E&OE................................................................................................
Your Majesty, your Royal Highness, my Ministerial and Parliamentary colleagues
and in particular the Leader of the Opposition Mr Kim Beazley, Your Excellencies,
ladies and gentlemen.
Your Majesty is no stranger to this building and to this Great Hall having
come here in 1988 to officially declare open the new Parliament of the
Commonwealth of Australia. Coming here today is a reminder of the great
heritage of parliamentary democracy that this country inherited from the
United Kingdom. Fashioned and developed according to the will and the
design of the Australian people to create a unique national institution
which represents the fulcrum of Australian democracy.
Parliamentary democracy in this country is lively, strong and robust.
It is not frequently realised that Australia is one of fewer than ten
nations in the world that has remained continuously democratic over the
last 100 years. Ma'am, the links between the Crown and the institution
of Parliament are well known by those who understand our history and the
history of the world. You come here as someone who knows Australia well,
who has a deep affection for this country. And whatever views people hold
on the flow of political events, the respect for your own personal dedication
to your role as a Constitutional Monarch, and your understanding of the
workings of our system of government and the workings of the system of
governments of all of the countries of the Commonwealth is one that is
very widely respected.
May I on behalf of all of the people of Australia and particularly today
on behalf of all of my fellow Parliamentarians, and those who are gathered
here in the Great Hall, say how very pleased we are to have you and the
Duke of Edinburgh with us again. We hope that the rest of your visit to
Australia is as happy and as enjoyable as it has been to date. You are
always Ma'am a welcome visitor to this country. And in that spirit
Ma'am I invite the Leader of the Opposition Mr Beazley to support
my remarks.
[Ends]