Mr DUTTON (Dickson—Leader of the Opposition) (14:04): I thank the Prime Minister for his fine words, and I join him in honouring the life of John Charles Hodges. It was 1983, and Bob Hawke's Labor had been swept into power in the election that followed a double dissolution. Dean Wells, the new Labor member for Petrie, got to his feet to deliver his maiden speech. Wells said: I would like now to say a few words in honour of the gentleman who preceded me … Mr John Hodges is a man who has exerted himself with courage and conviction in both the local and the national arena. … I disagreed with my predecessor on a wide range of issues … However, I never at any time doubted the sincerity with which my opponent held the views he expressed … and I wish him well in his return to private life. Dean Wells had taken the seat of Petrie from John Hodges by just 720 votes. But John did not return to private life for long. Just shy of 21 months later, in the timetable-correcting early election of 1984, John Hodges won back Petrie from Dean Wells by just 776 votes. John's great political comeback would not only cement Petrie as a key election battleground for decades to come; his return would culminate in more than 11 years of service to his nation at the federal level. Indeed, John's sense of service was innate—a motor which would drive him throughout life. Born in Brisbane, as the Prime Minister noted, and educated in Cooktown and Cairns, John undertook a pharmacy apprenticeship after finishing school. Qualifying as a pharmacist in 1958, he pursued what he described as 'a very noble profession'. But pharmacy was more than just a profession for John; it was a labour of love. And he found in his labour of love the opportunity to meet and to marry fellow pharmacist Margaret in 1962. While caring for his community and preparing medicines, John had a political itch to scratch. Following in the footsteps of his father, who was chair of the Cook Shire Council, John jumped into local politics. He served on the Redcliffe City Council for nine years as an alderman, including six years as deputy mayor. The chance for a seat in Canberra came abruptly. Four weeks prior to the 1974 election, the Liberal Party threw its support behind John to contest Petrie, favouring him over Nelson Marshall Cooke, for whom John had been a campaign manager. John won almost 55 per cent of the two-party preferred vote. Coming to Canberra, the six-foot-five bespectacled John, with his baritone voice, joined the chorus of criticism of the Whitlam government. He said: This Government has presided over the worst inflation, the worst unemployment, the worst industrial strife and the worst economic crisis this nation has known since Federation. … … … It wants to reform, yet in doing so it wants more taxation. The prosperity of this nation cannot be sectionalised. He believed in the Liberal cause of encouraging a person to be his own master. He was a champion of free enterprise and lean government, and he called out his opponents for creating the impression that big-brother government would be there to look after you. Many causes, of course, were dear to John's heart. He was passionate about industrial relations and he also cared deeply for pensioners and widows, whom he saw as falling behind under the Whitlam government. He was proud to be a member of the Fraser government, which increased the age pension. Having been at the centre of local government, John saw responsible and mature local government as integral to nation building. Indeed, his ideas had the hallmarks of federation reform. Channelling Menzies, John also said that the stability of a nation can be measured by the level of homeownership. He was passionate about homeownership and about pride in one's family and one's community and, indeed, one's nation. In 1982, Malcolm Fraser appointed John as his Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, and John took forward his Prime Minister's multicultural agenda with energy and certitude. His fairness on family reunion was juxtaposed with firmness in cracking down on illegal immigrants and illegal workers, whom he saw as undermining the aspirations of genuine migrants and working Australians. While recognising the benefits of a second language, John pushed back against an advocate-driven national language policy that sought to give equal status to all languages. John knew that the English language was central to our national cohesion, equality and love of country. When John's second stint in Canberra came to an end in 1987—he, of course, was a casualty of the infamous 'Joh for Canberra' campaign—John's service didn't stop. He and Margaret went on to own or partly own four pharmacies on Bribie Island. John also served his community as a patron of and fundraiser for charities, sports clubs and schools. If character defines one's service in life, then today we honour John Hodges's life in service and, of course, his great character. I want to thank the sitting member for Petrie for the way in which he engaged so respectfully with John and his family. On behalf of the coalition, I offer my heartfelt condolences to John's colleagues and his family and friends, especially his wife, Margaret, and children, John, Jane and Sarah. May John Hodges rest in peace. Honourable members: Hear, hear!