Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

Before I begin the acknowledgement of Harold Holt, on a personal note I want to acknowledge the previous speaker, the member for Chifley, for his very wise, generous and humane comments in relation to my great friend the member for Kooyong, acknowledging the history that the member for Kooyong's family has faced. I thought it was a sensible and important intervention which brought needed calm to this citizenship debate and dealt with issues relating to the Holocaust in the way they should always have been addressed.

In relation to the great Harold Holt, the 17th Prime Minister of Australia and one of the most humane and effective members of this parliament that we have seen in the period since Federation, it's an honour to speak on behalf of myself, on behalf of my family and on behalf of the people of Flinders. Harold Holt's work was in Canberra and his seat was in Higgins, but his heart was on the peninsula. His family's home, his getaway, was in Portsea, and that was the scene of many of his warmest family moments. The Speaker yesterday gave a very moving tribute and talked about the words of Tony Eggleton and how Tony Eggleton reflected on Harold Holt's love of the Mornington Peninsula. It's a love shared by many, and even to this day many of those on the peninsula remember him, honour him and mourn him.

I really want to make three brief acknowledgements about his social contribution, about his economic contribution and about the 50th anniversary celebration of his life—a commemoration of his passing but a celebration of his life, which will be this Sunday morning at Point Nepean. Much has been written about Harold Holt in terms of his passing, but his work as a minister and as Prime Minister was of great social moment. In a way, there's a tremendous synergy with today's events in this House.

Firstly, he was an enormous contributor to the rights of children and of parents. The child endowment was paid for the first time on his watch, to the mother, and that was a decision which was taken whilst he was the Minister for Labour and National Service. This was a breakthrough for children and for women. Equally, he was responsible for appointing the first woman to administer a government department, Dame Annabelle Rankin as the Minister for Housing from Australia Day 1966 going forward. That was Harold Holt's appointment.

Then, perhaps most significantly, he was, as much as any person in Australia's history, the architect of the end of the White Australia policy. In particular, he ended the dictation test, a test that was able to be used selectively and was a stain on Australia's history—let there be no doubt about that—and used selectively to exclude from this country those whom officials at any time or place thought didn't make it on grounds of race, religion, ethnicity or culture, or simply did not conform to a certain idea. As the minister for immigration he oversaw the intake of 900,000 immigrants. This was a period that changed the face of Australia and outlined the contemporary multiethnic, multifaith, multicultural Australia in a way more pronounced than in any other period in Australia's history. He was a great believer in this process of ending the White Australia policy, in bringing Indigenous Australia into the fold and out of the shadows. So, again, it was on his watch, at his urging and with his leadership that the referendum for full recognition of Indigenous Australians was carried with the highest 'yes' vote of any referendum in Australia's history. That is a social legacy of which to be proud. It has helped shape the great contemporary Australian nation.

But Harold Holt was also an extraordinary economic minister. Whilst he was responsible for tremendous fiscal management and economic growth, there were two actions in particular that shaped the contemporary Australian economic landscape. Firstly, he was the minister responsible for the establishment of the Reserve Bank, an august body that has created much of the stability in Australia's monetary and currency systems that have together helped underpin our capacity to be the only nation in the developed world with 27 years of consistent economic growth. Secondly, he oversaw the case for and transition to decimal currency. This has been a very important part of our ability to trade, our ability to be independent and our ability to engage with the world. Many people have prospered as a result of the economic reforms he led.

This Sunday at Point Nepean on the Mornington Peninsula I will be privileged to attend and play a small role in the commemoration of his passing 50 years ago and in the celebration of his great life and service to this nation. I honour his family. To Sam and all of those other members of the Holt family who will be there on Sunday: you should be proud of your father. We are proud of his work. I'm especially proud that he was a great leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and a great exemplar of all its values. We wish you the best and we hope that on this day, which is a bittersweet day, you can reflect with pride, love and a sense of warmth on the best of lives.

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