Milton Dick (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to associate myself with the condolence motion. I have spoken in this parliament about the life of Con Sciacca, and today I want to read into the Hansard to put on record the beautiful words that have been written by the Hon. Stirling Hinchliffe and the Hon. Paul Lucas. It is a wonderful tribute to our dear friend, the Hon. Con Sciacca AO. As we heard from the member for McMahon and the member for Fairfax, a beautiful service was held on 30 June and was attended by the Governor of Queensland, the Queensland Premier, former prime ministers and former premiers. There were beautiful tributes by Con's dear, dear friend the Hon. Santo Santoro and the Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten.

It is often said that in Labor we make the saints, and surely with the passing of Con Sciacca we have lost one of our greatest. Con Sciacca exemplified everything about true public service: selflessness, empathy, relentless hard work and a passion to improve the lives of all citizens of this beloved country. Con Sciacca was a walking, talking example of what migrants contribute to this country. Aged four, he arrived in Australia from Sicily. He did law the hard way, the solicitor's board, while working full-time and helping to support his family. Not born to wealth or with contacts to give him a kick-start in life, Con worked hard in establishing his own law firm from scratch—a firm that ultimately became Queensland's largest local Labor law firm, where many prominent lawyers, politicians and union officials got their first start. It was also where they learned the value of hard work and an absolute commitment to customer satisfaction.

As an active member of Young Labor from the start, Con made national contacts at a very early age. His politics were always moderate, his debating style emphatic and his socialising legendary. He was the Queensland Young Labor president in 1972, the year that I was born. In these times, it is not uncommon for young operators to think their talents demand accommodation in a safe seat or, worse still, to complain, agitate or rat when things did not go their own way. Always a betting man, Con Sciacca had a number of false starts along the way. No-one is really fully baptised in Labor until they have had a kick in the guts and come up trumps. Con would cop the setbacks and defeats just as well as the victories—a lesson for those who presume their talents and skills will always be recognised by the party and endorsed by the electorate.

In 1969, he unsuccessfully contested the safe Liberal state seat of Mount Coot-tha. In 1977, 1980 and 1985, which was a by-election, he contested the marginal National Party seat of Redlands. His campaign was remarkable. He took defeats and disappointment with good grace. Alongside his life-long friend Brian Kilmartin, Con joined the Labor Forum, or the right-wing faction, in Queensland. When times were tough, they became some of the pillars of support for all who have joined ever since. Con worked hard and, together with his outstanding campaign director, Joan Budd, won a hard-fought preselection and went on to become the federal member for Bowman from 1987 to 1996 and then from 1998 to 2004.

Sciacca was an outstanding success and, no doubt, the first Queensland MP to run his office in a modern fashion. He ran his office with the productivity of his law firm—dictating letters and actioning memos on his hand-held recorder with ever-mounting piles of tapes for processing. He was accessible and media friendly. His talent and hard work paid off in a promotion to the ministerial office. He was most proud of his achievements as Minister for Veterans' Affairs in the Keating government. His work in securing a better deal for veterans was legendary, including in long-running compensation and justice issues. He's particularly remembered for his Australia Remembers campaign of recognition for those hundreds of thousands of Australians who served this country—whose service abroad and at home was acknowledged. In many respects, this was the key early factor in encouraging all of us to reflect on their sacrifices and schools and communities to attend and commemorate veteran services in ever-increasing numbers.

Such was the regard he was held in, the RSL made him an honorary life member—an extraordinary accolade for a non-service person—for his service to veterans. His work in this field and other fields was recognised via his appointment in 2006 as an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to ex-service personnel, cancer research institutions and the Australian parliament. Sciacca's service was also recognised, as we've heard, by the governments of Italy and Finland, who respectfully awarded him the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic—one of Italy's highest honours—and a Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland.

Sciacca made many friends in his time in federal politics. He was capable of playing politics very hard but always with honour and decency. This gained him friendships from all sides of politics—maybe drawing the lines at the Greens. After leaving federal parliament—if anything—he increased his political activity, if that was possible, and actively fundraised and supported Labor candidates from right across the party. But, in particular, he was a supporter and confidante to Labor Forum members and senators. His fundraising lunches were legendary. The business community clamoured to attend as they were entertaining as well as informative. His introductions of attendees around the table often had the audience in stitches. No-one was left out, and all felt important and part of the family.

Con was the founding chairman of public affairs and lobbying company SAS Group. However, he was very reluctant to lobby friends. He had a clear distinction and strong ethical boundaries that were the cornerstone to his and their continued high standing all around. Sciacca had many close long-standing personal friends—people like Bill Ludwig, Bob Hawke and Kim Beazley. He didn't desert mates when they fell on hard times. Equally, he was happy to assist around the country in fundraising, particularly at Labor Party dinners attended by the Italian community.

Con Sciacca never sought appointments post political office. His reward was to help and see success in others. He may have cultivated a persona of a tough operator, and he certainly could be one, but he was far more a friend than an enemy, a supporter than a detractor and a planner than a plotter. Con was devastated by the loss of his son Sammy, who was 19 years old. He was devastated by the loss of his mother, to whom he was devoted. He had a large and loving family. He doted on his daughter, Zina, who reciprocated in spades, and was smitten by his beautiful granddaughter Gracie. He was so happy with his wife, Karen, and her unwavering love and support, and he treated her sons, Nick and Daniel, as his own and was very proud of them.

Concetto Sciacca passed away just a week after his 70th birthday—a happy and joyous occasion surrounded by family, close friends and extraordinary amounts of Sicilian food washed down by his beautiful signature Elderton Command Shiraz. Con was an extraordinary person in my life and the lives of so many others. Rest in peace, Con.

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