Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to associate myself with the condolence motion and follow the remarks of the Prime Minister, senior South Australian ministers, in particular, in the House, and others who have spoken here in the Main Committee before me this day. Jeannie was known and well regarded not only by all members of the coalition but, as has been made clear in discussion on this motion, by many members of the opposition and the minor parties in the Senate. Many have spoken before me about her great characteristics—her feistiness, her dedication to the policy causes she believed in, her wonderful personality. I saw all of those firsthand here, as a member of parliament. But I wanted to talk about my friendship with Jeannie, which began many years ago, before I was elected as a member of parliament, when I worked as a staff member for the member for Higgins, now Treasurer. I think we started work together on the same day in this building. I remember trying to find my way around—it was a fair while ago; I would have called myself young in those days, in 1990. I had just started work with the member for Higgins and Jeannie had started work with Ian McLachlan.

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