Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with deep regret that I inform the Senate of the death on 9 February 2016, of the Honourable Robert George (Bob) Halverson, OBE, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives and member for the division of Casey. Prior to calling the Leader of the Government in the Senate, I also draw attention to senators of the presence today in the public gallery of Mr Halverson's daughter, son in law and grandson, and we offer our deepest sympathy to members of the family.

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate records its deep regret at the death, on 9 February 2016, of the Honourable Robert George (Bob) Halverson OBE, former Speaker of the House of Representatives and member for Casey, places on record its appreciation of his long and highly distinguished service to the nation and tenders its profound sympathy to his family in their bereavement.

Mr President, like you, I acknowledge the presence in the gallery this afternoon of members of the late Mr Halverson's family: his daughter, Sharon Bawden; her husband, Grant Bawden; and Sharon and Grant's son, Bob's grandson, James Bawden.

Bob Halverson rose from a modest background to become the Speaker of the House of Representatives and then to represent Australia as Ambassador to Ireland and the Holy See. Along the way he served his country with distinction for a quarter of a century in the Royal Australian Air Force and then for 14 years as a member of this parliament.

Bob Halverson was born in Springvale, Victoria, on 22 October 1937, the son of an electrician. He grew up in Footscray, studying at Footscray Technical School and later at Swinburne Technical College, joining the RAAF in 1956 and marrying Maggie in 1958. Bob's service in the RAAF included some years in Washington, DC, and in England, for which service he was awarded an OBE in 1978 and promoted to group captain in 1979.

After leaving the Air Force in 1981, Bob worked as a financial analyst and client adviser. Then, in 1984, he was elected as the Liberal member of the House of Representatives for the marginal Victorian seat of Casey, the first of five occasions on which he was elected as member for Casey. Gregarious, passionate, robust, unmistakably

decent and with—in his words—'a PhD in hard knocks', Bob Halverson worked diligently to represent the people of this electorate, which spanned outer urban, semirural and rural areas.

He also made an ever-increasing contribution to this parliament. As well as extensive committee work in Canberra, including, for example, public works as well as foreign affairs, defence and trade, he became an Opposition Whip in 1990 and served as Chief Opposition Whip from 1994 to 1996. Elected as Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 1996 parliament, Bob Halverson devoted himself to being a thoroughly independent occupant of that office, balancing tradition and reform in the work of the parliament. When he resigned as Speaker in March of 1998 and said that he would not seek re-election to parliament at the election that year, the opposition leader Kim Beazley said that he had 'graced the position' of Speaker, and 'attempted to deal with the opposition fairly and lift the standards of the place'. The Prime Minister Mr Howard said that he had 'served his country with loyalty and distinction', and expressed the hope that he would come to serve it in further ways.

Having travelled widely around the globe while serving in the RAAF, Bob, as a member of parliament, represented this parliament in delegations to many countries, including in 1998 serving as an observer at the Cambodian elections. A long-time campaigner for retaining our existing flag, he became in time an advocate of an Australian republic.

In 1999, Bob Halverson was appointed Australian Ambassador to Ireland and the Holy See, which roles he fulfilled with his usual gusto, quick to establish strong links at the highest level, such as with the President and Prime Minister of Ireland and with the Pope, while being a warm and inclusive host, including of many visiting Australians.

After retiring from these posts in 2002 to combat prostate cancer, Bob—with Maggie—fulfilled a long ambition to go onto the land, moving to a farm at Holbrook in New South Wales. Bob maintained warm links to this parliament, not least through his family connection with the member for Murray, Dr Sharman Stone. Bob's son-in-law, Grant Bawden—who I acknowledge in the gallery this afternoon—is the brother of Dr Stone. Sharman Stone described Bob as her 'mentor, adviser and dearest friend'. It is noteworthy that Bob's seat of Casey is today once again held by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

In his first speech in the House of Representatives in 1985, Bob Halverson said:

The men and women who seek to serve in this place may be motivated by many reasons. Mine were quite simple: I believe that our rights and freedoms must be protected, and I love my country.

He also spoke of the importance of 'sacrifice, courage, discipline, loyalty, devotion to duty and', once again, 'love of country'—the values by which he lived his life and served his country so passionately. In that same speech, Bob Halverson spoke with feeling of having 'the help, support and encouragement of a loved and loving wife'. Our hearts go out to Maggie, and to their four children and their families, in their deep loss, and we send to them our very deepest sympathy on this occasion, while acknowledging the service to this parliament and to this nation of a great Australian.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on behalf of the opposition on this motion of condolence on the passing of the Hon. Robert George Halverson. We join with the Leader of the Government in the Senate in conveying our thoughts to his wife and family at this time. Today we remember Bob Halverson, and we recognise and honour his service: his service to this nation, his service as a member of parliament from 1984 to 1998, his service as Speaker of the House of Representatives and, of course, his service as Ambassador to Ireland and the Holy See.

Prior to his election to the House of Representatives in 1984, Mr Halverson served with the Royal Australian Air Force. He enjoyed a distinguished career, enlisting as an officer cadet in 1956 and concluding in 1981 at the rank of group captain. For his service with the RAF during the Queen's silver jubilee, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. After leaving the Air Force—as Senator Brandis has said—he worked in the financial services sector for a brief period before being elected as the member for Casey in 1984.

In that election Bob Halverson defeated his Labor opponent after a redistribution turned a swing seat into one that held a little more advantage for the Liberals. However, in the end Mr Halverson, who had only joined the Liberal Party some two years prior to the election, won with a margin of 1,100 votes. Mr Halverson supported John Howard in opposition and served as Opposition Whip in the House of Representatives. As chief whip, he had a reputation for being an intimidating and effective operator.

Upon the election of the Howard government in 1996, Mr Halverson became the first Liberal Speaker of the House of Representatives since Sir Billy Snedden. I understand that the speakership did not come easily to him, with Mr Halverson receiving the endorsement of his colleagues after a party room meeting that involved some six ballots and lasted 90 minutes. I am sure there are stories associated with that! The Canberra Times heralded this with the headline '"Disciplinarian" Halverson wins Speaker's post'.

Mr Halverson did not follow his Liberal predecessors in the practice of wearing a wig in the Speaker's chair. He also ensured that the original Gothic Speaker's chair remained at Old Parliament House, despite the desire of some of his colleagues to see it relocated to the current House of Representatives.

Recognising the importance of the independence of the Speaker, he did not attend party room meetings and also resigned from two party bodies to which he belonged in Victoria. The independence of the speakership had been an election commitment of Prime Minister Howard. I note that the then Leader of the Opposition, Mr Kim Beazley, observed:

It did not strike us as immediately likely, when the Prime Minister … announced an intention to support an independent Speaker, that we would in fact find the Chief Whip of the Coalition parties sitting in that place.

However, despite these doubts, it turned out that Mr Halverson did operate in a way that demonstrated his independence and at times raised the ire of some of his colleagues through his performance in the chair, particularly through his enforcement of rules relating to supplementary questions. In one article in 1997 the headline was 'Independent Speaker digs in, against his own side'. And I note—Senator Brandis has already quoted—the words of the then opposition leader, Mr Beazley, complimenting and acknowledging the service of Mr Halverson.

Mr Halverson resigned as Speaker in March 1998 and did not contest the election that was held in October that year. Prior to the election, he was appointed as ambassador to Ireland and the Holy See, a post that brought considerable enjoyment after the rough and tumble of his parliamentary career. He was the first non-Catholic ambassador to Dublin and the Vatican. Sadly, it was whilst on this post that Mr Halverson discovered his illness.

Bob Halverson died last week at the age of 78 on his farm at Holbrook, in southern New South Wales. He spent a lifetime in the service of this country, in the Defence Force, in the parliament and as an ambassador. We recognise and honour his service, and I again express the condolences of the opposition and extend our thoughts to his wife, children and grandchildren.

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to associate the Nationals with this motion and offer my condolences to the family and friends of the late Robert 'Bob' George Halverson. Others have covered many of the public details of Bob's life before he entered parliament, so I will not go over those comments, but I do think it is important to repeat and recognise his commitment to the Royal Australian Air Force, which he joined in 1956. Throughout 25 years of service, Bob rose through the ranks to achieve the position of group captain, and it was in this role that he was recognised as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1978. This is an honour I know that his family would be very proud of.

Post service, Mr Halverson threw his hat in the political ring and contested the marginal seat of Casey, in Melbourne's outer east, in the 1984 federal election. In his first speech, Mr Halverson clearly articulated his primary priority in this place. It is one that we all can do with reminding of sometimes as we get caught up in the politics and distractions sometimes. Mr Halverson stated that his primary desire was:

… to pursue with dedication and commitment the best interests of my constituents … to be of service to my electorate and my country.

Mr Halverson's first parliamentary speech also unveiled for the public record his determined patriotism and nationalist pride in Australia. He was a champion for the local people that he represented, but he was also a staunch defender of the values of the nation.

In 1996, Mr Halverson became the first Speaker of the House of Representatives during the Howard government's term, probably his most significant appointment during his time in parliament. Mr Halverson took it upon himself to be as impartial and as independent as possible, adopting a Westminster-like approach in his role as Speaker of the House. Ditching the wig and donning a black coat, Mr Halverson unprecedentedly allowed supplementary questions by the opposition in the House. Whilst it might be the case that when we are in government we may not enjoy the additional scrutiny that can come from such an approach, I think that we should appreciate and acknowledge the standard that Mr Halverson set and his desire for greater accountability.

But, perhaps more interesting than talking about his actions in the chambers of parliament, I would like to reflect on Bob and the secret billiards competitions that he would organise across the party divide. I understand that the message would come from Bob that it was time for a special committee meeting, which meant that members of the group were to meet in the billiard room in the old house—and I can imagine that the discussion in that room was probably much more interesting than the games of billiards.

Following his retirement from parliament, Mr Halverson was a particularly effective ambassador. His personable nature enabled him to become very well connected and operate on a first-name basis with the Irish Prime Minister, the Irish President and many other Irish members of parliament of the day. It was Mr Halverson's notable close connections with the Vatican and Pope John Paul II that assisted in the release of the Australian aid workers held captive in Serbia during the Kosovo crisis.

Throughout his life, Mr Halverson was loved, supported and encouraged by his wife, Maggie, and their four children, a daughter and three sons—and I would like to also acknowledge the members of his family in the gallery today. Mr Halverson's family has since grown to include many grandchildren, who will forever be reminded of their grandfather's vigour and unfailing conviction to the best outcomes for his country. Many have talked about how Bob considered himself a man with 'clout' and 'a bit of a rebel', and I agree that Mr Halverson can be considered a true Aussie battler—a battler who was willing to jump in the ring and have a go. Mr Halverson will be remembered as one whose life was lived in the distinguished service of others—a man of integrity; a man of heart.

Vale Robert 'Bob' Halverson.

Question agreed to, honourable senators standing in their places.