Ms GILLARD (Lalor—Prime Minister) (14:10): on indulgence—Last Thursday the world heard the sad news of the passing of Mr Claude Choules, the last known veteran to have served in the First World War. Mr Choules was born in 1901 and joined Britain's Royal Navy at just 14—one of the 65 million personnel who served in the war to end all wars. They are amazing statistics: 65 million personnel; a boy who joined at 14. It is hard to believe that every one of those men is, to the best of our knowledge, now gone. The last known link to those who served in the Great War has been severed. Claude Choules came to build a new life here in Australia after the war, continuing his military service with the Royal Australian Navy. He lived for a time in Sydney where he and his beloved wife, Ethel, watched the Sydney Harbour Bridge go up before their very eyes. Mr Choules served in our navy in the Second World War, fighting in the two world wars, and he subsequently built a career in the fishing industry in Western Australia. I hope he found some time to reflect as he was out there on the beautiful waters off Australia's shores—to reflect on being involved in two world wars, the enormous cost of war and the role he played as an eye witness to these terrible episodes that shaped our history. Claude Choules made an outstanding contribution to the cause of freedom in two world wars. He witnessed the price of conflict firsthand and he rejected the glorification of war, as we all must. He was the last of the last. A defining chapter in world history ends with his passing. I join the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, who has already expressed his condolences to the family, and I join what I am sure is the whole House in sending our condolences to Mr Choules's family. Claude Choules was a man of peace and he now rests in peace. Our nation will soon be reflecting deeply on World War I and Gallipoli as we enter the 100-year period of commemoration. We will say to each other on many occasions during that period 'lest we forget'. Today, we use those words about Claude Choules. Lest we forget.