Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I join with the Prime Minister and thank him for his very warm words in relation to our most valued guest. Prime Minister Rabuka, thank you very much for being here and for taking the time and effort. To both you and your wife, and your delegation: you are family and you are most welcome here in this parliament, in this chamber. I hope the message that is conveyed to you by the Prime Minister's contribution and by my own is that we speak as one in terms of the support of this parliament, across the aisle, to pay tribute to the respect that we have for you, as an individual, and for our friends and family in Fiji.

Let me deal with the difficult part of the relationship first—as the Prime Minister pointed out before, that is rugby! I said to you in our bilateral meeting earlier, 'Thank you for not raising it in the first five seconds of conversation!' It was a sterling effort at Australia's expense; all of us were devastated by the loss. But the struggle on the rugby field demonstrated a lot about your culture and your people. The heart, will and determination of your nation was represented through those fine players.

Now is a time in our region, as you well appreciate—perhaps more than many within the region—for family to come together. It is a time for us to stand up for common values and a common purpose, and to advance peace and stability in the region. The attributes that you and members of your cabinet bring are a great credit to you, sir. So thank you very much for being here today.

I was proud to serve in the Morrison government during the course of the COVID pandemic and through the work that we did through the National Security Committee to provide support by way of PPE and delivering vaccines as quickly as we could to provide support to Fiji and to other Pacific island nations. It was a very important period in our relationship and in our history. What I think it spoke most to was the absolute certainty and knowledge that Fiji can live with—that, at the time of the next pandemic, the next natural disaster or whatever event might take place, Australia will always be there, standing shoulder to shoulder with you and providing support to people we deeply regard as family and as dear friends.

Thank you for your time in being here with us today. I wish you all the very best in the balance of your tour and visit here. You're a most valued guest in our parliament and in our country.

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