Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to pay my respects to Elizabeth Robyn Truman, nee Harvey—known to her friends and family and colleagues as Liz—who died on 24 May 2025. Liz was the second member for Hawker, an electorate now largely absorbed by Boothby. She was the second Labor woman to be elected to the federal House of Representatives from South Australia as a member of the Hawke Labor government between 1987 and 1990.

But her legacy within the party was much longer, most notably as a member of the Women's Policy Committee, campaigning for better representation for women. I'm sure she would have been ecstatic that the ALP now has a majority female caucus in federal parliament. We truly stand on the shoulders of legends like Liz. Liz was a compassionate and dedicated local member. She spoke in her first speech of the importance of social housing, support for Vietnam veterans, single parents, people with disability and women escaping domestic violence. Interestingly, in April 1989, she issued a press release entitled 'Councils must plan for greenhouse effect,' talking about the impact on coastal communities of sea level rises, higher tides, storm damage, as well as changes in rainfall patterns, flooding and soil erosion—things we're starting to see now. Liz lost the 1990 election by 14 votes, which must have been heartbreaking.

Liz was known to her family and friends as an incredibly intelligent and creative woman who had a talent for languages, a passion for dance, loved to travel and, beyond anything, loved to teach. Her original career choice was ballet dancer, but, after leaving Adelaide High School, she received a University of Adelaide scholarship where she completed a BA and then a diploma in secondary teaching from Adelaide Teachers College. She taught languages at Elizabeth High School and was then selected for a pioneering 'English as a second language' intensive college at Gilles Street Primary School.

Liz's flair for language and her interest in culture led her to live and travel around the world, teaching in Madrid and Oman, living in Argentina, Patagonia and travelling through Europe and the Middle East. She turned her creative flair and experience in parliament into a series of stories, originally published online as 'Snowflakes Hope' and then as 'The Glasshouse Effect'. I've been unable to locate a copy of the book; however, I believe it included profiles of Bob Hawke, Paul Keating, John Button, Neal Blewett and Barry Jones, as well as a very unflattering description of the typical senator. She did, however, say that she changed some names to protect the guilty—the mind boggles.

Liz is much missed by her partner, Peter; her sons, Stephen and Tom; her grandchildren, Maxwell, Florence and Oliver; her stepchildren, Matt, Jon and Ali and their families; as well as her sister, Verity, a former colleague of mine. Vale, Liz.

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