Robert Oakeshott (Lyne, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I have followed this debate closely and I wanted to congratulate the member for bringing on this motion. It is a good example of private members' business having the ability to progress its way through the parliament. Through this debate, I had the honour, as did many others, of meeting many members of the Norman family and the extended network of people who either knew Peter Norman or know the story of Peter Norman. It has been an eye-opener as to what he did and the contribution to Australia that Peter Norman's story is. I hope through this that more people know the story and are proud of what he did at the Mexico Olympics and that they challenge themselves in the same way on that question of what you would do in that same situation.

I hope this is not the end of work we do for the Norman family. In correspondence that has followed, there have been conversations around some sort of tribute on a greater scale to Peter Norman in Australia. One option, just as an example, is a similar type statue to the one that is in San Jose State University in the United States, where you have the opportunity to stand where Peter Norman stood alongside the two American athletes. That would be a fitting tribute somewhere in Australia, but some other idea may come forward, and I think that would round out the work that has been done by the member and through this debate very well. Congratulations.

Question agreed to.

Original question, as amended, agreed to.

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