Slade Brockman (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with deep regret that I inform the Senate of the death on 17 July 2025 of John Owen Stone AO, a senator for Queensland from 1987 to 1990.

Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate records its sadness at the death on 17 July 2025 of John Owen Stone AO, former senator for Queensland and Secretary to the Treasury, places on record its gratitude for his service to the parliament and the nation and tenders its sympathy to his family in their bereavement.

Senator John Stone was a towering figure in Australian public life—an economist, a public servant, a parliamentarian and a fearless advocate—whose contributions to national debate have left an enduring imprint on our national institutions.

Born in Perth in 1929, John Stone was the eldest child of Horace Stone, a wheat farmer, and Eva Myee, a primary school teacher. Stone attended Perth Modern School just a few years above Bob Hawke, and his academic brilliance was evident early. He graduated from the University of Western Australia and, like Hawke, went on to study at Oxford as a Rhodes scholar.

A leading disciple of what became known as economic rationalism in the 1980s, Stone began initially as a student of mathematical physics before switching to economics at Oxford. His intellectual rigour and analytical precision led him to the Commonwealth Treasury, where he served with distinction for over two decades. He was appointed secretary to the Treasury in 1979, but, as is said of him in the Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate, he had already established himself as the principal policymaker and spokesman of the department. In that role, he became one of the most influential economic voices in the country. He was a staunch advocate for fiscal discipline, transparency in public finance and the independence of Australia's economic institutions. His tenure coincided with a period of significant global economic upheaval, and he navigated those challenges with clarity and conviction. Stone was considered one of Australia's leading fiscal hawks and economic reformers, but he could be quite a contrarian too. He was a free marketeer who opposed the Whitlam government's bold tariff cut in 1973 as well as the timing of the floating of the Australian dollar in 1983, but to dwell on that would be to miss his pragmatism and his willingness to change his opinion as circumstance demanded.

The fact that John Stone could serve treasurers as different as Jim Cairns and John Howard is a testament to his belief in an independent Public Service. When Paul Keating was appointed Treasurer in March 1983, some urged him to replace Stone with a more amenable secretary. Keating refused, signalling that he and Stone both placed a premium on the contest of big ideas.

In 1987, he entered the Australian Senate as a National Party senator for Queensland. Though his time in this chamber was brief, his contribution was substantial. He brought to the Senate a rare depth of economic understanding and a fierce independence of thought. Senator Stone believed deeply in the importance of sound economic policy as the foundation of national prosperity. He was sceptical of excessive government intervention and wary of inflationary pressures. His views often placed him at odds with prevailing political winds, but he never wavered in his commitment to what he believed was economically prudent and nationally responsible.

I acknowledge that Senator Stone's views—and this is possibly the understatement of the week—on questions of economic management often diverged from my own. He was a critic of Keynesian stimulus and wary of redistributive policies. In a democracy, particularly a democracy like Australia's democracy, it's the contest of ideas that strengthens our institutions. Senator Stone's contributions to that contest were formidable, and his presence here and his role in Australian public life elevated the quality of debate in this place. His speeches were marked by clarity, conviction and a deep concern for Australia's long-term economic wellbeing. His clashes with Labor's finance minister, then finance minister Peter Walsh, were a regular highlight for senators to watch in those years, I'm told.

It seems misleading to speak of John Stone's retirement. He retained an intellectual leadership role in Australian conservative politics. In the HR Nicholls Society, in the Samuel Griffith Society, in the Australian newspaper and in Quadrant, his voice remained a big deal. He wrote prolifically, offering commentary on economic, cultural and political issues. Whether one agreed with him or not—and I rarely did—his arguments were always grounded in principle and presented with intellectual honesty. In recognition of that service, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia, a fitting tribute to a man who gave so much to Australia.

Today we honour former senator Stone not only for his achievements but for his unwavering commitment to public service. He was a man of ideas, of principal and of deep conviction. His legacy will endure in the institutions that he helped shape and the debates that he enriched. On behalf of the Senate and of the government, I extend our condolences to his family, his friends and all those who mourn his passing. May he rest in peace.

Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the opposition, today we mark the passing of John Owen Stone AO. He was someone who, without a doubt, it is recognised on both sides of politics, was a man of formidable intellect. He was an unflinching public servant and, without a doubt, one of the most remarkable Australians to ever enter the parliament. He was also a humble man. He was never a man to chase popularity. He is often said, though, to have chased principle. He pursued policy. He followed reason. In doing so, he helped shape the economic foundations of modern Australia.

Born in my home city of Perth in 1929, he was the eldest of two sons to a wheat farmer and a schoolteacher. John's early years were spent in the harsh, formative country of my home state's wheat belt. His parents divorced when he was 12. Alongside his mother and younger brother, he moved to Perth, where he won a scholarship to Perth Modern School. He later earned first class honours in mathematical physics at the University of Western Australia. He could have stopped there; that was a huge achievement within itself. Throughout his life, and certainly his life of public service, he became known as someone who was never content to stand still. In fact, in 1951 he won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford and switched from physics to economics, and again he graduated with first class honours.

It was a beginning of public life marked by clarity, conviction and, in no small measure—we've already heard about some of it—controversy. He joined Treasury in 1954, and over the next 30 years he rose through its ranks, serving overseas in London and Washington, shaping economic doctrine, defying Prime Ministers and eventually leading the department as secretary from 1979 to 1984. To say that John Stone transformed Treasury is no overstatement. In fact, his colleagues referred to it as 'the Stone Age', a term meant both critically and admiringly. He believed Treasury should be the gatekeeper of prudence, the check against what he called the barbarian hordes of unchecked spending and policy expediency.

Whether he was advising Whitlam, Hayden, Howard or Keating, the one thing you can say about John Stone is that he never hesitated to speak truth to power. John Howard, who worked with Stone as Treasurer, described him as a man never to be taken for granted, a superb intellect, a talented wordsmith and a relentless champion of sound of public policy. Even his written minutes, acerbic and precise, carried the sharp clarity of a mind intolerant of muddled thinking. He stood firmly for small government, low taxes and individual responsibility. He was a fierce critic of protectionism, centralised wage fixing and government overreach. He warned early of Australia's growing foreign debt, low productivity and economic drift. Not every prediction proved right, but few, as has been said, were ever ill considered. He was, in Paul Kelly's words, 'one of the two men who ran the nation' during the Fraser years.

In 1987—and this is actually quite remarkable, particularly for those in this place who understand the Public Service—he did something few public servants have ever done: he entered parliament. As a senator for Queensland and Leader of the National Party in this chamber, he quickly made his mark. In his first speech, he proclaimed, 'small is beautiful'—a credo he carried into his vigorous opposition to Labor's Australia Card legislation. It was John Stone who exposed the regulatory flaw that ultimately sank the scheme. He was not easily managed, but he was valued. Even after being dismissed from the frontbench, he was soon reinstated. That was the kind of colleague Stone was: challenging, yes, but, at the same time, indispensable.

Outside of parliament, Stone's influence never waned. He co-founded the HR Nicholls Society and the Samuel Griffith Society. He wrote prolifically. He spoke regularly. He championed federalism, individual liberty and a sceptical view of government power. He opposed multiculturalism, judicial activism and the republic. Now, whether you agreed with him or not, the one thing that you could say about him was: you never mistook where he actually stood.

But John Stone, with so many of us, was not just a public figure. He was a husband, a father, a thinker and a man of deep personal conviction. He was actually married to his beloved wife, Nancy, for nearly 70 years. They raised five children, including Andrew Stone, who followed, as we know, in his father's footsteps into public policy, serving as an adviser to prime ministers and opposition leaders alike.

Those who knew John Stone personally speak of his charm, his wit, but—more than anything—his deep love for our great country of Australia. He ran 32 kilometres to Lake George in response to a challenge. He represented his state in hockey. He was intensely competitive, unflinchingly honest, but never ever dull. In every role he played—scholar, bureaucrat, senator, commentator—he insisted on the highest standards, and he was someone who did not tolerate laziness.

John Stone stood for ideas. He stood for integrity. But, more than that, he stood for Australia. His legacy endures in our institutions, our economic framework and the generations of policymakers he influenced. For those of us in public life his career is a challenge, but it's also a reminder that conviction does matter and that a single mind, rigorously applied, can actually shape a nation.

On behalf of the opposition, I extend our sincere condolences to John Stone's family and to all who mourn John Stone's passing. May he rest in peace, but may his example also continue to inspire.

Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise on behalf of National Party senators and the National Party of Australia to extend our condolences upon the death of former senator John Owen Stone AO to his children, his grandchildren and all those who knew, loved and admired him.

John Stone was elected to the Senate from the National Party in Queensland in 1987. In fact, I think that was the first election that I handed out in, and I would have handed out for then senator Stone. He was immediately appointed to the position of shadow minister for finance and was Leader of the National Party in the Senate for the duration of his term until 1990.

John Stone had led a life of distinguished service long before entering parliament. Indeed, prominent obituaries, such as that in the Australian Financial Review on Saturday 19 July headlined 'Ex-Treasury secretary Stone dies', have extensively honoured his legacy as a public servant, an intellectual, a think-tank leader and an author, and have focused upon the exceptionally high esteem in which he was held. Former prime minister John Howard said that Australia had enjoyed the professionalism and advice of many talented public servants, but, in his experience, none surpassed John Stone, who served in Treasury for 12 years prior to his role as executive director for Australia, New Zealand and South Africa at the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, DC. He returned to the treasury department in 1971, where he was secretary from 1979 to 1984. He is renowned for tutoring former prime minister Paul Keating in economics when Keating unexpectedly became Treasurer, rather than Minister for Minerals and Energy, in the new Labor government in 1983. Stone did, however, oppose former treasurer Keating's decision to float the Australian dollar, as he fervently espoused economic conservatism, small government, lower taxes and less government spending. In his maiden speech to this chamber, he said:

… in matters of government I have come increasingly to the view that small is beautiful.

Over his Treasury career, John Stone worked with eight treasurers: Billy Snedden, Gough Whitlam, Frank Crean, Jim Cairns, Bill Hayden, Phillip Lynch, John Howard and Paul Keating, which gave former South Australian premier Don Dunstan the foundation—as you said, Senator Cash—to describe his influence as the Stone age. He became the only Commonwealth departmental secretary to become a member of the Australian parliament, and, well before becoming the head of Treasury, he was its principal policymaker and spokesman, exerting a major influence on several federal governments. He most often voted Liberal at federal elections but at least twice voted for the Labor Party, before joining the Queensland National Party in 1987.

Born in Perth in 1929, with his childhood spent in the Western Australian Wheatbelt, John Stone graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Western Australia in 1950, with an extraordinary first-class honours in mathematical physics, before reading philosophy, politics and economics as a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University. When returning to Australia from the United Kingdom, Stone joined the Commonwealth Treasury in 1954, the same year he married Nancy Hardwick, who was his beloved companion and intellectual equal for almost 70 years until her passing in 2023.

Following his short term in the Senate and ill-fated tilt as the National Party candidate for the House of Representatives seat of Fairfax in 1990—which, as an aside, I should tell you was treated as one of the great disasters of the century by the McDonald household—John Stone maintained a high profile as he transitioned to the role of conservative public commentator.

John and Nancy lived in Melbourne from 1990 until 2000 before finally settling in Sydney. He co-founded the Samuel Griffith Society, dedicated to promoting discussions on the Constitution, decentralisation and federalism. He continued to participate in the HR Nicholls Society, of which he was a founding father and whose tie he wore on the day of his maiden speech in this chamber. He became a senior fellow of the Institute of Public Affairs and wrote frequently for the Australian, Quadrant, the National Observer, the Sydney Morning Herald, the Australian Financial Review and the Spectator Australia, and he delivered numerous lectures throughout Australia. He continued his role as an uncompromising right-wing commentator on public affairs and was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours for distinguished service to the people and parliament of Australia and to public administration.

We acknowledge the loss of a man who was revered, praised for his brilliance and challenged for his obstinacy but who was always recognised as one of the most influential Australians to serve in the Public Service and in public office. John Stone died on 17 July, aged 96, and is survived by his five children. On his stint in politics, he said: 'I wouldn't have missed it for the world. It was enormously interesting and it was fun.' May we all leave this place with a similar sentiment. Thank you for your service and vale to John Stone AO.

Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to add my voice to those of colleagues in honouring the life and legacy of the late senator John Owen Stone. John Stone was one of the great conservative thinkers of his generation. He served our country at the highest level of public administration, brought deep economic insight to the Treasury and, in this chamber, made a contribution that will never be forgotten.

Although he was a senator for Queensland, John Stone was born in 1929 in Perth, in my home state of Western Australia, so I feel both a personal and a state pride in his life and achievements. He was educated at Perth Modern School and later at the University of Western Australia before winning a Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University, where he read philosophy, politics and economics and where he stood out for his formidable intellect and clarity of thought.

The parallels with John Stone's later political opponent Bob Hawke are uncanny. Both were born in 1929, both attended Perth Modern School and UWA, and both won a Rhodes Scholarship. Each was president of the undergraduate guild at UWA, with John Stone having defeated Bob Hawke for the presidency in 1951. It probably explains why there was never any love lost between the two in the many decades that followed.

Returning to Australia, he joined the Commonwealth Treasury in 1954 and, over the next three decades, became one of the most influential public servants of his time. His rise was swift but deserved, and in 1979 he was appointed secretary to the Treasury, serving under prime ministers Fraser and Hawke. It was not an easy time to carry out such a significant role. The Australian economy was experiencing significant upheaval, with inflation, stagflation and structural weaknesses that would later demand sweeping reform. Through it all, John Stone brought a disciplined, conservative perspective to economic management. He believed in sound money, restrained government and policies that promoted self-reliance, productivity and national resilience. He was never afraid to speak truth to power. Indeed, that was one of his hallmarks. As Treasury secretary, he saw his role as the custodian of economic integrity, and, while his forthrightness at times unsettled ministers, no-one ever doubted the quality of his judgement. But it did lead him to openly clash with several of the treasurers he would serve, including a young John Howard.

He was the driving force behind the Fraser government's 'fight inflation first' strategy, and his conservative economics, coupled with his influence on the government, led South Australian premier Don Dunstan to describe the period as the 'new Stone Age'. So great an asset was John Stone that, following Labor's 1983 election win, he was kept on at the Treasury by Paul Keating, despite the reservations of Bob Hawke and the rest of his cabinet. Nevertheless, John Stone resigned in August 1984.

Shortly after, John Stone delivered the Edward Shann Memorial Lecture in economics at UWA titled '1929 and all that'. This lecture drew parallels between the state of the Australian economy in the 1980s and the state of the Australian economy on the eve of the Great Depression, pointing to three key problems: financial mismanagement, protectionism and ossified labour markets. Along with Gerard Henderson's essay 'The industrial relations club', John Stone's speech provided the intellectual foundations for the formation of the HR Nicholls Society in 1986, where he initially served as president and remained involved for decades. I shouldn't say this, but on this occasion I will. Many years ago, I was gifted a tie of the HR Nicholls Society—a gift that I took great pride in—and it sits in my Senate suite to this day. But I know that we can keep a secret!

In 1987, John Stone made the rare transition from mandarin to parliamentarian, elected as a National Party senator for Queensland. One could ask how a Western-Australian-born classical liberal economist living in Sydney arrived in this chamber as a Queensland National Party senator. He was offered the spot on the party's Queensland Senate ticket after developing the Joh for Canberra campaign's single-rate tax policy. When delivering his maiden speech, he wore his HR Nicholls Society tie—I'm not—though he reassured other senators:

… when I put on this tie this morning I had no intention of being provocative.

Whilst many, including John Howard, blamed the Joh for Canberra campaign for the coalition's 1987 election loss, John Stone was appointed shadow minister for finance. Though his time in this chamber was brief, it was impactful. John Stone brought with him an unparalleled grasp of economic and constitutional matters, and he used that expertise to sharpen our debates and challenge assumptions. It is no surprise that a politician with John Stone's keen economic insight and vision held ambitions to be the Treasurer, and in 1990 he resigned from the Senate to unsuccessfully contest a seat in the House of Representatives.

John Stone, though, remained a prolific writer, speaker and contributor to conservative publications, particularly Quadrant. He was particularly concerned with the creeping centralisation of power in Canberra and was a staunch defender of states' rights, something he attributed in part to his Western Australian upbringing. This led John Stone to his next political project, which was inspired by what he perceived as a growing disregard by the Hawke government for the federal principles of the Australian Constitution in the Tasmanian dams matter, including attempts to amend the Constitution with four simultaneous referenda in 1988.

In 1992, he co-founded the Samuel Griffith Society, of which I'm a proud member. The society is dedicated to defending the Constitution against all who would attempt to undermine it, particularly in support of decentralisation, federalism and the restoration of the authority of parliament. With the support of his wife, Nancy, John Stone led the organisation until his retirement in 2009. How fitting it is then that he will be especially remembered this month when the national conference of the Samuel Griffith Society is held in Perth.

His views were never for the fainthearted. He was a man of strong convictions and a robust defender of traditional liberal conservative values. He spoke with clarity, sometimes sharply, reflecting a frustration with what he saw as drift or compromise. John Stone himself would not have shied away from the fact that some of his contributions were controversial. He believed public life demanded honesty, even perhaps especially when it was uncomfortable. In an era increasingly wary of strong views and unfashionable opinions, John Stone reminded us that a healthy democracy requires diversity of thought, intellectual courage and the space to disagree. Despite this, those who knew him personally remember a man of courtesy, loyalty and great personal discipline. He was, of course, deeply devoted to his wife, Nancy, and to their entire family.

As a Western Australian, I'm proud that our state produced such a formidable national servant. As a Liberal senator, I pay tribute to a man who embodied so many of our enduring values. It was a privilege on a number of occasions to have met and spoken with both John and Nancy, most frequently, but not exclusively, at meetings of the Samuel Griffith Society.

As economic debates again circle around inflation, spending and debt, we would do well to revisit the insights of John Stone. His warnings about fiscal excess, short-termism and bureaucratic bloat remain as relevant today as when he first raised them. John Stone's legacy will live in our laws, our debates and in the integrity he brought to every role. Like others, I extend my condolences to his family and to all that knew him.

Ross Cadell (NSW, National Party, Shadow Minister for Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I also rise to pay tribute to a legendary figure—I use the word 'legendary', as did Paul Kelly—in Australian public life: John Owen Stone AO. On behalf of the New South Wales Nationals, I offer our sincere condolences to his family and our profound respect for a life spent in public service to the Australian nation.

He was a man of remarkable intellect. We've heard here today of so many things that he had done, his unwavering conviction and fearless independence. Over a career that spanned public service, politics, journalism and civic commentary, he shaped many of the great debates this nation has had.

We've heard he was born in Western Australia. We've heard about the trail. He went right across Australia, living in so many of our cities and so many of our towns. He gave me a great sense of federalism. He gave me a great sense of what this nation was. There was also that time he spent over in Oxford being a Rhodes scholar—and serving eight treasurers, Liberal and Labor, without fear. That was what led Paul Kelly, once again, to call him 'a mastery of economic reasoning and a gift for the principled dissent'. Stone himself once said that the first duty of a public servant is to the public—not to ministers, not to ideology and certainly not to fashion. He was fiercely independent; that line captures him well. He never allowed his role to become politicised. He stood firm against the inflationary policy and reckless spending—at times, even by his own ministers—when he believed that the national interest was at stake.

When he entered this very chamber in 1987—no, it was the other chamber down the road; he didn't come up here—he spoke plainly and with purpose. He believed in strong borders, a sovereign parliament and a cohesive national identity. He once told this chamber that a parliament that shrinks from its responsibilities, whether through political cowardice or cultural confusion, is a parliament unworthy of the Australian people. Think of where we are today—the arguments we are having and the things that are being said—and apply that. Some of his views were controversial, but none doubted the sincerity in which he held them. In a time when political figures often followed the lead, John Stone was resolutely his own man. He believed, above all, that Australia must remain the master of its own destiny.

In the 1990s and beyond, his essays in the Quadrant, the Australian and other publications show a deep concern for Australia's economic direction and cultural confidence. In one of his most cited pieces, he wrote, 'We have become a nation adept at the language of surrender—surrender of culture, of sovereignty and of pride in our civilisation, and that must end or the nation we know will cease to exist.' Once again, these are words that we must think of. But that was the spirit of John Stone—a man who saw warning signs and spoke them loud and clear while others stayed silent. He was deeply committed to the principle of federalism and worried about the overreach of Commonwealth power into the lives of citizens and the responsibilities of states. His words on this subject were also strong: 'The drift towards centralisation is not inevitable; it is merely being left unchecked.' To the very end, he wrote with sharpness and clarity, urging Australians to think more deeply about what binds us together as people. He was always for unity.

John Stone was not only a public servant or senator but also a national sentinel. He guarded our institutions, our finances and our civic cohesion with fierce determination. His legacy is one of courage, intellect and an unshakeable belief in the Australian nation. To his wife, Nancy, and their children: we extend our deepest sympathies. Australia has lost a statesman, but his words and the example of his service will remain with us. May he rest in peace.

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I, too, would like to provide my condolences to former senator John Stone's family and recognise the incredible service he gave to our nation both in this place and in other roles. Normally, in these condolence motions, we would look to the example of a former senator in their political life and seek to remind ourselves of how we could do better as parliamentarians, following reflection of their service. However, when I look back at Senator John Stone's career there are, perhaps, more lessons to the broader Public Service and those that support us in this role.

I do want to say that we have incredible public servants in this country, but it's hard to read John's biography and his contributions without feeling a little bit of regret that they don't really make them like John Stone anymore. It seems to me that we could have people like John—and I'm not trying to blame individuals here—but, for whatever reason, the advice we receive now and the commentary that occurs in our broader public debate always seems to be a little filtered and diluted. You couldn't call John Stone someone who diluted his opinions and contributions, and the nation, the parliament and our country are better for it. I will come to John's career as a politician, but I hope that those in the wider Public Service also take the opportunity of his passing to reflect on his career. They may not agree with everything John said and did, but I think his example is one that should be looked to more and taken as a template.

Another thing that struck me when I read through John's incredible biography is that just reading his biography gives you a very good grounding in postwar economic policy in this country. He was involved in almost every major economic debate and decision that occurred in the postwar period. It was an incredibly important and crucial period for Australia has development. I hope it doesn't get forgotten in our history, because things have moved on somewhat from that period, but there are a lot of lessons in it. I'll just mention a few things.

John was integral, perhaps, in pushing back on some of the recommendations in the Vernon report in the mid-1960s. That's something that is perhaps a bit lost to our history. I do have copies in my office if anyone would like to read them. It's very big; they don't really write reports like that anymore. Those reports effectively called for more planning and government control of the Australian economy. John, along with some others in the Treasury department, pushed back against some of what would have been the worst abuses.

John was also integral in opposing the then panic that occurred around the Club of Rome in the early 1970s. He argued strongly within Treasury—successfully, I believe—that we did not need to panic because prices would change, and that would encourage additional resource development and technology developments, and we wouldn't run out of food or other resources as the then Club of Rome were warning. He was proven absolutely right about that, and he continues to be proven right about that against the current crop of neo-Malthusians.

He was also integral throughout the seventies and early eighties in developing a 'fight inflation first' approach to a terrible problem that was afflicting Australia at the time, the stagflation of the 1970s. There was, I suppose, since the days of the Great Depression, a preference to rest back on the Keynesian policies of the Phillips curve and extra stimulus. But John was part of a broader movement across the world to say no, those economic models had broken down and there was a need for strict restraint on government spending, a tighter monetary policy than some perhaps wanted, to finally get rid of the scourge of inflation. Again, there are probably some lessons for us today.

In saying all of that, when I read a bit of John's biography and in respect of the contributions today, there's perhaps a tendency to think that John was quite strident, ideological and even dogmatic in his so-called right-wing positions, but his career also showed a practical approach to policy. It wasn't all one-sided. Despite being generally supportive of free trade, he opposed Gough Whitlam's 25 per cent overnight tariff cut—and for good reason, I think. He also opposed the floating of the dollar. As he explained later, he opposed the urgent and sudden adoption of that policy, rather than, necessarily, the direction itself. His considered but strident opinions were ones that definitely helped to shape policy in this country and are very instructive, I think, for those involved in public policy today.

As has been described, he decided to become a National Party senator despite having never voted for the National Party. As Senator Smith mentioned, I don't think he'd even lived there before. Perhaps he'd visited Queensland before he became a senator. He probably had. He was welcomed with open arms to the National Party. He contributed significantly to the development of a flat tax policy that I'm going to go back and read, now that I've read that.

Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's time!

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's time, Senator Smith! I'm not sure yet, but it should stay in people's minds at least. Very early on in his parliamentary career, he stood for Deputy Leader of the National Party, and he almost won. He was very highly regarded. In a very short career in this place, he became the Leader of the National Party in the Senate and then decided to run for a lower house seat.

He apparently had been very scornful of politicians throughout his Public Service career, but that didn't stop him becoming one. Perhaps, by running for the lower house, he started to push up against the limitations of frank and fearless advice and hit into the tough grassroots politics that goes with potentially being a lower house member. I know a former colleague of ours, Ron Boswell, was very good friends with John Stone. In his recent autobiography, Ron recalls campaigning with John for the seat of Fairfax in the Sunshine Coast. In Ron's view, it was just tough for a strident free-market economist who believed in a lot of free trade to get the support of the pineapple and ginger growers of the Sunshine Coast. So ideological purity has its benefits, but it doesn't always translate to votes, as John realised. He was beaten, ultimately, by Mr Alex Somlyay, who had a long career in the other place. There are lots of stories about that campaign. But none of that reduced the contribution John made to this country. Indeed, Gerard Henderson once wrote that there could be questions about John's political judgement but there could never be a question about John's courage in putting himself forward for these positions and seeking to do what he thought was best for the nation.

It was a long time ago that he ran for the seat of Fairfax, but he continued to contribute to our nation. I will miss his contributions in the Spectator magazine. They were quite fun. I was reading a few of them before this, and I've ultimately decided that I probably won't quote them in the chamber. It's probably too soon! Maybe in another 10 years we can recount his reflections. They were always very acerbic. He was always worth reading.

I'll finish here. Again, to the people that want to put opinions forward to us as decision-makers: I just want to know what you think. I just want to know where you stand. I think it's best, and John's career shows this—we don't actually need the public servants to be politicians. We don't need them to double-guess what's going to work or what's going to get the most votes. I find that's happened a bit too much lately. They perhaps read a little bit too much psephology and not enough public policy. We need the Public Service to provide advice on what's best for Australia, obviously, and then we need to navigate, through a democratic environment, how that gets popular support. But we need the frank and fearless advice, now more than ever, that John Stone provided.

All my condolences go to his family. His son Andrew Stone, who himself has been a major contributor to public policy in this country, is here with us this evening. Thank you for being here, Andrew. Please, on behalf of all of us, pass our condolences on to your family. Vale, Senator John Stone.

Andrew McLachlan (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just briefly: I didn't have the pleasure of meeting John Stone. I would have loved to. I suspect we would have agreed on a great many things. However, I did have the pleasure, in a previous role, of working with Andrew. So, Andrew, please pass on the condolences of the Senate to your entire family.

Question agreed to, honourable senators joining in a moment of silence.