Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

The Hon. Clyde Holding was a respected political opponent of the coalition. More importantly, he was highly regarded by his own and was a faithful servant of the ALP and the people of Victoria. He served 15 years in state parliament and 21 years in the federal parliament, making a total innings of public service of some 36 years. That is a huge innings in anybody's language. To remain opposition leader for 10 years is a huge task. Losing elections always leads people to seek the silver bullet—a new leader is all you need—so to retain the confidence, albeit amidst challenges, for so long and then be promoted to federal politics is an exceptional accolade.

From there, a distinguished ministerial career followed. Senator Conroy, on behalf of the Labor government, has provided a detailed, eloquent tribute. I do not seek to add to that but to simply say that as a coalition we note his resilience, his skill as an orator and his passion. We also note that he was deservedly seen as a respected friend of the Jewish community. The coalition acknowledges the service of the Hon. Clyde Holding to our nation. Our condolences are expressed to his widow and his four children.