Jonathon Duniam (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Environment, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Tasmanian federal Liberal team, I rise this afternoon to acknowledge and pay tribute to a true Liberal hero—that is, Ms Dorothy Dehais from Tasmania, who recently in the Launceston Examiner newspaper was described as 'the woman behind the Bass throne'. Dorothy has been a stalwart of our party for more than 40 years, a huge part of our Liberal history in this state and a key part of many successful campaigns, not just in Bass but also across the state. The paper rightly described her as 'someone who knows how to win'.

Dorothy, of course, is someone who's raised tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars for our party over that period of time and been instrumental in our election success. She makes sure corflutes are erected, polling booths are manned. All of this is what makes it possible for people like my colleagues and I to serve in this place on behalf of the people of Tasmania. People like former Premier of Tasmania Peter Gutwein, former cabinet minister in the Howard government Warwick Smith are both beneficiaries of Dorothy's commitment to and hard work for our party. She was recently recognised in our party with honorary life membership, and I think it is a fitting tribute to someone who has done so much for our party and through our party for the people of Tasmania, particularly in Bass. On behalf of my colleagues, I wanted to say congratulations and thank you to Dorothy for all she has done for our cause, for her fellow Liberals, for my federal colleagues here, those past and present, and we look forward to many more years of success in Bass and beyond with you.