Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

ALBANESE (—) (): on indulgence—I want to take a moment—and I have already notified the Leader of the Opposition of this—to pay respect to the life and service of Ernie Walker. Ernie was an extraordinary member of what is known as the greatest generation; he was one of the famous Rats of Tobruk and a veteran of Kokoda. His passing at the grand age of 106 means that the last of New South Wales's Rats of Tobruk has marched into history.

Honourable members would know that 'Rats of Tobruk' was conceived by the propagandist Lord Haw-Haw as an insult because the soldiers under siege in that crucial Libyan port were trapped like rats living in holes. But the Australian forces took up the name with defiance and pride; they wore it as a badge of honour, and, in some of the darkest days of the war, their remarkable act of defiance lifted the spirits of Allied forces everywhere.

Ernie was a much-loved member of the Five Dock RSL subbranch—very close to my electorate, in the electorate of the member for Reid—whose president, Robert Ridge, described it as the 'spiritual home of the Rats of Tobruk'. I've attended events at Five Dock RSL over the years.

Today, in parliament, on behalf of the parliament, we honour Ernie's memory, we salute his service and we reflect on the bravery of all those Australians who have risked and lost their lives to defend our nation's freedom. Lest we forget.

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