Andrew Giles (Scullin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Schools) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to make a brief contribution to this condolence debate to pay tribute to a man I knew a little and admired a lot. It's fitting that Michael Gordon's big but all-too-brief life is honoured in our parliament. This is, as it should be—and it's fitting also that such beautiful tributes were paid to him by the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the House—a moment of kindness and decency in tribute to a man of extraordinary kindness and decency. I associate myself also with some wonderful speeches made just now, particularly those of the member for Berowra, the member for Holt, the member for Fenner and, of course, the member for Kooyong, and I look forward to hearing the contribution of the member for McMillan and also that of my friend the member for Hotham, for whom the man who is the subject of this debate means so much.

I've been reading the tributes to Michael made by those who knew him best. I can't really add to the personal stories or share the all-too-evident pain of loss. That's not my place, as it wasn't my privilege to know Michael that well. But I was privileged to know him. We shared a concern for our nation's attitude to those forced to ask us for help and we spoke often about the challenges of the politics and policy of asylum. The questions he asked me showed his compassion, his professionalism and his complete lack of cynicism. After every discussion we had, I found myself thinking at length about what he had said and whether I was doing as I should have been, and asking myself how I could do my job and discharge my responsibilities in a way that could meet the bar his expectations set. I've been thinking about that this week too, and I suspect I am not alone in asking hard questions of myself in light of these tragic events.

As a political journalist, Michael wrote a large part of our recent past into history. He told the stories of this place and many other places in a way that inspired and engaged. He brought others along with him in his evident love of his profession and what it meant and why it mattered. Matt Dawson, who works with me, told me this morning of how welcoming and encouraging Michael had been to him on arrival in the gallery—one story, one part of a legacy which is monumental. On leaving the gallery, Michael went to work in support of the McKinnon Prize in Political Leadership, amongst some other things. It strikes me that, beyond any words which are spoken today, those of us who have public office could honour him by doing our jobs more in the way he approached his—with kindness and concern for others, with generosity which is fit for our purpose, and without cynicism.

All my best thoughts go to his family and those very many people who loved him dearly. Vale.

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