David Gillespie (Lyne, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

It's with the deepest feelings of sadness that I rise to express my regret at the passing of our late Queen, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. So many of my constituents from the Lyne electorate have similar thoughts and would like that expressed in this chamber. Queen Elizabeth II was an amazing lady—monarch, head of the Church of England and Scotland, a titular leader and a constant in multiple generations of Australians' lives. She was not just a beacon of stability for the United Kingdom but an exemplary international leader and a source of unity for the whole Commonwealth and for our nation during her 70 years of faithful service to us. She was wise counsel to many Australian prime ministers—in fact, 16 of them—and 179 prime ministers around the Commonwealth. She went through wars, other conflicts, natural disasters, periods of rapid social change, political upheavals, boom and bust and depression, and she was a source of reassurance to people around the world, but particularly in Australia, during that time. Whether it was floods, droughts, bushfires or other natural disasters, she always kept a kindly and genuine interest in all of us.

One of my earliest memories of the Queen was her visit to Australia in 1963, when I was a five-year-old. She visited Canberra but also nearby Queanbeyan. She returned many times. I also saw her at the Bicentennial in Sydney, at the Opera House, and during my two years working in the United Kingdom. Living and working in London was a treat and an experience I'll never forget, but one of the highlights was to be invited to attend Royal Ascot and be in the royal enclosure, dressed up in a morning suit and a top hat and all, at the pleasure of Her Majesty. Having enjoyed many days at the races, that would have to go down as even better than a Melbourne Cup—which I haven't even got to yet.

On the four occasions I was sworn in as a minister, I was very proud to take the oath declaring my allegiance to the Crown. I made sure, during COVID, when I couldn't be in this chamber, that we had a portrait of Her Majesty behind me and able to be seen on Microsoft Teams meetings. Our nation and the whole of Lyne mourn her passing. I would like to formally express my and my electorate's deepest sympathies and condolences to King Charles and the whole royal family. As we mourn her loss, we welcome King Charles III to the Crown. I'm sure he has been trained by and learnt from the very best.

It's an opportune time for us to reflect on the constitutional monarchy that we have inherited from the United Kingdom. Seeing all the other systems of government around the world—the troubles with republics and various other forms of government, with ultimate and supreme power vested in one elected official who has essentially a political role—you can see the benefits of having a constitutional monarchy. Many in this chamber and around the world have a problem with a monarch being a hereditary position, but the fact that it's not political—it's above the fray and the monarch is generally well educated these days—is the essentially good thing about a constitutional monarchy. The Constitution has defined the powers of the government, the parliament, the ministers and the courts. We have the benefit of things that the United Kingdom went through in the 1600s. We're the beneficiary of all the turmoil that they went through, and many countries in the Commonwealth are similar beneficiaries.

Socrates, that Greek philosopher who gets mentioned many times, would be really proud of what Queen Elizabeth II turned out to be. When you see her personal musings and her published words of condolence, advice, encouragement and analysis on the big things in life in her public speeches, she really was a philosopher queen. It's only when you don't have something that you really notice its loss. So we all mourn her passing and thank her for her service. God save the King.

See this speech in context