George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

On 9 May 1988 Queen Elizabeth II officially opened this building, our permanentParliament House. On that occasion she related how, exactly 61 years earlier, on 9 May 1927, her father, the then Duke of York and later King George VI, had opened the first parliament house, Old Parliament House, here in Canberra. She also related how exactly 87 years earlier, on 9 May 1901, her grandfather, also the then Duke of York and later King George V, had opened the very first session of Australia's national parliament. The monarchy, mostly at arms length, has accompanied our parliament every step of the way from Federation to today.

For most of that period our head of state has been Queen Elizabeth II. Her 60-year reign has spanned a period of enormous growth, change, development and progress in our society. Perhaps only a handful of members in this place would remember her sudden ascension to the throne on 6 February 1952, when a young Elizabeth was on tour when her father, King George VI, suddenly died. Even the member for Hinkler was one year shy of being a sprightly young teenager. The Father of the House, the member for Berowra, was barely nine years old. The reign that the Queen has enjoyed is something to think about.

During that 60-year reign Queen Elizabeth II has seen 12 prime ministers in both this and Old Parliament House: Harold Holt, John McEwen, John Gorton, William McMahon, Gough Whitlam, Malcolm Fraser, Bob Hawke, Paul Keating, John Howard, Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard—and, of course, Sir Robert Menzies. The Queen ascended the throne four years into Menzies's 16-year tenure as Prime Minister, and it is probably worth noting an extract from an article written by Menzies in 1954 for the Sydney Morning Herald. That extract certainly reflects the mindset and relationship of Australians to the monarchy at that point in time. Menzies said:

It is a basic truth that for our Queen we have within us, sometimes unrealised until the moment of expression, the most profound and passionate feelings of loyalty and devotion. It does not require much imagination to realise that when 8 million people spontaneously pour out this feeling they are engaging in a great act of common allegiance and common joy which brings them closer together and is one of the most powerful elements converting them from a mass of individuals to a great, cohesive nation. In brief, the common devotion to the throne is a part of the very cement of the whole social structure.

Queen Elizabeth II may be our head of state in Australia, but she is probably recognised for many other things. Australians love their long weekends, and the Queen's Birthday long weekend is no different, although her real birthday is 21 April. Go figure—that is typically Australian. If you do not care to send her a card for her birthday, she will still send you a telegram for yours if you are turning 100. During her 60-year reign, Queen Elizabeth II has sent more than 175,000 telegrams to centenarians around the Commonwealth. She has conferred more than 400,000 honours and awards. She has launched 21 ships. She has sat for 129 portraits. How you could sit still for 129 portraits is beyond me, but she has done it. She has also owned more than 30 corgis. That is one thing she is famously known for, and many of those are noted descendants of the first corgi, Susan, which was an 18th birthday present in 1944.

She has undertaken 261 official overseas visits to 116 different countries. But I would like to dwell on one particular visit for a moment. Of the 18 times that Queen Elizabeth II actually visited Australia I would like to highlight her 1954 tour. This tour took in approximately 60 cities and regional centres, including some in my electorate of Dawson in North Queensland. On 13 March the tour took a young Elizabeth to Townsville at the northern end of Dawson. She went to Lindeman Island in the Whitsundays for what appeared to be a brief holiday and then to Mackay after 40 days on tour.

It was a short stay in Mackay—only a few hours—but it was enough to leave a lasting impression on anyone who attended the official occasion. I have got to say that it was most of the town. It was reported that 30,000 people crowded into the Mackay showground. The visit is recorded in fabulous detail in a book called Mackay Revisited, which many Mackay people know as a history of the town. The book paints a picture of townspeople falling over themselves to catch a glimpse of Queen Elizabeth II and records the local newspaper, the Daily Mercury, devoting more coverage to that visit than to any event since the great cyclone of 1918. The editorial of the day after the Queen's visit read:

If so much has been achieved in times when the monarchy had been confined to British shores, how much more could be expected from the rising generations who, with their elders, will draw a new inspiration, a burning zeal, a pride and a joy from the visit in person of their Queen; a closer contact than they have ever known with all the Crown symbolises.

That certainly reflects the mood of the time and the feeling of Australians towards the monarchy. On that visit, the children of Mackay put on a performance for the Queen. There were three items by the Junior Choral Society; there was a verse of Greetings to our Queen by the West Mackay convent; there was an Australian bush ballet scene—I have never seen a bush ballet, but I am sure it was fantastic; and there was a pageant of flags by the local Girl Guides. We have come a long way since that visit in 1954, but the recent marriage of Prince William to Kate Middleton proves that Australians have not lost their interest in the institution of the monarchy.

I have to admit that I am a bit of an anomaly within the federal parliamentary National Party—I support a republic, though the republic I would support would have a directly elected head of state. I am a republican; I am not so gung ho about it, but I am a republican nonetheless. However, you do not have to be a staunch monarchist to appreciate the historical significance of the monarchy and of Queen Elizabeth II herself. I am not sure that even Elizabeth would have appreciated what was to come when she said at her coronation:

I am sure that this, my Coronation, is not the symbol of a power and a splendour that are gone but a declaration of our hopes for the future, and for the years I may, by God's Grace and Mercy, be given to reign and serve you as your Queen.

God's grace and mercy have granted 60 years to Queen Elizabeth II. Even as republican, I hope that there are many more to come. God save the Queen.

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