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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-05-04 Daily Xml
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Condolence

His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (11:01): I move:

That the following address of condolence to Her Majesty The Queen be adopted:

To Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen Elizabeth II—

We, the members of the House of Assembly of South Australia in Parliament assembled, received with great sorrow the news of the death of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

On behalf of the people of South Australia, we convey sincere sympathy to Your Majesty and other members of the royal family and give thanks for a remarkable life dedicated to service, duty, support and commitment to the Commonwealth of Nations and his family.

Over the seven decades of his public life, the people of South Australia developed a great fondness for His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh. The sadness at his passing from our corner of the world has been widespread and heartfelt. He visited our state on 13 occasions, between 1954 and 2002, as his public life spanned the terms of 14 South Australian premiers. On every one of his visits to our state he not only engaged actively with our citizens but he did so with an endearing informality for which he will always be remembered here and around the world.

As we mourn his passing, we also celebrate a life of dedication to his family and duty, to his adopted nation and the commonwealth, through it all showing his love and devotion to Her Majesty The Queen as the longest serving consort to a British sovereign. His character embodied the resilience and strength of a generation that lived through great adversity and emerged from it in great triumph. This was the generation prepared to sacrifice everything so future generations could live in peace.

He was born three years after the end of the First World War, so was old enough to serve in the second. He did so with bravery and distinction, joining the Royal Navy at 17 and being mentioned in dispatches while a Sub-Lieutenant on HMS Valiant, posted to escort Anzac ships. Rising to First Lieutenant, he was present in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese signed the surrender.

Just before the Second World War, he met the future Queen Elizabeth II when she was 13. They married in 1947, and through their life together he became what Her Majesty called, with immense appreciation, 'my strength and stay'. It was to be a married life conducted in very public view and not without encountering some stormy waters, but through it all His Royal Highness continued to revere what was important about history while demonstrating an enthusiasm to adapt to existing and emerging circumstances: to television, the internet and, more recently, artificial intelligence. With his inquiring mind, he was not intimidated by the march of time and progress; rather, he enthusiastically embraced it and urged others to do the same.

From the mid-1950s. he spoke about the need for industry to modernise. For much of his life he was concerned about the natural environment. As early as the 1960s he was using an electric vehicle as he continued to demonstrate a deep interest in science and engineering. No doubt with his curiosity and talents he could have been highly successful in his own right in any number of endeavours, but he devoted himself to the success of others.

He was very strongly committed to encouraging young people to participate in new opportunities opening up to them. As a result, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme was inaugurated. Since 1959, more than 775,000 young Australians have completed the award, joining millions in other countries empowered to find a purpose, passion and place in the world, regardless of their location or circumstances.

There are now 57 Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme centres across South Australia. One of the latest is the Adelaide Zoo. It becomes the first zoo in the world to be an accredited Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Centre. This followed the visit of the Duke's third son, Prince Edward, to the Zoo in April 2018.

Gabriella, at Saint Aloysius College, is a recent gold award recipient here in South Australia. In her words:

I was a very shy person when I first came to Saint Aloysius in year 8, but throughout my high school life, primarily because of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, I have become a lot more confident, independent and organised. Not only did I also learn a vast array of new skills, but I also learnt about who I am as a young adult, and have made memories that will last a lifetime.

Amber, at Concordia, has completed her silver award, describing it as 'an amazing opportunity and rewarding challenge', with 'perseverance and determination essential in the completion of both bronze and silver awards'. What a marvellous legacy the award scheme is to the Duke of Edinburgh's commitment to the betterment of the human race.

Her Majesty The Queen has also spoken publicly of the royal family owing him a much greater debt than he would ever have claimed. He never let his family down. Beyond his titles, he was a much-loved father, grandfather and great-grandfather. The world will not forget the funeral of Princess Diana and the poignant walk the Duke of Edinburgh took with his grandsons Prince William, then aged 15, and Prince Harry, 12, on the streets of London behind the casket of their mother.

Out of concern that they should be the centre of the world's tribute to Princess Diana, he had said to his grandsons, 'I'll walk if you walk.' This is just one of many reasons why the Duke of Edinburgh was such an inspiration to his own family as well as to the wider world. His own funeral was conducted without fuss or extravagance. That is how he had wanted it, COVID notwithstanding.

He had stood back from public duties at the age of 96 and, on his retirement, Buckingham Palace advised that he had undertaken 22,291 solo engagements, made 635 overseas visits on his own account, and delivered 5,493 speeches. He was Colonel-in-Chief of eight regiments and patron, president or otherwise associated with 992 different organisations, many of them with a strong link to us here in Australia.

Almost to the end, he continued to indulge in his love of painting, reading and walking, not to mention solo carriage riding. He was a man the world could laugh along with and, at the same time, steadfast in his loyalty to the Crown—always there, a reassuring presence, as, selfless, he put others before himself. Strong, but also sensitive in his unwavering support as a husband and consort, he made his central duty the support of his wife in her role as Queen, never seeking to eclipse her but doing his work and, more importantly, enabling the Queen to do hers. He was a man who maintained the dignity of the monarchy as he helped modernise, humanise and demystify it.

This has ensured the monarchy's enduring relevance as an institution above politics, enshrining the long and successful reign of Queen Elizabeth II. I know the house will join with me in extending our condolences to the Queen and to other members of her family as we mark a wonderful life that touched our state, our nation and many others.

He was the last person to want tributes, but few have deserved them as much. On one occasion he described himself as 'a discredited Balkan prince of no particular merit or distinction'. Later in life, he said he had become the world's most experienced plaque unveiler. Asked to sum up his contribution to public life, he responded:

I've just done what I think is my best. Some people think it's all right. Some don't. What can you do? I can't suddenly change my whole way of doing things…It's part of my style. It's just too bad, they'll have to lump it.

The world admired his irreverence, but its own judgement since his passing has been universally kinder. Put simply, he was a man who, with ceaseless optimism, encouraged the world to become a better place. Vale, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (11:10): I second the Premier's motion. On behalf of the opposition, I express my deepest sympathy to Her Majesty The Queen, who is grieving the loss of her husband of almost 74 years, and also to the Duke's children and to the wider royal family.

Prince Philip served his Crown, his country and the commonwealth for nearly 80 years. During his service, his deep affection for Australia saw him visit on more than 20 occasions and, as the Premier rightly identified, he visited South Australia on 13 occasions, with his first trip occurring in 1954. He accompanied the Queen on seven tours but visited South Australia independently on a further six occasions.

On his first visit to South Australia with Queen Elizabeth II, they arrived on Thursday 18 March 1954 and some 200,000 people lined the streets from Parafield Airport, where they were met by the Premier, Tom Playford, and taken to Government House. The Duke's last visit to South Australia was in 2002, where he officially opened the newly developed Hamilton Boulevard and Jubilee Pavilion extension at the Adelaide Showground. He also visited Ceduna and Port Lincoln on the same visit.

The death on Friday 9 April of His Royal Highness marks a significant loss, not just of a highly respected public figure but also of a devoted husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. Born on the Greek island of Corfu in 1921, the Duke was the fifth child and only son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg, a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

He was a highly decorated serviceman before his marriage to the then Princess Elizabeth. Like so many of his generation, he served in the British Armed Forces during World War II. Aged just 21, Philip was appointed one of the youngest First Lieutenants in the Royal Navy. Philip saw plenty of action during World War II. He served as a midshipman on the battleship HMS Ramillies, which was tasked with escorting convoys in the Indian Ocean.

He was involved in the Battle of Cape Matapan, a naval battle during the Second World War between the Allies, represented by the navies of the United Kingdom and Australia, and the Royal Italian Navy. In 1943, his courage and quick thinking helped save HMS Wallace from attack in the Mediterranean. For these contributions alone he, like all veterans, is owed a significant debt of gratitude.

The Second World War was, however, just the beginning of the Duke of Edinburgh's life of public service. From 1947, he was the Queen's constant companion, and from 1952 he was her consort. He became the longest serving consort in British history. Prince Philip without doubt was a devoted consort to the Queen but, of course, he also carved out a distinctive individual role.

In 1956, as the Premier rightly identified, he founded the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme which now every year provides opportunity, hope and inspiration to more than one million young people in more than 100 different countries around the world. Many South Australians have felt a strong personal affinity with Prince Philip because of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.

This long-running program empowers young South Australians from different socio-economic groups, including disadvantaged, Indigenous and the disabled, to explore their full potential and find their purpose, passion and place in the world, regardless of their location or circumstance. Since it came to Australia in 1959, it has helped motivate more than 775,000 young Australians.

In South Australia, approximately 1,500 young people participate in the award each year, and the organisation works with over 60 local organisations, including schools, councils and youth organisations. The Duke of Edinburgh leaves behind a legacy that lives on in the millions of people who have pursued a Duke of Edinburgh's Award and bettered their lives and the lives of those around them.

We pay tribute to his remarkable life and extraordinary public service. Our thoughts are with the Queen and the members of the royal family, who have lost a beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. May he rest in peace.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS (Black—Minister for Environment and Water) (11:14): It is with pleasure yet sadness that I rise today to make a contribution to this condolence motion recognising the life and contribution to Australia and to the world in many ways of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, the former Duke of Edinburgh.

Born on the island of Corfu in Greece on 10 June 1921, the Duke went on to have possibly one of the most interesting lives that anyone could have. It is a life that will be looked back on with intrigue, interest, amusement at times and, of course, gives us an opportunity to look at a life that we can respect for an immense contribution to public service and to service of the monarchy and, of course, service to his wife, Queen Elizabeth II.

Prince Philip had a chequered upbringing. He was exiled from his homeland, Greece, and ended up being educated in a range of countries throughout Europe—France, Germany and Great Britain—before joining the Royal Navy in 1939 at the age of 18. It was while in the Royal Navy that he met the future Queen Elizabeth II, at the time Princess Elizabeth the daughter of King George VI. There is no doubt it became a marriage founded on love, which was not always the case historically with the arranged marriages or the marriages that were agreed upon by the great royal houses of Europe to sustain their lineages across the European monarchies.

But this was more unique in terms of the way in which it was a marriage based on love and founded on a commitment to one another which, of course, as we know was sustained for 73 years—an immense amount of time. I think many of us only can imagine being married for such a long period of time; 73 years they were together. The marriage in itself was made even more unique by the Queen's ascension to the throne so soon after they entered married life. Her father died when she was 25 and she was crowned Queen at 26.

The Duke's contribution to public life is varied, as both the Premier and the Leader of the Opposition highlighted. He was someone who had a great interest in engineering and innovation in the business community but, as environment minister, I have great respect for his boundary-pushing interest in conservation, particularly conservation in the United Kingdom, where of course I grew up, but also conservation efforts right across the globe. I suspect he handed some of that interest and passion on to Prince Charles, who has continued being a real progressive when it comes to conservation projects around the world.

For all my life really, Prince Philip has been an older person, and I often think we characterise him as someone of a bygone era and perhaps someone out of step with modern life. But if you look into his life and his contribution to public life, you see someone who was actually, at every stage of his life, an immense progressive following up and driving progressive policies, particularly in science and innovation but also in conservation. He was someone who was doubtless ahead of his time.

My great interest and respect for His Royal Highness Prince Philip, though, is grounded in his commitment to young people. That was epitomised through the foundation of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award. He founded this award in the late 1950s. As the Premier mentioned, in Australia alone more than 775,000 young people have gone through that award.

It is a self-development award; it is not a competition against others but a competition with yourself, to improve yourself, to challenge yourself and to push your boundaries across a whole range of different areas, from skills development to volunteering to the component known as the Adventurous Journey, where, whether it is camping or an expedition of some sort, you really drive yourself to do something well beyond your comfort zone.

I had been aware growing up of the Duke and Edinburgh's Award, but I became much more aware of it when in 2006 I commenced working in the Office for Youth, a component of the state government's bureaucracy. That is where the Duke of Edinburgh's Award was managed in South Australia. I ended up doing my gold award and, between 2010 and 2014, I was very fortunate to be appointed as one of the directors for the Duke of Edinburgh's Award in Australia, serving in that role until I was elected to this place in March 2014.

I still maintain an involvement in the award today, sitting on one of the recognition advisory panels and attempting to assist with the award and the support of the award in any way that I can, because I think the model that the Duke of Edinburgh came up with in the late 1950s continues to be innovative today, continues to endure. The simplicity of that model around self-improvement and self-competition has affected and improved the lives of so many young people. I think it is the single biggest legacy that Prince Philip leaves to the world now that he is no longer with us.

I had the opportunity to meet Prince Philip in October 2011 at Government House in Canberra when he and the Queen were in Australia. I had the opportunity to travel over to the ACT to have afternoon tea as a director and as a gold award recipient. I had the opportunity to have a decent chat with him. I could tell very quickly, very early in the chat, that he was a little confused at how I was representing Australia at this event despite having an accent. He was 90 at the time and he turned to me and said, 'So I am a little confused: where are you a refugee from?' with his trademark political incorrectness.

That really was my one and only meeting with the Duke of Edinburgh, but I was very grateful that he managed in those couple of minutes to be terribly politically incorrect, as you would expect from him. I think that is something that was as endearing as it was potentially a little offensive to people along the way, but this was a man who has left an immense legacy, particularly when it comes to youth development across the commonwealth and across the world. I think that legacy will continue.

In the mid-2000s, he handed the baton for the management of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and chairing the international bodies to His Royal Highness Prince Edward, someone I have had occasion to meet several times during my association with the award, most recently in 2019, both here in Adelaide and at a lunch in Sydney. I fully expect that contribution, that legacy for young people and for those other causes that he was involved with, whether it be science and innovation, or whether it be conservation, his commitment and his efforts across myriad areas of interest were such that he has cemented a legacy that will last for many decades beyond his 99 years and 10 months on this earth.

So it is with a sense of gratitude, a sense of gratefulness and of course a sense of sadness that I make this contribution to this condolence motion. This is someone who was at the forefront of history as it unfolded, whether it was in 1920s and 1930s Europe as it recovered from World War I, something that is a world away from our lives here in 21st century Australia, whether it was as an active soldier in World War II, whether it was as the longest serving consort of any monarch in Britain's history or whether it was as an innovator at the cutting edge of youth development and youth empowerment.

We have an immense amount of gratitude, and we ought to have an immense amount of gratitude, for His Royal Highness Prince Philip. He was a great man. He will be missed and we pass on our condolences to his wife, Queen Elizabeth II; his children; grandchildren; extended family and friends. Vale, Prince Philip.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (11:26): I also rise to pass on my condolences to Her Majesty The Queen on the loss of her husband, Prince Philip, and to pass on my condolences to the royal family on the loss of an irreplaceable member of that family.

Prince Philip was born in Corfu, Greece, and was a member of the Greek royal family by birth. His father, Prince Andrew, commanded the Second Hellenic Corps in the Greco-Turkish war in Asia Minor, where my grandfather served under Prince Andrew directly. I first discovered this when I went back to my father's home in 1986 when my father had dreams of relocating us back to Greece. We went to my dad's village and in the family home there was a photograph of Prince Andrew. I inquired of my uncle who it was and he said, 'This is Prince Andrew, and your grandfather served in the Greco-Turkish war in his regiment.'

Of course, it is historical because that is the reason Prince Philip had to flee Greece hidden in a carton of oranges, as the myth goes. The royal family was widely blamed for the loss of the Greco-Turkish war in Asia Minor, which saw 353,000 Greek members of the population of Asia Minor murdered in a genocide after the genocide of the Assyrians, Pontians and Armenians, which was recently recognised by President Biden. Historically, of course, that broke Prince Andrew. He was tried for treason and fled the nation, never to return to Greece other than once.

Prince Philip was smuggled out of Greece and his family sent him to live in the United Kingdom, where he was educated and raised by the British family members of his mother, Princess Alice. Princess Alice returned to Greece and started an order of orthodox nuns to care for the Greek population, who were suffering under poverty. Obviously, they were affected quite dramatically by the Nazi occupation of World War II and then of course the communist royalist Greek Civil War. She stayed behind to assist in serving the Greek community, which she considered herself to be a princess of.

Prince Philip was a remarkable man. The minister was right in saying his focus was on young people and trying to instil in young people a sense of pride and dignity in their work, education, physical fitness and health, and I think a lot of people recognised that in Prince Philip.

He was an amazing assistant to Her Majesty The Queen, a very difficult job I imagine, despite everyone probably thinking of that as living a life of luxury and wealth. I think he retired at the age of 97, which is not bad. Despite what you think about the royals, whether you are a republican or otherwise—and I do declare that I am a republican—you do have to admire their work ethic. How difficult it must be to be funny, engaging and always turning up at all these events and how important that institution is to so many people across the commonwealth. I know it is very important to a number of people in my electorate, even to this day, and it is something that we should recognise and honour as we move forward.

Prince Philip served with dignity and distinguished himself. Yes, he was politically incorrect, but that was part of the charm. He said things he should not have said and sometimes he embarrassed the royal family and Her Majesty The Queen, but that showed that he was human and not some sort of deity: he made mistakes, he erred.

He was a great conservationist and he did a lot with the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, which I had a small role in when I was minister for youth. A great friend of members opposite, Mr Rob Gerard, was a great advocate of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, as was our former Governor, who took a great deal of pleasure in being involved in the Duke of Edinburgh's Award. I think the Duke of Edinburgh's Award is one of Prince Philip's greatest legacies.

One beneficiary of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award was former Prime Minister Bob Hawke. Recently, a journalist (I think it was Troy Bramston) published letters out of the National Archives that Prince Philip sent to Bob Hawke when he was elected Prime Minister, congratulating him and taking credit for Bob Hawke's great political career, saying that it was all because of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.

I think the Duke does deserve the credit and does deserve to be thanked for his service to his nation and also for the important role he played in many nations, excluding the commonwealth, and that of course is the Hellenic Republic, where his son attended recently to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Greek Independence.

Regardless of the abdication and the controversy surrounding the Greek royal family, Prince Philip was held in high regard by Greek Australians all across this country. I know that if my mother were still alive she would have mourned his passing. She was a great royalist. It was the one part of her conservatism that I could not break. Again, God rest Prince Philip and thank you for his service. My deepest condolences to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Motion carried.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (11:33): I move:

That the Speaker transmit the address to His Excellency the Governor with the request that His Excellency cause the same to be forwarded for presentation to Her Majesty.

Motion carried.

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