Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health) Share this | Hansard source

We in this House today and for many days pay tribute to and remember the Labor warrior and true reformist, Gough Whitlam. So much can be said about Australia's 21st Prime Minister: his service to the Labor Party; his commitment to the community of Werriwa where he was the former federal member; his dedication to reforming and shaping Australia into the dynamic, egalitarian society we enjoy today; and his devotion as a loving husband and father. But I would like to focus on one of Gough's greatest achievements in particular, a subject close to my heart: education.

Education affects as all. It shapes our way of life, and I am privileged to have the role of shadow minister for education. Gough saw education for what it was and is: a great transformer; the single greatest opportunity to improving the quality of life and standard of living for every Australian; and the best possible mechanism for improving and strengthening our economy.

In coming to government in 1972, Gough set about transforming Australia's education system into a far more equitable and affordable endeavour for all Australians. He abolished the 'morally unjust and socially wasteful' dichotomy of opportunity afforded to private school students versus government school students, arguing that 'no democratic government can accept this disparity'.

Gough threw open the doors to Australia's higher education system, offering students of all backgrounds a free and affordable university education for the first time in our history. This proved to be a profound reform; a hallmark of Gough's brief but momentous time in office. Gough could not know back then that this reform would continue to echo around this place some 40 years later, highlighted now by the current government's proposed higher education reform package.

Education was a personal passion of Gough's. In fact, in his 1969 campaign launch, Gough argued:

When government makes opportunities for any of the citizens, it makes them for all the citizens. We are all diminished as citizens when any of us are poor. … The nation is the poorer—a poorer economy, a poorer civilisation, because of this human and national waste

I think this is something that the government should consider while it is pursuing some very radical, unfair and distasteful reforms.

Gough used this sense of universal education and social justice to unleash many educational reforms, including the abolition of university fees, the granting of state aid to independent schools, lifting the funding to public schools and the creation of the Australian Schools Commission.

Under Gough's leadership, government spending on non-government schools increased by 117 per cent, while spending on government schools increased by 677 per cent. This funding injection tipped the establishment on its head and went a long way to eradicating the inequity in public school funding.

Gough's reforms in education were big, broad and visionary. Following a long stint in opposition, Gough knew what needed to be done to transform Australia's education system into a fairer, more equitable institution that benefited and served the wider Australian community, not just the fortunate few.

It is fair to say that, if it were not for Gough Whitlam and his visionary education reforms, particularly in higher education, many in this place today would not have a university degree. Many would not have been afforded the opportunity to go university or even finish school. We in this place and right across this country owe Gough a debt we can never repay. The opportunity to gain an education is the first step in gaining meaningful employment, social mobility and financial freedom.

What people may not know is that Gough was also the champion of Australia's modern dental school plan, which originated in my electorate of Kingston—this is getting off the topic of education but something that is probably little known. This information came from the former member for Kingston, Richie Gun, who took the then shadow minister for health, Bill Hayden, on a tour of a Christie's Beach dental clinic in 1969. The clinic was trialling a first of its kind: a dental service, that was local, could be easily accessed and was affordable. So impressive were the results of this state health department trial, it was quickly introduced into the Labor Party platform in 1971 in order to extend the program nation-wide. Gough gave this policy his full support and went about introducing a national dental service as a matter of urgency after having won office in 1972. Gough was a driver of change in Australia. This small policy was just one of the many policies that not only made my electorate of Kingston a better place to live but also made this country a better place to live.

We need to take this opportunity to say thank you, Gough, for what you did for this country. People would argue that taking this country from where it was to where needed to be was a massive step. It required momentum, it required passion and it required drive and they were things that Gough Whitlam certainly had.

Gough was a great man, a great reformer, a great Labor leader and a great Prime Minister. I think we can all continue to fight for his principles and his beliefs. We can all continue to mark his legacy in a way that is fitting for the modern Labor Party. He will be missed.

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