Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate records its sorrow at the death, on 4 December 2023, of Peta Jan Murphy, former member for Dunkley, places on record its gratitude for her distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia and the nation, and tenders its profound sympathy to her family in their bereavement.

I rise on behalf of the government, and in particular the Labor Senate team, to express our condolences and our shared grief following the passing of Peta, a loved and admired member of the House of Representatives for Dunkley, at the age of 50, and I start by conveying our deepest sympathies to Rod; her rightly proud parents, Bob and Jan; and her dear sisters, Jodi and Penni. They have all been in my thoughts, as have Peta's dedicated and loyal staff, the grieving Labor family, and the constituents who respected and relied on Peta.

Peta Murphy possessed a rare and powerful capacity to connect with others. Perhaps that explains in some small way why her passing is grieved by so many in this place and beyond. Knowing Peta was a blessing, and this has been reflected in many fine tributes. I acknowledge in particular the House contribution of my cabinet colleague—one of the most decent people in this place—Brendan O'Connor. Peta was Brendan's chief of staff—in fact, I think that's where I first met her—and their friendship, affection and respect were obvious to all. I know how heavily this has weighed upon him and all of his staff.

There are few people who have served in this place with more courage and more kindness than Peta Murphy. She was the best of this place and in many ways, I think, the best of the Australian Labor Party she represented. She was warm as she was fierce. She had a razor-sharp intellect and a dry wit, but in all things she was driven by a deep compassion and a respect for others, and anyone who talked to her could feel that respect and that compassion. She was interested. She was engaged. She was funny. She wanted to know your point of view. You mattered to her.

As a barrister, a public defender, a political staffer, a tireless representative of her community, a woman, a friend and a fighter, Peta Murphy made an enormous contribution to this place and beyond. And, of course, our grief is compounded knowing the Peta we lost but also knowing the loss of the Peta that was yet to be, because she did have so much more to give. As Rod has said, it's impossible not to feel like we've all been robbed a little by Peta's death.

Peta was born in Goulburn, New South Wales, in November '73 and grew up in Wagga Wagga, a proud public-school girl who went on to study psychology at the ANU and later a Master of Criminology at the University of Melbourne and a Bachelor of Laws, also at the ANU.

She married Rod Glover in 1999. Rod introduced her to Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula, which would become her home. She went on to work as a public servant in the law as a solicitor and barrister, including as a public defender, and later in politics as chief of staff to Brendan. She put it in her first speech to the House:

As a solicitor, barrister and senior public defender, I have represented the damaged and the difficult, victims and perpetrators, the blameless and the blameworthy.

From this vantage point, she saw intergenerational disadvantage up close, how it limits people to unfulfilling and, too often, undignified lives and the enormous individual and shared potential that it lays to waste. It was her desire to tackle this disadvantage that motivated Peta to move from law to politics to fight on a larger scale for a fairer and more compassionate society.

Many will remember her first run for the seat of Dunkley in 2016. While unsuccessful at that first attempt, it was pretty obvious she would be back. And so it was in 2019, when Peta bucked the national political trend against Labor to become the first woman to represent Dunkley since its creation in 1994. This was a milestone of particular importance to Peta Murphy and one that she and I spoke about as proud feminists and union members because, of course, the electorate of Dunkley is named after pioneering feminist and trade union activist for equal pay and workers' rights Louisa Dunkley.

Awfully, having already defeated the disease once, Peta's breast cancer returned just weeks before she was to give her first speech in 2019. But, never one to wallow and dwell on negativity, she mined her understandable frustration and fear to become a forceful advocate for accessible cancer care for all Australians, something she continued to pursue right up to her last days in this place.

As the Prime Minister has said, her expertise on closing the gender pay gap informed so much of the government's commitment to eliminating this injustice. She also brought her intellect and her deep empathy to her work on gambling law reform to minimise the harm problem gambling does to families in our society. She was a truly extraordinary member of parliament. I think it was a role she was born for.

I remember visiting her electorate in the last election campaign. We went to a local footy and netball club which was packed to the rafters, which I reckon was much more about her than me. One of my staff who grew up in her region told me a story about her mum's friend, and I told the crowd this story. This was a woman who was not politically active or politically minded, quite disengaged, but year-round she kept a Peta Murphy corflute on display outside her house because of the support Peta gave her through her own struggle with breast cancer. This was one example of her radiant humanity. That radiant humanity is what made her an outstanding member of parliament, and it is that humanity, along with her extraordinary drive, determination and intellect, which would have made her an outstanding cabinet minister, someone who could have been a great Labor reformer and whose contribution would have become part of that of which we are proud.

It was this humanity that took her to the United Nations in 2022 as one of the parliamentary representatives and, as she was everywhere, she was determined to make her time there count. I remember vividly how she got stuck into debates on human rights and legal issues, particularly advocating for the resolution against the death penalty that Australia was driving. Our diplomats also remember her warmth and empathy, recognising that, while there is great privilege in representing your country as a diplomat overseas, it doesn't come without human cost. I gave my first national statement at the UN General Assembly so proud that she was there, and I hope she was equally proud to be sitting behind the Australian flag, with all the legacy that it has.

I want to acknowledge the grace and characteristic selflessness with which Peta fought cancer. It was a mark of her character that, upon been diagnosed for the second time, she channelled her personal battle into advocacy for the millions of Australians who have fought, or supported loved ones to fight, the disease. She didn't shy away from the cruel reality she faced but she was determined to continue her work and to show up, even when she was suffering so much. She wanted to demonstrate to other cancer sufferers, and in particular to women, how, in the words of her dear friend the member for Jagajaga, 'to get up every morning and lead the life you want, even with cancer'. She showed as much courage as I have ever seen in this place.

The last time I had an exchange with Peta was in the week that she passed. I sent her a message, and she thanked me for checking up on her and said she was doing it rough. I told her I'd distract her if she wanted and come and talk to her about world affairs! She sent me a funny emoji.

Peta Murphy was someone driven by an unshakeable sense of purpose—to improve things, to build a fairer, better, more just Australia. As the Prime Minister said, she believed every minute in public life was a gift. Every minute in public life is a gift—it is. And she made the most of every minute. She embraced the challenges life threw at her and used them to power this purpose. In doing so, she became so much more than the illness she fought and more than just one of the many who comes through this place to serve.

Peta Murphy was genuinely formidable, with boundless energy and penetrating insight, and she won't be forgotten by any who had the privilege of knowing her. In her first speech, with her characteristic enthusiasm and eloquence, she outlined the benchmark against which she would measure her contribution to this place. It's been referenced a number of times but it bears repeating because it is a lesson to us all:

But, above all else, I would like to be able to say that I left Australian politics—Australian democracy—in better shape than when I joined it, that I was part of a generation of Australian politicians who worked to recover the public's faith in our democratic system and who strove to reharness politics as that vehicle for enlarging opportunities and enlarging our national imagination, and that we did so by rejecting politics based on fear and division, by refusing to see societal problems as weapons with which to wedge our political opponents and by choosing robust debates about ideas and solutions over personal attacks and petty judgements … it's what Australians want all of us here to do. And, be in no doubt, it's what we have to do.

Peta Murphy lived up to this standard. She lived up to the standard she set for herself. She helped raise the standard for us all, and she reminds us even today that this is what we should all aspire to.

In closing, I convey, again, our sympathies to Rod, to Bob and Jan, to Jodi and Penni, and to the many in this place and beyond who knew and loved Peta Murphy.