Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to pay tribute to the remarkable Senator the Hon. Marise Payne. I'm sad. Go Cats! I have to say that, in your magnificent valedictory speech, the Cats did not get a mention, so I'm going to make up for that. We have a shared love of the Cats—the Geelong Cats, that is—and I know that that shared love will continue.

Losing Marise means there will be a gaping hole in the Senate. We are not just losing the wisdom, the experience and the fortitude of the longest-serving woman in the history of the Senate; we are also—I don't know why I'm so emotional, but I am. We are losing someone of enormous bravery, and we saw that in spades when she was the Minister for Defence and the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Unless you've walked in those shoes, I don't think Australians understand the level of bravery involved in doing those jobs. You were also brave, Marise, as someone who stood up for Liberal values, often against the tide.

But I say it's very hard to put into words, in the few minutes I have, your legacy, from the very early days as the first woman to be elected as the federal president of the Young Liberal Movement, in 1989, to your incredible ministerial roles: minister for human services, women, foreign affairs and defence. Your bravery was in full flight during some of the most difficult times for our nation, times of considerable international turmoil: the COVID-19 pandemic—who could imagine what it would have been like to be in your shoes, to lead Australia's response through that incredibly difficult time?—the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the settlement of 4,000 Afghans. Just to see the joy of so many Afghans who have been settled here in Australia is quite incredible. In your work reforming Australia's international sanctions regime via the adoption of Magnitsky style sanctions, the quiet, determined, resilient bravery in doing that work cannot be overestimated, nor can the bravery in taking on the Belt and Road agreements, the agreement entered into between the Victorian government and the Chinese Communist Party. The way that you went about introducing the foreign relations scheme, again, was dignified, determined and underpinned by an enormous bravery.

I am so proud of the work of our government, when you were Minister for Women, in delivering in the most incredible amount of investment to stand up for women and children, primarily, impacted by domestic violence. You led the way in your actions, not only in standing up for all Australian women but in everything that you did to inspire women on our side of politics with the belief that anyone who aspires to do so can stand in your shoes and become a member of parliament—that any woman can reach for the stars. I think one of the things that you've done so incredibly well for younger Liberal women is inspire them to say, 'Yes, you can do it.'

The one thing that you did so well in Western Sydney and around the country was to be a dogged campaigner, winning the hearts and minds of communities in Western Sydney and in so many other marginal electorates, including Corangamite. My favourite photo—I was just having a look at it, and I'll post it very shortly—is the photograph of you and me on the formal opening of the Avalon Airport international terminal on 2 December 2018, which was the culmination of a wonderful commitment that we provided to Avalon Airport to build an international terminal. I thank you so much for your support for that wonderful commitment and for everything else that you did for me when I was in Corangamite and for all other members fighting to win hearts and minds around the country.

Marise, you've been an amazing inspiration. You are gong to be very sadly missed. I also want to say you and Stuart are a great team. You're an inspiration to many of us who don't do relationships so well! You are an incredible partnership. To you and Stuart: you will both be dearly missed in the work that you've done as elected representatives in Western Sydney. There will be a gaping hole in Western Sydney as well, but I do know that together you will go on to achieve and do other amazing things, and I have no doubt that you will make the same contribution in the ways that you see fit as you have to the Liberal Party, to the people of New South Wales and to our nation.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything that you've done for me, everything that you've done in this place, everything you've done for Liberal women and everything that you've done for our nation.