Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I join with colleagues on both sides of this House in celebrating the life of a great Australian and a great Liberal, Malcolm Fraser. Some time ago, the phone rang. It was Malcolm Fraser. 'Josh,' he said, 'I've been reading what you have written and I would like to take you to lunch to discuss foreign policy.' There began a fascinating conversation with Australia's 22nd Prime Minister about our nation's relationship with China, our alliance with the United States and politics in the Middle East. At all times, he was passionate, forthright and extremely knowledgeable about international relations today as well as those of yesteryear. Even though we strongly disagreed about the primacy of the ANZUS alliance and Australia's current strategic direction, he was at all times polite and heard out my arguments. I must say I left lunch with an even greater respect for the man.

Since that time, and particularly over recent days, I have been thinking about how to evaluate the contribution to public life of this towering figure in the Liberal Party, knowing that, after he left office, he resigned his party membership and, at times, espoused views that were diametrically opposed to the policies of the coalition government. The answer, though, for me is clear. His achievements in and out of office are many and significant and should be lauded as such. The Labor Party has made an art form of eulogising its prime ministers, no matter their faults, whereas we as Liberals are at times ambivalent about our past, focusing on what might have gone wrong instead of celebrating what went right.

Indeed, with Fraser a lot went right. First and foremost he saved the country from the economic excesses of the Whitlam government. In 1975 he inherited an economy facing stagflation. Inflation was at 17 per cent, unemployment was rising from 4½ per cent and the world economy had slowed after the oil crisis of 1974. But with cautious economic policy—albeit not with the reformist zeal of Thatcher and Reagan which was to later take hold—Fraser brought stability and certainty back into Australia's financial markets. He also commissioned the important Campbell inquiry, which was to lay the foundation for the floating of the dollar and the deregulation of the financial system.

In foreign affairs, he was strongly pro-American and staunchly anticommunist, supporting the Vietnam War, which helped stem communism's advance through Asia. Fraser's anti-apartheid stand was consistent, forceful and based on the best of human values. He opened Australia to more than 60,000 Indochinese and Vietnamese refugees, giving real effect to the end of the White Australia policy. The significance of this achievement should not be underestimated, as Fraser did not act with bipartisan support as these refugees were the very people Whitlam did not want coming to Australia. So to on Aboriginal land rights—Fraser passed significant federal legislation while also staying true to his federalist instincts, giving self-government to the Northern Territory.

Many of the federal institutions that we enjoy today—the Federal Court, the Australian Federal Police, the Commonwealth Ombudsman, the SBS and freedom of information laws—all have their origins with the Fraser government. When one adds together all these achievements, it is a significant and a lasting legacy fully befitting his three election wins, including two of the largest election mandates ever in Australia, which saw him become Australia's fourth longest serving Prime Minister. And, yes, while in his later years Fraser may have formally left the party like John Gorton, one of his predecessors as Prime Minister, this should not be allowed to overshadow his success in office. Malcolm Fraser will and must always be remembered as a Liberal giant.

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