Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

It is always very, very difficult to follow speeches like these we have heard from our six retiring colleagues—speeches of eloquence and sincerity; speeches that I found very emotional. I do not know if those giving them had the emotion that I felt. Over the years all of them have had an influence on me in one way or another and they have all also had a considerable impact on Australia. In their speeches, those retiring—and those senators who have spoken since they spoke—have outlined the highlights of their careers and have in some detail mentioned the contribution that they have made to Australia. I know that even now, because they are people of such humility and because they are very self-effacing people, all of them would rather be elsewhere than hearing their colleagues say nice things about them. So I want to be very brief in deference to my colleagues.

I do want to wish John Watson and Jocelyn all the very best in their future together. John is a very, very committed person—a very committed Liberal. You could fill a volume with the work that John has done for this parliament and for Australia. Many people have mentioned his work on the superannuation committee, and others have mentioned—and I certainly endorse their comments—the fiscal understanding that others of us sort of glazed over. John Watson was one of the few in parliament—in fact, I have often said the only one in parliament, including treasurers of all political persuasions—who actually understood the tax law and the superannuation law.

I got to know John over the years but more particularly in the 2004 election when John, as the patron senator for Lyons, took me around Lyons in one very exhausting day. John is a little older than me, and I was amazed to see the John Watson on the ground in Tasmania; he is quite a different person from the John Watson I knew in the parliament. John knew everybody in Lyons, and I say that without exaggeration. Everywhere he went people knew him. The way he ran around the electorate absolutely amazed me. When we were up at Ringarooma they treated him like a returning hero, although I understand he is there all the time. I too had an experience at Winkleigh, a town where Senator Watson arranged a campaign meeting. The hall was full that night too. John, I am sorry that I was not aware of your send-off last week, but Winkleigh was certainly a great place to have that farewell. I think Senator Abetz was exaggerating when he called it a town. Besides the hall, there is only a public bar there, isn’t there?