Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

on indulgence—I hope not to detain the House for too long. Well, it's been a slightly busy term! When I think back to the fear and the concern of this House and this country in February and March last year, and I look at that which has occurred around the world and the lives that have been saved here by comparison, I'm so proud of this government, of this parliament and of this nation, and all the things that have been done to save lives and protect lives. I'm confident that, in the systems that are in place of the Chief Medical Officer and the Department of Health, the National Security Committee, the National Incident Centre and the national cabinet, and in the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Treasurer providing the guiding way, the country is well prepared for the future. There will be challenges, but we are well prepared for that future. To have in some small way stood beside them at the time they made the biggest of decisions, and to have hopefully helped, has been an immense privilege.

But for all the time that we have spent together, and as fond as I am of the Prime Minister and the Treasurer, my card is ultimately elsewhere—sorry, Josh! It is with my family. My amazing wife, Paula, who is in the gallery today, is a nurse, carer, counsellor and confidante. But perhaps above all else she's raised two beautiful children largely as a single mother. I am so immensely proud of Poppy, who is going into year 11, and of James, who is about to go into senior school. They're both getting awards this week, and, again, I'm not there. On Sunday they looked at me and said: 'Dad, this is your last chance to be a proper dad. It's time to come home, Dad.' So, earlier today, I spoke with the Prime Minister and my electorate chairman, and I informed them that I would not be contesting the next election. This may come as a surprise to some of you, for the reason that the very ideas and structures that brought me into this place are still the things that I love and believe in. For the great Liberal Party—from Menzies's 'forgotten people' to Howard's 'battlers' to Scott Morrison's 'quiet Australians'—the golden thread which has run through the life of this party has been the simple belief that it's our task to try to give every Australian the best chance at the life of their choice. I would never be here but for the gift of the party. I want to thank my electorate chair, Peter Rawlings—the extraordinary Peter Rawlings—and his predecessor, Julie Heron, and all of our party members, like Charles and Marshall, who've been in the same roles for 20 years.

I'm very confident in the future of our local party. I think it is time, subject to the will of the local branch members, for a strong, brilliant woman to be the Liberal candidate for Flinders. And I'm very confident about the future of this great party in this coalition. I look at the incredible talent on the back bench, the middle bench and the front bench, and I know that in the leadership of the Prime Minister we see someone where the bigger the issue, the clearer he knows the way. That's it. I think that's because he understands Australians, and he trusts Australians.

As much as I love the Liberal Party, I love this place more. My father said of the parliament: 'Honour the parliament. Be a parliamentarian before a politician.' This week I have seen this parliament at its absolute highest, with the passage of Maeve's law: government and opposition and crossbench working together for both the yes and the no case, and the yes and the no case working together for the dignity of the parliament.

That reminds me of a second rule which I've learnt along the way: always turn your back from the cameras when you're putting your mask on! My staff taught me that—a little late! But none of us would be anything without our staff, and I want to thank the incredible staff—from all of us to all of them, but, particularly, from me to my staff. They have kept Australia safe, and they have worked throughout night and day during the course of this pandemic and throughout the last 20 years. I can't name all of them, but I do want to note there are six who have served for a decade: Lynne Strahan, Sarah Meredith, Tina McGuffy, Denise Garnock, Lisa Burgess and Wendy Black, who has been chief of staff for a decade. But there's a seventh. I want to acknowledge Joanne Tester as well, who, along with Wendy, has been the unrelenting and extraordinary joint chief of staff during the course of this term. You get double points for a pandemic, Jo!

But there is one more thing. The highest of all honours is the simplest. We are all representatives, and I have been graced and favoured by the people of Flinders to represent the area in which I grew up—the Mornington Peninsula and Western Port—and our strongest role is when we are partners with our community. Gunnamatta Ocean Beach, Point Nepean, the Somerville Secondary College, Balcombe Grammar, the Mornington cancer centre and the Abacus autism centre in Hastings—all of these things are meaningful and real.

But my most cherished possession is a simple letter that I received a letter some years ago from Olivia. Olivia is the mum of Bella, who at the time was five. They were a family from a dairy and potato farm at Cora Lynn, just outside of Koo Wee Up. Olivia said to me that Bella had an ultra-rare genetic enzyme condition, which led to liver fibrosis and that it was a terminal condition without treatment. It's so rare that there may at any one time be one child in Australia with it. There was no medicine in Australia and there was never going to be one that was listed. But, at her request, we asked the company to provide compassionate access from overseas, and thankfully they gave us the grace and did that. It's the letter on her 6th birthday, which I keep behind my desk, which I wish to read briefly: 'Isabella celebrated her 6th birthday at the start of August, and I thought this was a great opportunity to thank you and update you on her progress. We are overwhelmed with her response to the Kanuma infusion she started two months ago. She's a changed little girl. Most notable for us is that she is no longer in constant pain. She's started to build muscle. She has bounds of new energy. She spends most her free time playing on the gym rings outside. We hope to enrol her in gymnastics class soon.' Well, she's just turned nine. They did enrol her in gymnastics—and in soccer, and in cross-country. And, if there had been nothing else in these last 20 years, that alone would have been enough.

But now, Mr Speaker, it's time to turn to focus on another family: Paula, Poppy, James, Elsa and Charlie the cavoodle. And there's a lot more to do over the next six months. To paraphrase my favourite film, The Princess Bridewe've all got our secrets—there's a country to protect, medicines to list, a budget to prepare and an election to win, but, when all of that is done, it will be time to come home. I honour the House.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

on indulgence—We all answer to higher authorities in this place, and Paula, Poppy and James are the higher authority to whom the Minister for Health and Aged Care answers. I could not be more grateful to the minister for health, but, more significantly, to Paula, Poppy and James for allowing Greg to be here and serve in this place and serve as part of our team here, particularly over these last three years. I seek the indulgence of the House to refer to the member by his first name.

When Greg spoke to Josh and I before the last election and expressed to us his desire to go and be with his family, we called upon him one last time, not knowing in full what those three years might bring. And, over the course of these particularly last two years, I have relied on no-one more than Greg and Josh as we have sought, together with the Deputy Prime Minister and his predecessor, to navigate our way through this very difficult time. I could have thought to have no more brilliant mind, no greater friend, no person of greater integrity but, most importantly, someone with a massive heart.

I remember when, after the 2016 election and there was discussion about who would be the next health minister, and when I was asked about this I said, 'There is only one choice, and that is Greg Hunt.' As those who have been health ministers would know—there are a few in this chamber—it is one of the hardest portfolios to deal with. There are many stakeholders, all with the most worthy of cases and the most urgent of needs, and it is so difficult to prioritise those. And it is always the biggest of asks at the Expenditure Review Committee, and it is always the most difficult of moral challenges to seek to weigh those up. You want a health minister who has a big brain and a big heart, and I have had the great fortune to have a person who excels in those attributes more than most, if not any, I have known in this place.

We will speak of his achievements at other times—I know he doesn't want me to go on too much today. He'll expect them to be listed, I'm sure, at great length. But that won't be a difficult task, because they are many. Greg and I, over a long time, shared offices next to each other in opposition. He's helped me, as a dear friend, deal with some of the most difficult of challenges and issues. He's encouraged me. One of the nicest things he'd often say after a very long conversation, on whatever the topic might be, on a weekend or whenever it was, was, 'Mate, just go and be a dad for the rest of the day.' I would always seek to take that advice.

As we come to this point, I am obviously very sad to lose an incredible, great member of my team. I join with the Treasurer in saying we're both going to miss a very, very good mate and his constant encouragement to us both at a personal level as well as a professional level. Your father, mate, would be so proud, as Paula, I'm sure, is bursting with pride in you. Our loss is their great gain, and I know how much you're looking forward to that. I pray it'll be a great time of blessing for you and your family, and I look forward to our friendship in the many years to come outside of this place.

On behalf of the government, on behalf of the party I have the great privilege to lead, thank you for honouring this place. Thank you for honouring our party. Thank you for honouring your family. Thank you for honouring yourself in the way you've conducted yourself. Thank you, mate.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

on indulgence—On behalf of the Australian Labor Party, we wish Greg Hunt well in his personal life. We thank Paula, Poppy and James—conscripts, as our families all are, to service. Two decades in parliamentary life is a significant achievement, and being a senior minister in a range of portfolios is something that you can be very proud of indeed. In particular, though, being health minister during a global pandemic would have brought enormous challenges, not least of which would have been the time you spent away from your family. I've been locked out of Sydney for three months, and it was difficult. You were locked out for a lot longer than that and you had to keep on top of the details. I'll say that any time I've requested information from you, it has been forthcoming, and you have been very professional. I thank you for that.

You get to spend time now in your beautiful electorate. I actually went down there and campaigned in that first election that you ran in, and it is a beautiful part of Victoria and a beautiful part of Australia. You can be proud of your efforts, you've been loyal to the Labor—Liberal!—Party. I'm used to saying the other! You've been a very loyal Liberal Party member. It's an honourable thing to stand by your beliefs and it is indeed something that you can be proud of.

You're a worthy opponent, as someone who has different values. I understand that, from your perspective, you have stayed true to them, and I congratulate you on that. I'm sure you will have a future contribution to make in your working life but, of course, it's your personal life that will be much improved by moving on.

All the best, Greg. On behalf of everyone on my team, on behalf of the Australian Labor Party, I note that you have given your self—it's a class act, I reckon, standing up in the parliament, giving respect to this place—as a parliamentarian. I thank you for that, and I thank you on behalf of all who've benefited from your service during your 20 years in public life.

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I don't intend to detain the House for too much longer, but I do want to make just a quick remark. As someone who has walked this walk for some time, I want to thank the minister for health, because you have saved lives in Australia, particularly those suffering from mental health and, in particular, those suffering from eating disorders. There are tens of thousands of Australians out there whose lives have been changed because of your actions, and I'm sure they will always think very, very fondly of you.