Tim Hammond (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise with a heavy heart to pay tribute to the Hon. Kimberley Maurice Chance—Kim Chance, as he was more commonly known—who tragically and unexpectedly passed away last week. Kim was the farmer from Doodlakine in the Central Wheatbelt who became a WA Labor hero. He ran against—and lost to—Wilson Tuckey in three successive elections. As a sign of his tenacity, he persisted. He was elected to Western Australia's Legislative Council to fill a casual vacancy in 1992 and retired at the 2008 state election.

Kim is best known for having been the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council and the Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. As the minister, he led the reform of the national exceptional circumstances policy, leading to a more flexible framework for farmers affected by drought; he negotiated the reform of the single desk for grain marketing; and he promoted Western Australia's primary produce overseas, particularly in the Middle East and South-East Asia. He was a strong advocate for the retention of the Potato Marketing Corporation, ensuring a reliable, seasonally stable supply of potatoes for our local consumers at affordable prices. And he personally implemented the Gallop government's old-growth forest policy, which protected the natural beauty of Western Australia's forests while providing for those in timber communities who may have been adversely affected.

The range of people who have placed obituaries in TheWest Australian is itself testament to the high regard in which Kim Chance was held: Western Australian Labor luminaries, including former leaders Geoff Gallop and Eric Ripper; Gary Gray; Alannah MacTiernan; Sheila McHale; Yvonne Henderson; Ljiljanna Ravlich; the former state president and secretary of Western Australian Labor Mark Cuomo; the Geraldton Labor branch; and, tellingly, his former electorate staff. They were joined by friendly Tories, including former Liberal Party president Barry Court and his wife, Margaret; Liberal MLC the Hon. Ken Baston; and member for Hillarys, Rob Johnson; and, fittingly, the Western Australian Farmers Federation; the Western Australian Fishing Industry Council, of which he was a board member; the Pastoralists and Graziers Association of Western Australia; the Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia; and the Western Australian grain co-op the CBH Group—very well known in Western Australia.

Kim Chance was hardworking, affable, had incredible good humour and was intelligent and compassionate, the epitome of a good Labor minister. His recent passing leaves a very deep wound in the soul of Western Australian Labor. We extend our sincere condolences to his wife, Sue, his family and his friends.

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