Ms GILLARD (Lalor—Prime Minister) (14:00): I move: That the House record its deep regret at the death on 21 May 2011 of the Honourable Ralph James Dunnet Hunt AO, a Member of this House for the Division of Gwydir from 1969 to 1989, place on record its appreciation of his long and meritorious public service, and tender its profound sympathy to his family in their bereavement. Ralph Hunt was born on 31 March 1928 in country New South Wales and later became a farmer and a grazier. He was a member of that generation who grew up in depression and war, a generation tempered by their experiences and determined to build a better nation. In the Menzies-Fadden era, Mr Hunt became an active member of the Country Party in 1953, and he held several party positions over three decades, including federal chairman in 1968-69. He served in local government in the north-west region of New South Wales for 12 years. Mr Hunt was subsequently elected to this House, in 1969, representing the seat of Gwydir, whose people re-elected him as their representative on nine occasions over two decades. For almost half of those years he served as a minister in successive coalition governments: as Minister for the Interior from 1971 to 1972, Minister for Health from 1975 to 1979 and Minister for Transport from December 1979 to March 1983. Mr Hunt also served as opposition spokesman on the environment during the Whitlam years, defying stereotypes to support the preservation of Fraser Island and the dedication of the Great Barrier Reef as a marine park. There is also the great story that Lionel Bowen told about Ralph Hunt's role, along with Peter Nixon, in securing passage of the Schools Commission Bill in 1973, bringing to an end the long and bitter saga of state aid to non-government schools. Kim Beazley Sr was recovering from a heart attack, so Lionel Bowen had been entrusted with the legislation, and the Liberal Party threatened to block the new needs based funding model. Ralph Hunt and Peter Nixon went to see Bowen and said, 'There are a couple of schools in our electorates that need a little bit of topping up; could you help us?' The department reported back that a top-up for rural schools would cost another million dollars, so Bowen agreed and gave it to them. As a result, the whole of the Country Party crossed the floor and voted with the Whitlam government—a great example of country MPs standing up for country interests, and it took men of the calibre of Ralph Hunt and Peter Nixon to do it. These are fairly basic biographical details that give only an outline of the long and purposeful life of Ralph Hunt. Those who knew him inside and outside the parliament will speak of him with more authority than I can, but I do record the common consensus that Mr Hunt was a capable and respected minister, he was respected across party lines and he was a devout coalitionist in the years when some in the National Party were tempted to go it alone. When he retired in 1989, Mr Hunt left an honourable record of service to his electorate, to this parliament and to our country. That service was rightly acknowledged with an award of an Officer of the Order of Australia in January 1990. Today we therefore express our gratitude for the life and work of Ralph Hunt. We mark his passing with respect and we offer the condolences of the House and the nation to his wife, Miriam, their three children and the other members of his family.