and as well as it does as the clearinghouse of political ideas in this country without firm guidance from the occupant of the chair. To that end, we thank you and wish you all the very best.

Ian Harris and his team, the clerks, do a fantastic job in their totally impartial advice to both sides of the chamber in matters of procedure, the orderly running of the chamber and the assistance they give to both the government and the opposition. I recognise the comment that the Leader of the Opposition made in that regard. We can still remember the years that we spent in opposition in the early nineties—or I can. We probably relied more heavily in those days on the advice from the clerks and we continue to remind ourselves that that is a fundamental reason why we fight so hard to stay on this side.

I also recognise the great work that Dalma Dixon and those in the office of the Serjeant-at-Arms do in helping all members of parliament. I understand that Dalma may be retiring soon. She has been in that office since I have been in this place. I have always relied very heavily on their advice and guidance and wish them very well. Thank you, Dalma, and those in the office of the Serjeant-at-Arms.

Hansard do a great job on behalf of the nation in recording all that goes on in this place. Often, in times of heated debate, it must be challenging for them, but we recognise the great job that they do.

I am aware that some of the staff in Parliament House who have served us so well are also going to retire. I want to single out Diane Hawke, who retired from the Parliamentary Library this year after 32 years of service. She worked at the front counter in the library in both the old and new parliament houses. We often lose sight of the level of dedication of many of the officers of the parliament who work for us. They are just as dedicated to our parliamentary system and our processes of democracy in this country as we are, and we should recognise the great contribution that they make. That is critically important.

It would be remiss of me not to mention staff in my Canberra office, led very ably by my chief of staff, Brad Williams, and all my other staff who manage the business of our party within government and in interacting with other senior ministers’ officers and our party membership across Australia. They are dedicated to the cause, just as we are. I certainly thank them and wish them all the best for Christmas. During the upcoming weeks, my chief of staff is going to commit to the sacrament of marriage, and I wish Brad and Meredith all the very best for their wedding and for their life together. I am sure they will be extremely happy together, particularly with their shared passion for politics and good policy.

Before concluding, I wish the Leader of the Opposition, his wife, Therese, and their children all the best over the upcoming period. As he indicated, we have had a healthy professional relationship across the chamber in the trade portfolio over the last 12 months, when it has been quite intense. I know that on major occasions of significant policy for the nation we have shared some views. During the Hong Kong ministerial of the WTO last year, the Leader of the Opposition, then the shadow minister for foreign affairs and trade, was present as part of the Australian delegation, just as his predecessors in that portfolio have had responsibility for WTO meetings. He certainly participated very constructively as part of Team Australia on that occasion. We look forward to the announcement of the new Labor Party frontbench. We wish them all the best in their new roles and look forward to the work we are going to do in this place next year. It will be more of the same, as we debate the great issues of import to the nation.

To the newly elected Deputy Leader of the Opposition, the member for Lalor: I wish her all the very best. I will continue to wear my Australian-made suits and the ties that my wife and daughters select for me! I know that she will bring to whatever role she is appointed to by the Leader of the Opposition her usual level of commitment and diligence.

The member for Brand had a particularly difficult week, and that has been reflected upon. I do not know that any of us can really appreciate the shock of losing a brother in such circumstances—having just lost the leadership of the Labor Party. I know we all felt, as human beings, for the member for Brand. Our thoughts and prayers are with him this week as he and his family confront the very difficult circumstance of the loss of a loved one. He has always been a committed Australian.

When we were having a major debate on the eve of passing the legislation that put in place the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement, the member for Brand made a significant speech from the back bench, before he returned to the front bench, in support of the importance of what we had done in cementing that commercial bilateral relationship with the United States. I thanked him on that occasion because it was above politics, at a time when the then Leader of the Opposition was not as constructive towards the policy position the government had taken. I wish the member for Brand and his wife, Susie, all the best for Christmas, as I do the member for Jagajaga. As she has served as the Deputy Leader of the Australian Labor Party for a number of years in this place, I know this will be a time for reflection. Leadership of political parties is one of the most difficult challenges of any aspect of one’s political career, as I have been finding out over the last 18 months since taking on the mantle of leadership of the National Party. I certainly convey my congratulations to the member for Jagajaga and to the member for Brand for the work they have done leading their party over recent years.

In conclusion, I extend best wishes for Christmas to all members on both sides of the parliament, to all those engaged in serving us in the House of Representatives and in the Senate. I trust they will have a wonderful time with their families and loved ones as we celebrate the birth of Christ and this great event of Christmas when we focus so much on family. I thank very deeply my wife, Wendy, for her support during the last 12 months. Political spouses often end up wearing some of the ignominy that we bring upon ourselves as members of parliament, whether warranted or not. It is certainly not warranted by our families. I know sometimes it is tough for them, but we should acknowledge the great support we get. Certainly Wendy has always been a great support to me and I thank her. To my daughters, Terri, Prue and Sarah, to my sons-in-law, Jason and Nigel, and to our new addition, our grandson Jackson James: I am certainly looking forward to having a wonderful Christmas with you.

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