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Alan Tudge (Lib-Aston) – Maiden Speech and Resignation Statement

Feb 09, 2023

This is the maiden speech by Alan Tudge, delivered in the House of Representatives on October 26, 2010.

Tudge was 39 when he was elected to the Victorian electorate of Aston in Melbourne’s outer east.

Watch Tudge’s maiden speech – final half only (16m):

Aston had been held for the Liberal Party by Chris Pearce since a by-election in 2001. Previously, the seat had been held since 1990 by Peter Nugent, whose death precipitated the by-election. The only ALP member for Aston was John Saunderson, who won the seat at its creation in 1984, was re-elected in 1987 and defeated by Nugent in 1990.

Aston included the suburbs of Vermont, Knox, Scoresby and Wantirna. By the time Tudge retired in 2023, the seat had been redistributed a number of times and had shifted eastward to take in Boronia and Ferntree Gully, areas formerly in La Trobe.

Prior to his election, Tudge worked as a management consultant. He was seconded to Noel Pearson’s Cape York Institute. From 2002, Tudge worked as an adviser to Howard government ministers Brendan Nelson and Alexander Downer, before setting up his own policy advisory firm.

Tudge became a minister in 2016 and served in a number of portfolios under prime ministers Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison, until the government’s defeat in 2022. His first portfolio was as Minister for Human Services. His role in the RoboDebt scandal led to him giving testimony to the RoboDebt Royal Commission in the week before his retirement.

Tudge’s ministerial career ended as Minister for Education and Youth. He stood aside in December 2021, following allegations about his relationship with his former press secretary, although he retained the title until the government lost office.

At his final election on May 21, 2022, Aston recorded an 11.64% fall in the Liberal Party’s primary vote. A two-party-preferred swing of 7.32% saw Tudge retain the seat with 52.81% of the two-party vote.

This post was updated on February 9, 2023, following Tudge’s announcement of his retirement. A transcript of Tudge’s maiden speech appears below, as does video of his resignation statement.


Watch Tudge’s resignation statement and responses by Prime Minister Albanese and Opposition Leader Dutton (16m):

Filed Under: Maiden Speeches, Liberal Party, Valedictory Speeches Tagged With: ,

Retirement of David Elder, Clerk of the House

Aug 01, 2019

These are remarks to the House of Representatives on the retirement of the Clerk of the House, David Elder.

Elder

On the Clerk’s final day at the table, remarks in tribute were made by Speaker Tony Smith, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, Government Leader of the House Christian Porter, and Manager of Opposition Business Tony Burke.

Listen to the tributes (19m):

Watch the tributes (19m):

Hansard transcript of remarks to the House of Representatives on the retirement of the Clerk, David Elder.

The SPEAKER (15:14): Very soon I will call the Prime Minister to move a motion to record the House’s appreciation for the service of its Clerk, David Elder. As I mentioned a few sitting days back, everyone is aware of David’s retirement, but today is his last day here at the table. We, of course, all want to recognise that incredible service. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Audio, House of Reps, Morrison, Parliamentary People, Valedictory Speeches, Video Tagged With: , , , , ,

Sen. Mitch Fifield (Lib-Vic) – Valedictory Speeches

Jul 30, 2019

These are the valedictory speeches for Senator Mitch Fifield, Liberal, Victoria.

Fifield, 52, was appointed to the Senate on March 3, 2004, filling a casual vacancy caused by the resignation of Senator Richard Alston.

Fifield served as a minister in the governments of Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison, between September 2013 and May 2019. He was Minister for the Arts and Minister for Communications from 2015 until 2019.

He was Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate between 2017 and 2018, and Manager of Government Business in the Senate from 2018 to 2019.

Prior to entering parliament, Fifield worked for Treasurer Peter Costello (1996-2003) as a senior political adviser. He was also a senior policy adviser to Alan Brown, the Victorian Minister for Transcpot (1992-96).

Fifield, bruised by the leadership turmoil in the Liberal Party in 2018, will soon take up the post of Ambassador to the United Nations.

Listen to the valedictory speeches for Fifield (57m):

Watch the valedictories (57m):

Hansard transcript of valedictory speeches for Senator Mitch Fifield.

The PRESIDENT (18:33): Pursuant to order, the Senate will now move to valedictory statements.

Senator FIFIELD (Victoria) (18:33): Colleagues and friends, doesn’t it go by in the blink of an eye? It was a little over 15 years ago that I rose to speak for the first time in this great chamber. I did so as the 487th senator to serve in this place since Federation. This struck me at the time as being a pretty small number, but since I arrived 120 senators have left this place. I cite these figures to highlight that, while ours may be a select group, our custodianship is transitory. To be chosen by your party peers to be their flag-bearer, to be endorsed by the voters, to be afforded a platform and resources to pursue the national interest, there are few greater privileges. Today, for me, represents the culmination of a decade and a half in the Senate, and the drawing of stumps on a parliamentary and a ministerial career. But today also represents for me the conclusion of 31 years in full-time professional politics and 23 years working in this building. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Audio, Liberal Party, Valedictory Speeches, VIC, Video Tagged With: , , , , ,

Stephen Conroy Announces Resignation From Senate In Undelivered Speech

Sep 16, 2016

Senator Stephen Conroy, the ALP’s deputy leader in the upper house, has announced his resignation in an undelivered speech to the Senate that was tabled last night.

Conroy

Conroy, 53, rose in the Senate at 8.53pm, at the end of the second-reading debate on the government’s Omnibus Bill of expenditure cuts. He made a brief comment and tabled a speech.

The Senate then went on to debate crossbench amendments to the legislation. The third reading of the bill took place at 11.35pm and the Senate adjourned at 11.38pm. Conroy’s resignation only came to light this morning, although the Hansard transcript would have gone online in the early hours. [Read more…]

Filed Under: A.L.P., Audio, Senate, Valedictory Speeches, VIC, Video Tagged With: ,
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