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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2024-11-26 Daily Xml
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Rossi, Mr J.P.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:26): By leave, I move:

That the House of Assembly expresses deep regret at the death of Mr Joseph Peter Rossi, former member of the House of Assembly, and places on record its appreciation of his meritorious service and that, as a mark of respect to his memory, the sitting of the house be suspended until the ringing of the bells.

I rise to pay tribute to Mr Joe Rossi, former member for Lee, who passed away on 24 October at the age of 76. Joe's time in this parliament was short but few would deny that it was memorable.

Giuseppe Rossi was only four years old in 1952 when his family emigrated to South Australia from the village of Anzano di Puglia in south-east Italy. His father, Carmine, found construction work for the Adelaide to Mount Gambier railway, with Joe's early years punctuated by constant moves from one tin shed to another along the line until the Rossis moved to a more stable life in Adelaide in 1961. After completing year 11, Joe worked on production lines and would drive buses, before entering the Public Service. At 18, he joined the Army Reserve, St Johns and the Liberal and Country League.

While Rossi was active in Steele Hall's Liberal Movement in the 1970s, it was not until 1993 that he ran as a state candidate for the Liberal Party. The Labor government of Lynn Arnold knew it would be a challenging election, to put it mildly, after the dramas surrounding the State Bank. However, the Division of Lee—born out of the abolishment of the seats of Albert Park and Semaphore—was confidently predicted to provide Labor with a safe haven in Adelaide's metropolitan north-west. Rossi proved that assumption wrong.

The landslide electoral victory of the Liberal Party under Dean Brown catapulted Joe into the House of Assembly, defeating the longstanding former member for Albert Park, Mr Kevin Hamilton. Lee had the smallest margin of victory in the entire election, at 1.1 per cent—but, as everyone in this chamber well knows, a win is a win.

Perhaps sensing that his parliamentary career would likely be somewhat shall we say concise, Joe wasted little time in making his presence felt, often to the consternation of his parliamentary colleagues. He was a vocal advocate for greater action on perpetrators of domestic violence but also advocated strongly against drink driving. He called for the removal of pokies from pubs and was a champion for the need to improve regional resources for better bushfire defence, alongside some more colourful, indeed controversial on occasions, legislative proposals.

Joe also has the honour of being the only MP to be ejected from parliament for entering the chamber while still eating a meat pie—an achievement that is yet to be repeated. In 1997, John Olsen led the Liberals to victory, with 23 of 36 government members returned. Joe Rossi, however, was not among them. He made one final foray into state politics in the 2010 election, running in Lee as an Independent candidate but, unfortunately for Joe, lightning did not strike twice.

We express our condolences to his wife, Annette, his children Josephine, Belinda, Robert and Marianne, and his beloved grandchildren Ethan, Bella, Liarna, Mikaela, Jason and Jessica. I commend this motion to the house.

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA (Hartley—Leader of the Opposition) (14:29): I also rise today to pay tribute to Mr Joseph Rossi who was elected to the South Australian parliament in 1993 and served his electorate of Lee until 1997. Mr Rossi was born in Foggia, Italy, and moved to Australia in 1948 when he was just four years old. Prior to his election to parliament, Joe served on what today would be called the multicultural committee of the South Australian Liberal Party, where they organised diverse food and culture festivals. The committee aimed to bring people together where they could build relationships and share their cultures, something that is still reflected and celebrated here in South Australia.

At age 45, Mr Rossi ran as a Liberal candidate in the once safe Labor seat of Lee. To the surprise of some, he won the most marginal seat of the time, which was only a 1.1 per cent margin. Mr Rossi was a passionate member of the parliament, who strongly believed in a free democracy and individualism. He held an unwavering stance that people should be treated as individuals and governments should operate to support this. Perhaps it was for this reason that he was drawn to stand for the Liberal Party, sharing those fundamental beliefs that those on this side of the chamber hold dear: the inalienable rights and freedoms of all peoples, to work towards a lean government that minimises interference in our daily lives, and which maximises individual and private sector initiative.

Mr Rossi had a particular focus on high unemployment rates in South Australia, but also raised issues around trade, crime and education. On that point, Joe believed students who were already excelling should be pushed further to help them reach their full potential; an ambition I am sure we all share in this place. Joe was not known for abiding by parliamentary convention, as we have heard. A popular story of Joe's time in parliament is, of course, the day that he did enter this chamber mid-way through enjoying that pie. Of course, we saw him immediately ejected from this place.

Joe was a strong-minded person and a forceful advocate for what he believed in. He could be controversial at times, but at his heart everybody who knew him knew that he was a generous family man. Joe's values were shared by his wife, Annette, who was a councillor in the city of Hindmarsh. Together, they shared a home that was unlike any other, as politics does not allow them to be. They had four children: Josephine, Belinda, Robert and Marianne and many grandchildren as well. I pass my sincere condolences to each one of them.

Mr Rossi was a hard worker and when he was not representing his community in the parliament, his breadth of skills allowed him to work in a range of fields. During his career outside of parliament, he worked as a supply officer, a subcontractor, a director of real estate and also an orchardist. We thank Joe for the work he did for the community of Lee and for the Liberal Party, and on behalf of the state Liberal team, I send my best wishes to Joe's family and friends. May he rest in peace.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Energy and Mining) (14:33): Giuseppe was controversial. That was certainly an understatement about his time in this place. He was part of a generation that was swept into office by what is probably inarguably the greatest election victory by any leader, by any political party, in South Australian history: 37 out of 47 seats. The then Liberal opposition took on a government that did not deserve to be re-elected. The then Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Dean Brown, stunned his political opponents and set a state record that would not be matched until it was surpassed by a Queensland election.

The difference is that that government went on to be re-elected. Unfortunately, the then Premier was unable to recontest that election. I do not think that Giuseppe would have been re-elected. I think Giuseppe was elected on the basis of that landslide. He was independent thinking, is the best way of putting it. He did cause some concerns for the leadership of his party, which obviously we encouraged. We are grateful for his independent thought processes, which I see continue to this day.

However, Giuseppe did achieve something remarkable. He was a migrant who got elected to the House of Assembly, which in itself is a remarkable achievement for anyone who sits in this parliament, to be elected by their community to represent them in the parliament. No matter what the circumstances, he served in the House of Assembly. The Italian community of the western suburbs would be exceptionally proud to know that one of their own had made it to this place. No matter how he served, he was one of their own. Even though he had been defeated and recontested again, his picture will remain forever in this parliament, and his family can be proud of his contribution in those four years.

I had very limited dealings with Joe, other than to say it was polite and cordial. I did get to know him a little bit after he left the parliament, not while he was in parliament. When he was out of the parliament, he was not as sympathetic to his former colleagues as he was while he was here, but he was a good man.

In speaking to my good friend Mr Giuseppe Scalzi, who is in the gallery today to honour someone he served with, he said it best when he said, 'Joe had his heart in the right place,' and he did. No matter his political views, no matter his controversies, he served the people of South Australia and he served the House of Assembly. For that reason, may God rest him and comfort those who loved him.

The SPEAKER (14:36): I would like to place on the record the house's thanks to Joe Rossi for his contribution to this place. As a journalist of the nineties, I would also like to place the press corps' thanks on the record as well, because Joe was always a fertile ground for great stories—very controversial stories and, I am sure, stories that quite often wrecked the media plans of Dean Brown and his media unit back in those days. It is great to have you in here, Dean and Joe, to recount some of the stories of Joe's contribution to this place.

Motion carried by members standing in their places in silence.

The SPEAKER: The house will stand suspended until the ringing of the bells.

Sitting suspended from 14:37 to 14:48.

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