Andrew McLachlan (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with deep regret that I inform the Senate of the death, on 24 January 2025, of the Hon. Grant Ernest John Tambling AM, a member of the House of Representatives for the Northern Territory from 1980 to 1983, and a senator for the Northern Territory from 1987 to 2001.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate records its sadness at the death, on 24 January 2025, of the Honourable Grant Ernest John Tambling AM, former member for the Northern Territory and former senator for the Northern Territory, places on record its gratitude for his service to the Parliament and the nation, and tenders its sympathy to his family in their bereavement.

I rise on behalf of the government to express our condolences after the passing of former Northern Territory senator the Hon. Grant Ernest John Tambling AM. Grant Tambling, or Tambo as he was known, was born in Wondai, near Kingaroy, in Queensland, in 1943. His parents, Ernest Tambling and Edna Williamson, were both teachers and married in Darwin in 1941. They returned to the Top End to work after the end of World War II. Grant was named after the USS President Grant, the ship his parents were evacuated on out of Darwin to Queensland during the war.

He was a student at Darwin Primary School, Darwin High School and Adelaide Boys High School. He went on to join the AMP Society as an insurance sales agent. It was during his time in Sydney that he met trainee nurse Sandra, who he went on to marry in Sydney two years later. Grant Tambling continued his career, covering Darwin, Gove and Arnhem Land, until, in his words, 'Cyclone Tracy blew away all my clients in December 1974.'

He became an alderman for the Darwin city council and served from 1972 to 1974, before becoming a member of the first fully elected Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, holding the seat of Fannie Bay from 1974 to 1977. He was the leader of the NT Country Liberal Party and he served on the consultative committee on constitutional development of the Northern Territory from 1975 to 1977—a cause he strongly advocated for throughout his political career.

Grant Tambling was elected to the House of Representatives on 18 October 1980. His tenure as the member for the Northern Territory lasted only one term. During that time, he focused on statehood, advancing the Northern Territory, defence and building a stronger relationship with South-East Asia. He became a casualty of the 1983 election, with a landslide Labor Party victory. Grant Tambling was next elected into the Senate on 11 July 1987, completing the rare task of having served at all three levels of government as well as both houses of the Commonwealth parliament.

In his first speech to the Senate, he said, 'I will never be apologetic about being parochial in my advocacy for the Northern Territory,' remaining committed to the Northern Territory throughout his service. When the coalition returned to government in 1996, under John Howard, he served for six years as a parliamentary secretary. Grant Tambling was National Party Whip in the Senate from 1987 to 1990 and the deputy leader in the Senate from 1990 to 1993 and again from 2000 to 2001.

In one of his final speeches to the Senate, Grant Tambling offered an apology to Aboriginal Territorians for not getting enough done. He said, 'There is still a hell of a long way to go,' and that, despite his 20 years of work in the area, not enough had been achieved.

After politics, Grant Tambling continued community service. He was appointed administrator of Norfolk Island from 2003 to 2007. After his retirement as administrator, he returned to Darwin and worked with the Northern Territory's Development Consent Authority, a body with planning responsibilities for the City of Darwin Council. He was honoured during Australia Day in 2011, being made a Member of Order of Australia for his service to the parliament of Australia, to the community of Norfolk Island, and to the Northern Territory through contributions to local, state and federal government.

Grant Tambling was a strong advocate for the Northern Territory. We pass on our condolences and we again convey our sympathies to his family, including his wife, Sandy, son, Coryn and daughter, Amalia.

Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise on behalf of the opposition to speak on this condolence motion. Many words can be used to describe Grant Tambling, but two that immediately come to mind are commitment and conviction—commitment to the service of the public over a long career and conviction to political beliefs.

Grant Ernest John Tambling was born in Wondai, near Kingaroy, in Queensland, on 20 June 1943, and he was the eldest of three children. His parents, Ernest 'Tam' Tambling and Edna Williamson, were school teachers who were married in Darwin in 1941. The couple returned to Darwin to work after the Second World War. Grant himself was named after the USS President Grant, the US Navy transport ship used to evacuate his parents out of Darwin to Queensland during World War II. Grant attended Darwin Primary School, Darwin High School and, finally, Adelaide Boys' High School.

After matriculating, Grant returned to Darwin in 1960 to study accounting. Later he moved to Sydney for three years to join the AMP Society as an insurance sales agent. Whilst in Sydney, he met trainee nurse Sandra McDowall. The couple were married in 1969 and moved back to the Northern Territory. Back in the Territory, Grant continued to work with the AMP covering Darwin, Arnhem Land and Gove. Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin on Christmas Eve 1974, and, as we know, that changed the course of life for so many Territorians.

Grant's interest in public life had already begun before Cyclone Tracy. He served as alderman with Darwin City Council from 1972 to 1974, before being elected to the seat of Fannie Bay in the first ever Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1974. After serving at those two levels of government, he would go on to represent the Territory in both the House of Representatives and the Australian Senate. Grant was, in fact, a founding member of the NT Country Liberal Party and was the deputy leader of the party in the early years after its formation. He was elected to the House of Representatives as the member for the Northern Territory in 1980.

Grant was a fierce advocate for the Northern Territory during his time as a backbencher. In fact, in his maiden speech, Grant said:

… it is necessary to challenge the Government and the Parliament on many of its attitudes to the Northern Territory.

He challenged those Australians who stereotyped the people of the Northern Territory, pointing out:

Our Northern Territory community now comprises people of 40 different nationalities, including many descendants of the Chinese who came to the Territory as labourers, miners and merchants in the years after the gold rushes in the early 1870s. As well 30 per cent of Australia's tribal Aboriginals, some 25,000 in all, the majority living on their own tribal lands granted to them under Commonwealth statute, are determining their futures as Aboriginal Australians.

Grant advocated for the rights of Indigenous Australians but also preached personal responsibility. He said:

Aboriginals are, firstly, Australians with the same rights, privileges, opportunities, accountability and responsibilities as all other Australians.

He said that in his maiden speech.

After serving one term as a backbencher in the Fraser government, Grant lost his seat at the 1983 election, which saw, of course, Bob Hawke elected as Prime Minister. He spent the next four years running a newspaper in the Darwin suburb of Parap and serving as the Deputy Chairman of the Northern Territory Planning Authority. But, in 1987, he was returned to Canberra by voters as a senator for the Northern Territory. He held his seat in the Senate from 1987 to 2001 when he retired with the expiration of his term. As a Northern Territory senator, he was re-elected in 1990, 1993, 1996 and 1998. His Senate service combined with his service in the House of Representatives meant that he had served in federal parliament for a total of 16 years, eight months and 22 days.

Grant was appointed to various shadow ministries while in opposition, including regional development, external territories, northern Australia, community services and public housing. When the Howard government was elected to office in 1996, he was made Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Transport and Regional Development and later served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Security and then to the Minister for Health and Aged Care. Grant served as National Party Whip in the Senate and Deputy Leader of the National Party in the Senate during his time.

Grant was renowned as—and I have mentioned the word 'conviction' earlier, but there was no doubt Grant was—a conviction politician and, indeed, he was a true champion of Territory rights. After politics, he was Norfolk Island administrator from November 2003 to September 2007.

Grant is survived by his wife, Sandy; son, Coryn; daughter, Amalia; and grandchildren, Reuben, Hamish and Castiella. On behalf of the coalition, I offer my heartfelt condolences to Grant's family, colleagues, friends and community. Our thoughts are especially with his wife, Sandy, and his children and grandchildren. May Grant Tambling rest in peace.

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As Leader of the National Party in the Senate, I rise to join all senators and, indeed, former Senate leaders Nigel Scullion and Ron Boswell in giving this condolence speech about Grant 'Tambo' Tambling, particularly on behalf of National Party senators, honouring and acknowledging his life and service and, as we like to know him, Tambo. He was a distinguished servant of the Northern Territory and the Australian parliament.

He was the eldest of three children, born in Queensland on 20 June 1943, and he was named after the USS President Grant, which was used to evacuate his parents out of Darwin to Queensland during World War II. His parents, both school teachers, had married in Darwin in 1941 and returned there in 1946 after his father served in the war. Despite a brief stint in Sydney, where he met his wife, Sandy, he lived most of his life in the Territory. He was fiercely loyal and proud to be a Territorian.

Tambo was a man of conviction and dedication and had an unrelenting passion for the people he represented. Over the course of his long and distinguished career, he made a significant and lasting contribution to the advancement of the Northern Territory, the strength of regional Australia and the cause of the National Party and the Country Liberal Party.

His parliamentary career spanned over three decades and he served at all four levels of government, serving as an alderman with the Darwin City Council from 1972 to 1974, before being elected to the seat of Fannie Bay in the first-ever Territory assembly in 1974. He then served as the member for the Northern Territory in the House of Representatives for three years, and later as a senator for the Northern Territory from 1987 to 2001. After politics, he was appointed Norfolk Island administrator from 2003 to 2007 during the Howard-Anderson-Vaile government. He also served as National Party Whip, a time-honoured tradition, it would seem, for National Party senators, and Deputy Leader of the Nationals in the Senate for a number of years, and, after the 1996 election, he was appointed as parliamentary secretary for six years.

Paul Davey, Senator Davey's late father, who wrote the book on the National Party, talked about Tambo, saying:

Tambling's tenure as Member for the Northern Territory lasted only one term, but helped to shape his main political interests: Aboriginal advancement, statehood and further development for the Northern Territory, defence, and closer links with South-East Asia, particularly Indonesia.

These are Paul Davey's words: 'Round-faced and jovial, Tambling was a tenacious character who preferred to resolve issues by negotiation rather than confrontation, but who was not afraid to mix it with the best in all political forums and stand firm on his beliefs.' It seems like that is a template for Territorian senators who serve in the National Party party room.

His work in public life was instrumental in shaping the Northern Territory's policy landscape, particularly in regional development, Indigenous affairs and health. Across both chambers, he carried with him a fierce determination to see the Territory thrive economically, socially and politically. He was a dedicated champion for better services and opportunities for Indigenous Australians—a cause to which he committed himself with sincerity and purpose. His leadership as the Administrator of Norfolk Island reflected his enduring belief in the power of strong, community-driven governance. Throughout his parliamentary career, he was a strong advocate of federal initiatives such as the joint defence facility at Pine Gap, the construction of the Alice Springs to Darwin leg of the north-south railway and the expansion of mining, including uranium.

In his first speech in the House of Representatives, he made several observations that are as relevant today as they were in 1980, when he made them. Firstly, he said:

The electorate of the Northern Territory may be short on population but it is not lacking in importance to the nation or in natural resources.

…   …   …

It is impossible for honourable members, without personal knowledge, to appreciate the value to the Commonwealth of the vast area of country which I now represent, or to visualise its immense possibilities.

How true those words are. The Northern Territory continues to be essential to the prosperity of our nation and still has vast possibilities if it's given the chance to succeed.

Secondly, he said:

The ALP's policies on uranium are negative and useless.

Senator Farrell, it's great to see you in the chamber for this condolence, because it would seem that former senator Tambling's words are as true today, unfortunately for your political party, as they were when he made them. Thirty-four years later, nothing has changed.

The passing of Grant Tambling is a great loss, not only to those who knew him personally but to the broader political and public policy community. His service to this nation, particularly the people of the Northern Territory, leaves a lasting legacy that will be remembered with great respect.

I know his family should be very proud of the contribution he made on behalf of his community; his political party, the CLP, and the National Party; and, indeed, the Australian people. On behalf of the Nationals in the Senate, I extend my deepest sympathy to his wife, Sandy; his son, Coryn; his daughter, Amalia; and his grandchildren, Reuben, Hamish and Castiella; his friends; and all of those who had the great privilege to work alongside him. Vale, Grant Tambling.

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (NT, Country Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Country Liberal Party of the Northern Territory, I would like to honour and pay my respects to Mr Grant Tambling. Mr Tambling was a well-loved and popular man. He served our nation of Australia faithfully and tirelessly. He left no level of government untouched, serving in local government and then both Territory and Commonwealth parliaments. To every position he held, he gave himself wholeheartedly.

Mr Tambling began his time in government as a member of the Darwin City Council from 1972 until 1974. He then moved to the Northern Territory parliament, where he served in a variety of capacities, including multiple ministerial positions, from 1974 to 1977. A few short years later, in 1980, he was elected to the House of Representatives in this parliament, albeit down the road at Old Parliament House, where he was required to share an office with three other MPs.

Despite being defeated in 1983, he returned to federal politics in 1987 as a senator for the Northern Territory. He was subsequently re-elected to that position four times before retiring at the end of his term in 2001. Holding the trust of the Territory to represent them in this House for that long is a testament to the respect he enjoyed.

As a senator for the Northern Territory myself, I know its size can make it a challenging place to get around, but Tambling's devotion to his community saw him travel all across the Territory, always ensuring he was on top of the issues that mattered to those on the ground. His desire to see Indigenous Australians treated equally, as any other Australian, resonates with the reasons that spurred me on to have a career in politics.

Tambling was a man who championed the cause of Indigenous Australians and was not afraid to say things how he saw them. He highlighted problematic aspects of Indigenous land rights legislation and called on the government to review it. He also offered a sober warning against what he perceived to be the manipulation of Indigenous Australians for political purposes, things which we can learn a lot from to this day. Aside from Indigenous affairs, Tambling was also an advocate for efficient government. He wasn't afraid to call out government waste and used his time in estimates to do just that.

All of this was ultimately because he loved his home of the Territory and the nation of Australia. Tambling's life and service demonstrated his dedication to his home of the Territory and the nation of Australia without exception. We honour his life today and remember his contribution to our country.

Question agreed to, honourable senators joining in a moment of silence.