Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with deep regret that I inform the Senate of the death on 23 March 2017, of the Honourable Ian Louis Robinson, a former minister and member of the House of Representatives for the divisions of Cowper, New South Wales, from 1963 to 1984, and Page, New South Wales, from 1984 to 1990.

I call the Leader of the Government in the Senate.

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

I move:

That the Senate records its deep regret at the death, on 23 March 2017, of the Honourable Ian Louis Robinson, former Minister and Member for Cowper and Page, 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.

Ian Robertson was born on 27 March 1925—92 years ago today in Coraki in New South Wales. He spent all his life in northern New South Wales. Before entering parliament he worked as a dairy farmer, as a journalist and as a company director. His political career spanned an impressive 37 years. He was first elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly as the member for Cowper in 1953 at the age of only 28. He held that seat for 10 years. His initial political association on the north coast of New South Wales was with Sir Earle Page, the then member for Cowper, who was an early mentor of Ian Robertson.

Sir Earle Page lost the seat of Cowper to the Labor Party in the 1961 election—the only time the Labor Party has ever taken that prized Country Party, now National Party, seat. In 1963, Ian Robinson was endorsed as the Country Party candidate for Cowper, which he won at the 1963 federal election having resigned from the New South Wales parliament after 10 years of service. He was elected as the member for Cowper at the 1963 election, and successfully contested the seat at every election until 1984, when he changed to the seat of Page. There is a certain appropriateness in the fact that Ian Robinson, having been a protege of Sir Earle Page, first represented in the House of Representatives Sir Earle Page's seat of Cowper and then represented the seat named for Sir Earle Page. He continued as the member for Page until his defeat in 1990 in the Labor swing of that year.

A profile of Ian Robinson in the House of Representatives magazine of 18 September 1984 describes him thus, 'Ian Robinson is a strong speaker, particularly off-the-cuff, and says he has always taken the view that political statements should be based on the strongest facts.' If only that were always the case. On one occasion when he was elected, he was unopposed; on another occasion, so strong was his support that he was not opposed by an official Labor Party candidate.

During his 27 years of service in the House of Representatives, Ian Robinson served as Assistant Minister to the Postmaster-General, Sir Alan Hulme. In fact, his appointment to that position on 20 August 1971—after the first reshuffle of the McMahon government following the resignation of then Mr John Gorton as Minister for Defence—means that he was one of the very last members appointed to the frontbench of the coalition government that had served Australia for 23 years, between 1949 and 1972. Of course he went out of office with the election of the Whitlam government in 1972. During the period of Malcolm Fraser's leadership of the opposition, he served as the shadow spokesman on decentralised development, but, with the election of the Fraser government in December 1975, he was not included on the frontbench. He did, however, serve as deputy chair of committees from 1976 to 1983.

Upon his death, the current member for Page, Mr Kevin Hogan, had this to say in valediction of the late Ian Robinson:

Ian will be greatly missed …

[He] represented the community for 37 years with distinction – a community that he loved …

     …      …      …

In many ways he was a mentor [of mine] and I thank him for his encouragement, advice and support over the years.

Mr Gulaptis, the member for Clarence in state parliament, said:

Ian was true blue all his life. He was born in Coraki in 1925 and after a distinguished political career spanning 37 years … he never stopped fighting for country people right through his failing health.

He will be sorely missed by a community he loved …

I never had the opportunity to meet the late Mr Robinson, but it is very obvious, from the esteem in which he is held by those who knew him and from the political career of such a long span that he enjoyed, that he was one of the great old Country Party warriors for regional Australia. They are not a dying breed—we see them today in people like the Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce—but they are a particular type in Australian politics: a type of person who is patriotic, community minded, fiercely loyal to his constituents, fiercely loyal to and beloved of that part of Australia that he represents. So in reflecting on the life and career and achievements of the late Ian Robinson, we reflect upon all that is good in a public life well served and we offer our condolences to his widow, Florence, his family and his many friends.

Don Farrell (SA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Centenary of ANZAC) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise on behalf of Senator Wong and the opposition to acknowledge the passing of the Hon. Ian Louis Robinson, who passed away last week. I note, as the Leader of the Government in the Senate has just said, that today would have been his 92nd birthday. At the outset I wish to convey the opposition's condolences to relatives and friends of Mr Robinson.

A Country and then a National Party member, Ian Robinson served in the House of Representatives from 1963 until 1990 representing the divisions of Cowper and, following the 1984 redistribution, the seat of Page. In his long parliamentary career, he served as Assistant Minister to the Postmaster-General in the government of Sir William McMahon before his time in executive office was cut short by the election of the Whitlam government in 1972. He also served in the shadow ministry and was an advocate for rural industry and regional services.

Born on the banks of the Richmond River in the mid-1920s, Ian Robinson was strongly connected to northern New South Wales throughout his life. Growing up where his grandfather had first settled in the early 1870s, he later resided in Grafton. Mr Robinson was first active in the Rural Youth Movement and the Agricultural Bureau, before joining the Country Party at a very early age.

Variously a farmer, journalist and company director prior to entering parliament, it seemed public service was to be his true calling. He first entered politics as the member for Casino in the parliament of New South Wales in 1953. He resigned from this position 10 years later to successfully contest the federal election. The division of Cowper had been a Country Party seat for many years until it was snatched by Labor in the closely fought election of 1961. However, unfortunately for Labor, Frank McGuren was to be a oncer. He was defeated soundly in the landslide victory of the Menzies government in 1963, which brought Ian Robinson into the Commonwealth parliament. Mr Robinson would go on to win re-election on a further 10 occasions. Upon entering the House of Representatives, Mr Robinson first addressed himself to the subject of Commonwealth-state relations. Whilst he observed that he believed in the rights of the states as allowed for in the Constitution, he was also quick to identify the need for the states to:

… accept more responsibility in their financial relations with the Commonwealth.

He went on to denounce buck-passing between different levels of government and to lament the negative effect this had on national and regional development and expansion.

Cowper was a largely rural electorate and naturally it was primary industries that dominated, in particular dairying—which was the greatest of these—grazing, timber, banana growing and fishing. Mr Robinson argued for greater attention to be paid to public works and rural infrastructure. Interestingly, despite his claim to 'believe very firmly in state rights', he also saw the need for the Commonwealth to

… exercise more control … or at least have a larger hand in the determination of the overall public works programme.

He saw the need for improvements in communication, roads, education and employment if the potential of primary and secondary industry in rural and regional areas was to be realised. Hand in hand with this went increased investment in steps to increase productivity and he advocated:

… scientific research in co-operation with the States in the field of primary industry.

He also saw a need for:

… special financial assistance to all forms of industry … in regions such as the northern half of New South Wales …

This was to overcome hurdles to economic development in country areas.

In 1971, Ian Robinson became the Assistant Minister to the Postmaster-General. Unfortunately for Mr Robinson, his ministerial career was to be short-lived, as the government of the Liberal-Country Party coalition that had prevailed in Australia since 1949 came to an end in 1972. Finding himself in opposition, Ian Robinson served briefly in the shadow ministry prior to the election of the Fraser government in 1975 as the spokesman on decentralised industry. However, when the coalition returned to government, Mr Robinson did not re-enter the ministry and would instead serve as Deputy Chairman of Committees from 1976 to 1983. When Ian Robinson transferred to the new division of Page following the 1984 redistribution, there was an appropriate symmetry about that change. Sir Earle Page, after whom the seat had been named, had been an important mentor to Mr Robinson and was the last Country Party member to hold the division of Cowper, which Mr Robinson had reclaimed from Labor in 1963.

The 1980s were a turbulent time for the group now known as the National Party, especially as they operated under the shadow of the ill-fated Joh for Canberra push. In 1987, Mr Robinson found himself caught up in speculation about the replacement of then leader Ian Sinclair, touted as a potential leadership candidate sympathetic to a number of disaffected Queensland members. Ultimately, the changing mood of the electorate brought about Mr Robinson's exit from the House of Representatives. Faced with changing demographics in his electorate and criticisms about his own performance, he was defeated at the 1990 election by Labor's Harry Woods. The rise in green issues and green voters was an ill match for Mr Robinson. Having turned up to the opening of the Clarence Environment Centre, Mr Robinson was described by The Sydney Morning Herald's Mike Seccombe as having fitted in 'like a foot in a glove'.

Ian Robinson was a Country Party member through and through. As a representative of the Country Party and National Party in the House of Representatives for 27 years, he displayed the resilience that came from experiences of rural life, where you are not necessarily master of your own destiny. We again extend our deepest sympathies to his family and friends following his passing.

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 Hon. Ian Louis Robinson who passed away last Thursday at the age of 91. Mr Robinson was born in 1925 in the northern New South Wales town of Coraki, and it was here that his guiding values for and understanding of regional living were instilled. Mr Robinson's upbringing contributed to his well-rounded and resilient character which, in turn, drove him to commit so much of his life to public life and improving outcomes for regional Australia.

Mr Robinson became involved in public life from quite an early age, becoming a member of the Rural Youth Movement and the Agricultural Bureau, as well as a youth member of the Country Party—the founding party of what is today the National Party, representing regional interests. From there he moved into roles including becoming secretary of his local Country Party branch, a member of the electorate council executive and a representative delegate to the NSW State Conference and Central Council. In these roles, Mr Robinson developed his political skills, a fine representative of regional constituent issues.

Mr Robinson grew up on the property held by his grandfather since the early 1870s and owned a family-run dairy farm. Before entering politics he spent time as both a journalist and a company director. It was experience beyond the oft-trod path of just being a political staffer. There is a lack of experience that I suspect infects those coming to this place since that time. He was a hardworking man who was determined to change things for the better. In regional and rural Australia, the compliment of being a 'hardworking man' is about as high as it gets, and it is really a terrific descriptor of Ian. He was elected to the New South Wales legislative assembly for the seat of Casino in 1953. He held that until 1963, when he contested the federal electorate of Cowper. Mr Robinson successfully regained Cowper and contributed to the Menzies-McEwen government's record majority government of the time.

Joining the House of Representatives chamber with a confident understanding of how parliament worked, Mr Robinson outlined his interests in resolving the uncertainty between state and Commonwealth responsibilities to ensure a workable system where states accept more responsibility for financial relations with the Commonwealth. I have to say that I am not sure that we have got that completely sorted. It is something that we continue to grapple with in this place today. Mr Robinson in his first speech said:

No matter how sound the policy of a government may be, it is nullified unless there is cohesion between various tiers of government in the country.

He was one of those men who actually ensured that, with every policy, there was an implementation plan to ensure that all of the jurisdictions held up to their particular part of the bargain He then went on to praise the government's investment in primary industry and its tremendous contribution to regional electorates. I am confident that Mr Robinson would be also pleased with my party's and, in fact, parliament's continued investments in the interests of regional citizens.

From 1963, Mr Robinson actively represented the interests of constituents in the electorate of Cowper at a federal level and fulfilled the role as Assistant Minister assisting the Postmaster-General, Alan Hulme, from 1971 to 1972. Mr Robinson continued to represent the interests of Cowper residents until 1984 when, as a result of the electoral boundary redistribution, he transferred to the new seat of Page. Mr Robinson said:

The only way to look fairly and squarely at the development needs is to ensure that representation in the Parliament provides a practical means of bringing into the Parliament the views and the requests of the people in the far flung corners of the Commonwealth.

Mr Robinson's values continue in the practices of the National Party today. We are proud to represent regional, rural and remote interests in this place.

An active member of so many parliamentary committees and a strong public speaker, Mr Robinson was an esteemed spokesperson for the National Party, standing and winning 13 elections, one of which was unopposed due to his renowned strength in representing his rural constituents. Serving in federal parliament until 1990, Mr Robinson had a distinguished career spanning 37 years—10 in the New South Wales state parliament and 27 in the Commonwealth parliament—and proudly stands as one of Australia's longest-serving politicians. Regional and rural Australia is much the better for Mr Robinson's contribution to the nation and our National Party.

We thank him for his remarkable service and advocacy for regional Australia. Our sincere condolences go to Mr Robinson's wife Florence, his family and friends. We are the luckier for him having lived. Vale the most honourable Ian Louis Robinson.

Question agreed to, honourable senators standing in their places.