Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That:

(1) a Joint Select Committee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra be appointed to oversee planning and delivery of the commemoration of the centenary of Parliament in Canberra, in consultation with the Presiding Officers;

(2) the committee consist of nine members: Ms Claydon as Chair, Mr McCormack as Deputy Chair, Mr Dreyfus, Ms Payne, Ms Sharkie, Mr Rebello, Senator Stewart, Senator Walker and Senator Kovacic;

(3) the members of the Committee hold office as a joint select committee until 30 November 2027;

(4) the deputy chair shall act as chair of the committee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the committee;

(5) at any time when the chair and deputy chair are not present at a meeting of the committee the members present shall elect another member to act as chair at that meeting;

(6) the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote;

(7) three members of the committee constitute a quorum of the committee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(8) the Committee:

(a) have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of three or more of its members and to refer to any subcommittee any matter which the committee is empowered to examine; and

(b) appoint the chair of each subcommittee who shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote;

(9) at any time when the chair of a subcommittee is not, present at a meeting of the subcommittee, the members of the subcommittee present shall elect another member of that subcommittee to act as chair at that meeting;

(10) two members of a subcommittee constitute a quorum of that subcommittee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(11) members of the committee who are not members of a subcommittee may participate in the proceedings of that subcommittee but shall not vote, move any motion or be counted for the purpose of a quorum;

(12) the committee or any subcommittee have power to:

(a) call for witnesses to attend and for documents to be produced;

(b) conduct proceedings at any place it sees fit;

(c) sit in public or in private;

(d) report from time to time; and

(e) adjourn from time to time and to sit during any adjournment of the House of Representatives and the Senate;

(13) the provisions of this resolution, so far as they are inconsistent with the standing orders, have effect notwithstanding anything contained in the standing orders; and

(14) a message be sent to the Senate acquainting it of this resolution and requesting that it concur and take action accordingly.

This year, Australia is celebrating 125 years of Federation, and I was with you and other members in Melbourne to commemorate that event of the first sitting of parliament, and it was a very good celebration of our history, which is worthy of celebration. In 2001, we had re-enactments and a great celebration there in Melbourne, as well, for the centenary of Federation.

Next year is, of course, another really important commemoration—one which we should celebrate as a profound national achievement and the beginning of a string of world firsts. We were the first country on earth created by the free and peaceful vote of its people. We were the first democracy where women could vote in elections and stand for parliament, and we were the first parliament anywhere in the world where a Labor Party formed national government. We Australians sometimes think of ourselves as a young nation on an ancient continent, yet by global standards, of course, we are one of the oldest and strongest democracies in the world.

Next year will mark an important anniversary: the 100th anniversary of Australian democracy making its home here in Canberra, our national capital. It has been 100 years since members and senators from across the country took their places in what was then called the Provisional Parliament House. It is important that we mark this milestone as a parliament and as a country and do so in a way that deepens Australia's understanding of our democracy and the pride that all of us can take in its ongoing resilience.

I know there's a great affection for Old Parliament House, as we call it now, and the history that it holds. Next year, I propose that our parliament holds a special sitting in the old building down the hill so that we can pay tribute to its service to Australia and reflect how what was debated and decided there and then continues to shape the life of our nation here and now. I'm pleased that the Leader of the Opposition has agreed, and members who I have spoken have agreed to join this Joint Select Committee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra. It will be chaired by the Deputy Speaker the member for Newcastle, and the former deputy prime minister the member for Riverina will be the deputy chair of that committee. We've tried to bring together a group of people who would represent what parliament looks like today and would contribute. I note the member for McPherson, who's a former attendant in Parliament House, has agreed to be one of the members of that committee as well, and that's a good thing. The member for Canberra, Alicia Payne, will be a member of that committee as a local member, and we have a broad cross-section of people who would work together to get through the detail, working with the Speaker and the President of the Senate.

The Museum of Australian Democracy, under Barrie Cassidy, the chair, has written to me already making suggestions, including the sitting of the parliament. We'll work through and make sure that there are constructive debates on the day. This isn't a day for partisanship; it will be a day for celebrating what unites us as a nation. Included in that will be a question time in both chambers. Parliament has not been expanded since 1984, so people squished in there for all those years, and they'll be very close to each other in that time. This is an important opportunity. The terms of debate take it up to 30 November of 2027, so it may well be that the members of the committee come up with different ideas to celebrate and engage.

I note that Senator Jana Stewart will be a member of the committee as well. That's pretty important because one of the things that didn't happen a hundred years ago was the recognition of First Nations people and their role in this country. That will be important. I also want to shout out the member for Mayo, who will ensure that crossbench members can be engaged. She's someone who's passionate about it and tells me about her constituent who is 108 years old and travelled, as a very young boy, from South Australia with family for the opening of the first parliament—and he's still there. We hope he's able to attend again. We might fly him across, I'd suggest, at this time, but that would be remarkable.

We need to tell our stories. We need to have pride in who we are. This is a great democracy, and this is an opportunity for us to celebrate it. The national capital here in Canberra, sometimes denigrated, is a fantastic achievement. This planned city—and it is planned, perhaps because of disagreement between Sydney and Melbourne, and all those debates—has turned out to be, because it is planned, very functional and livable. That is what we have here with all of our national institutions. One of those national institutions is the Museum of Australian Democracy. It's where a whole lot of students go. There is range of activities that people come up with. One of the appointees to this committee with this motion is Senator Walker, elected on her 21st birthday last year. I thought it would be a pretty good idea to get a young person's perspective as well. Charlotte will make a contribution, as will all the members of the committee.

Senator Kovacic will also be a member. She actually grew up in Canberra. I thank Michael McCormack in particular with Sharon Claydon for the engagement we've had over recent weeks to try and work through these proposals constructively. Everyone will go into this with a sense of goodwill. I really look forward to Sharon and Michael's leadership on this—he's already organising things—together with your fine leadership, Mr Speaker.

This will be a really important moment for the nation, to bring us together. We need more of that, not less. These can be troubled and turbulent times globally. At a time when democracy around the world is actually, if you look at the global surveys, in retreat in terms of the way that people perceive democracy as a system, it is absolutely critical that we celebrate this. I commend the motion to the House.

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the coalition and the federal opposition, it gives me great pleasure to support the motion moved by the government. We warmly welcome the establishment of the Joint Select Committee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra.

Our history must be remembered, our history must be protected, and our history and the stories associated with it must be celebrated. That includes the history of this great parliament and the old parliament just down the hill. In the end, the parliament is the people's house, and the parliament is very much about the history of Australia and the Australian people. As we've just heard from the Prime Minister, our parliament is absolutely central to our wonderful democracy, the greatest democracy in the world, in my view—and long has been.

It was in 1927 that the federal parliament moved from Melbourne, where it had sat for 26 years. It's a much better location here; I'm in agreement. It did take up a beautiful sheep station, but it has become a great city. It came to a provisional building, as we just heard, in the new capital of Canberra. It wasn't very provisional, of course; I'll come back to that! But that building that we now refer to as Old Parliament House was opened on 9 May that year, and that building would remain the site of the federal parliament for 61 years, until 1988, when it moved to this building.

During the opening of the first federal parliament in Canberra, the King's message was read expressing his pride in the new capital city. His son the Duke of York, the future King George VI, was there in person. He captured the aspirational spirit of the Australian people when he said:

One's own life would hardly be worth living without its dreams of better things, and the life of a nation without such dreams of a better and a larger future …

Prime Minister Stanley Bruce delivered an address in which he said:

May those who enter this open door govern with justice, reason, and equal favour to all. May they do so in humility and without self-interest. May they think and act nationally. May they speak with the voice of those who sent them here—the voice of the people.

That day, Australian soprano Dame Nellie Melba sang 'God Save the King', our national anthem at the time. There was a band. A crowd of about a thousand people gathered. It was one below expectations. Given the shortage of accommodation in the new capital, I think it was largely restricted to tents at that point. Consequently, the overcatered event reportedly saw a large quantity of Sargents meat pies left over. Legend has it they were disposed of in a pit where the Treasury building now stands. I think the productivity has gone up since then; sometimes I wonder! RAAF planes flew overhead, and, indeed, the celebration that day was sadly marred by tragedy. Flying Officer Francis Ewen, swept from flying formation, crashed and was killed.

Of course, it was a great moment despite that tragedy. There will be much to remember and celebrate next year at the centenary of parliament in Canberra. I'm sure that all in this place look forward to that special sitting of the parliament in Old Parliament House to commemorate the occasion, and I warmly welcome that opportunity. I feel lucky enough to have sat in the public gallery there in the 1970s with my two grandparents who lived at the time just on the other side of Red Hill, in Garran. I was young and I didn't fully understand what was going on. How could you in this place? I'm still working it out! But what I did know about what was going on was it was important. It really did matter. In fact, it inspired me to want to be part of this place in the future.

What has happened down at Old Parliament House is worth celebrating, and it will be a true honour to be sitting there. I'm sure it will be a very civil question time—

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) | Link to this | Hansard source

It won't!

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) | Link to this | Hansard source

and an important event. Maybe it won't—I'm being told by the Manager of Opposition Business! I'd ask the members of the joint select committee one thing, though, which is to ensure that our national anthem is sung at the event. That didn't happen at the event at the Australian War Memorial recently. It is important at these events. This matters, and it is crucial that that occurs. But it is an important commemoration, and, on behalf of the coalition, I support the motion.

A government member interjecting

It is a big issue—I will take that interjection. It really does matter. I do support this motion. It's important to be bipartisan and it's important we work together to make it a great event.

Question agreed to.