Alexander Downer (Mayo, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I just very briefly want to add my support to this condolence motion because it is my view that Clyde Cameron was one of the greatest political figures to emerge from South Australia. He was a really great man in many ways. He was a great friend of my parents—initially, of my father. They came into the House together in 1949. My father was a quite traditional conservative and Clyde Cameron was not much of what you see on the other side these days but a very traditional representative of working people. He did a wonderful job standing up for working people throughout his life. Whilst I do not think my father ever agreed with too many of his policies, and was very critical of them on occasions, the friendship that developed between them and, in time, between Clyde and my mother, right up until the time of Clyde’s death, is an illustration of the type of man Clyde Cameron was.

He was a man of enormous integrity. He was very tough. He was often extremely acerbic, as members on both sides of the House I think would know. He was a great champion of working people, as he saw it. He was also an extremely amusing man and he was able to build relationships right across the political spectrum—very close and very personal relationships. He will be greatly missed. As I said at the beginning, he really was one of the greatest political figures, Liberal or Labor, or Democrat for that matter, that South Australia has produced. He will be very sorely missed, and I want to extend my condolences to Doris and to his family.

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