The Prime Minister today paid tribute to Margaret Whitlam AO, who has died in Sydney aged 92.
Margaret Whitlam was a remarkable woman, rightly loved and revered as a national treasure.
The Whitlams married in 1942 and were on the threshold of celebrating seven decades together on April 22. Gough impishly described their union as “my best appointment”, and with Margaret's loss, this extraordinary and enduring partnership has been broken.
It was a partnership of equals, with Margaret's intellect and wit superbly matched to Gough's own.
She accompanied Gough through the entire span of his journey in public life and the years after, including those painful days in and after 1975.
Margaret was an accomplished woman in her own right, with an abiding commitment to social issues, reflecting her own professional training, as well as a tireless advocate for the arts, the environment and women's rights.
Indeed Margaret's own self-confident and forthright example inspired many women that they too could lead lives of greater ambition and purpose.
Through her own independent activism and advocacy, she also helped redefine the role of ‘first lady', giving it a new and deeper significance in the life of our nation.
Today our thoughts are with Gough as he faces the prospect of life without his loving consort and companion.
Our thoughts are also with Gough and Margaret's children Antony, Nicholas, Stephen and Catherine and partners, their grandchildren and great grandchildren.
I look forward to paying a more formal tribute to Mrs Whitlam on the floor of the House of Representatives, the chamber which Gough dominated and served for so long.