The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's Canberra headquarters was today named in honour of the Prime Minister who established the agency, the Right Honourable Andrew Fisher (1862-1928).
The naming of the building forms part of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's centenary celebrations.
The Prime Minister's Department, as it was then called, was formed in July 1911 in Melbourne before moving to Canberra in 1927 where it occupied a variety of offices before moving to its current home at One National Circuit Barton in 2007.
Today the department plays a central policy development and coordination role across government, realising Andrew Fisher's vision of an agency that would support the Prime Minister of the day.
The Prime Minister said the naming of the building was a fitting tribute to an inspiring individual who started work aged 10 as a coal miner, migrated to Australia and rose through the labour movement to lead our nation three times as Prime Minister from 1908-09, 1910-13 and 1914-15.
Prime Minister Fisher left a powerful legacy including the foundation of the Royal Australian Navy, the Commonwealth Bank, the transcontinental railway and the national capital in Canberra, along with measures to promote fairness including maternity allowances and workers' compensation for Commonwealth employees.
Mr Fisher was Prime Minister at the outbreak of World War One and famously pledged that Australia would defend Britain 'to our last man and our last shilling'.
He oversaw Australia's defence preparations until his retirement in October 1915.