Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I take this opportunity to join with the Prime Minister and my parliamentary colleagues in congratulating Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on reaching a significant milestone in her glorious reign of 63 years and 218 days, surpassing the record set by her great, great grandmother, Queen Victoria. This morning, I had the honour of joining the Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove; church leaders and colleagues at St Paul's Anglican church in Manuka to attend the national ecumenical service to mark the occasion of Her Majesty becoming Britain's longest serving sovereign.

The Queen is Head of the Commonwealth and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. During her reign, the world has changed remarkably through momentous economic, social and political events; conflicts and international events she has reigned with dignity, integrity and grace. Her devotion to duty and public service is unparalleled. Citizens of Commonwealth nations have enjoyed decades of stability, security, good governance and comparatively high standards of living compared with other nations. Commonwealth countries are united by diplomacy, by international cooperation and through sporting events.

Today, we celebrate the British heritage of our multicultural nation and all that is good about Australia: our culture, customs and traditions; our system of government; our rule of law; our industrialised economy and our Defence Force. We should be proud of this heritage and never seek to diminish our British heritage from history. We owe our high standard of living and our peaceful and secure society to a stable constitutional monarchy that is built on the British heritage. This fact must never be lost in the national debate on multiculturalism and reconciliation.

I believe that there should be mutual respect and recognition of all the cultures on which our nation is founded, without selective omission. The constitutional monarchy is part of our culture. It defines us. We must never downplay the significance of British culture in today's multicultural Australian society. We should celebrate it as an integral part of the pluralistic culture that defines us as modern Australians.

Throughout my lifetime, I have witnessed the Queen's silver, ruby, gold and diamond jubilees. My grandparents instilled in me a healthy respect for our sovereign. I have fond memories of queueing up for hours to see the Queen in public on two occasions: at Perth Airport, when Her Majesty was in Perth, and Government House. I am proud to say that members of my extended family have been loyal servants of the British crown over the generations in the military, clergy and banking. Their distinguished service has been recognised with knighthoods and ennoblements in the baronetage of the United Kingdom of South Hill Park, Broadwell and Filkins.

I pay special tribute to Her Majesty with the words:

O Lord our God arise,

Scatter her enemies

And make them fall;

Confound their politics,

Frustrate their knavish tricks,

On Thee our hopes we fix,

Oh! Save us all!

Thy choicest gifts in store

On her be pleased to pour;

Long may she reign;

May she defend our laws,

And ever give us cause

To sing with heart and voice,

God save the Queen!

Thank you.

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