Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today in this chamber to pay tribute to the families, the relatives and the friends of those servicemen who served on HMAS Yarra. This weekend marks the 65th anniversary of the sinking of the Yarra in World War II, and families will meet to commemorate that in Melbourne in Newport on Sunday. I have spoken before in the House of HMAS Yarra. The story and the history of that ship are very much part of the fabric of Australia’s massive contribution in World War II—a massive contribution by the Navy. The Yarra, which was sunk on 4 March 1942, typifies so much of the sacrifice that those who served in the Navy and the other forces experienced during World War II.

The historian Daniel Oakman, at the War Memorial, has written of the history of the HMAS Yarra. It is a story of incredible sacrifice. I came to know of it because a constituent in my electorate, Mr Garry Taylor, is a relative of Ron Taylor, known as ‘Buck’, who served on the Yarra and died during combat. I spoke of this some years ago, and the families who survive to pass on the stories of the Yarra very much want to have the contribution recognised in a major way. I will read quickly from some of Oakman’s history, where he talks about the great courage of those on board who, ‘in a firefight with the Japanese, saw the ship sink’. There was ‘an abandon ship call, but the Yarra kept on firing’, and history records Ron Taylor’s very courageous efforts as the last man, manning the last operational gun on that day. Many died. Some survived for a short period of time but died in the water, and others managed to be rescued later on. This Sunday marks a very important chapter in Australia’s history that all of us in this House would do well to remember as part of Australia’s massive contribution in World War II.