Hansard debates

Mr KENNEDY (Hawthorn) (18:29:37): I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we gather. I pay my respects to their elders, past, present and emerging. As for family background, I rejoice in the proclamation of Pope John XXIII that half the world is Irish and the other half wish they were. Indeed, I am the great grandson of John Kennedy, born in 1833 in the small village of Dolla in County Tipperary. John was one of six children. Fairly typically one boy stayed home, and over these last 50 years we have frequently exchanged visits from and to Dolla, where my cousin, another John Kennedy, and his family live. A second boy went to Boston and New York, and contact with that branch has been maintained these last 170 years. The third boy, John Kennedy, arrived in Port Melbourne in 1854 and commenced three years as a labourer in the construction of Yan Yean Reservoir. With the benefit of formal education in Ireland and failure on the Victorian goldfields, he moved to Mount Gambier, became tutor to the eight children of Anthony and Mary Sutton and married their eldest daughter, Anne, in 1865 at mass celebrated by Julian Tenison-Woods of Mary MacKillop fame. John became a successful pastoralist, a local political activist, a lay leader in the Catholic Church and the father of three daughters and eight sons. Descendants following in his footsteps include my grandfather, who stood for the Liberal Union party in the South Australian elections. Other Kennedys in leadership are a bishop of Adelaide and a national and South Australian leader of the Dominican Sisters. A solicitor, Patricia Kennedy—better known as our much-loved Aunty Pat—became deputy chancellor of La Trobe University. Leon Kennedy Bignell was a South Australian Labor minister and is still the member for Mawson. So there are good pedigrees there. My father, John Thomas Kennedy, left South Australia for Sydney, took up a commonwealth cadetship in architecture and, after war service, married Mary Bourner. My mother always remained fond of the Sisters of Mercy, who ran St Catherine’s Orphanage, Brooklyn, where she lived from birth to teenage years. It was only last year that I tracked down the grave of her birth mother and my grandmother. My mother, by then into her 60s, finally met her own mother in Brisbane but only for 1 hour in secret because the lady had never been able to tell her husband or anyone else about Mum. How sad but how good that we have come such a long way since those darker times. Governments like those of Premier Andrews and Julia Gillard have done much to lift stigmas and offer apology and redress. As for education, in Sydney I attended Loreto Kirribilli and St Aloysius’ College, Milsons Point, and went on to arts at Sydney University and teaching at the Teachers Guild of New South Wales. As for religion, I have always been a practising but questioning Catholic. It has been a privilege to serve as president of the Association of Teachers in Victorian Catholic Secondary Schools—which is now part of the Independent Education Union—on the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria and as president of the Principals Association of Victorian Catholic Secondary Schools. Theological studies in Melbourne, Dublin, Leuven and Hua Hin have opened my mind to more of life’s possibilities. The church has achieved much in its care and advocacy for those in need, not just Catholics. However, there is still work to be done in addressing deep-seated problems arising from unhealthy male clericalism, manifested, for example, in disgraceful cover-ups of sexual abuse. An urgent and immediate priority is the participation of laity on church boards when it comes to assigning clergy and, in line with early history, ordaining women to the diaconate. The next step should be open and respectful consideration of the ordination of women to the priesthood. My association with the Jesuits spans an entire life: as a child and teenager at Aloysius, for seven years teaching at Riverview, pursuing a bachelor of theology at the United Faculty of Theology in Parkville, as a parishioner at Immaculate Conception in Hawthorn and as a community member of Jesuit Social Services. I will always be grateful for Jesuit education and friendship, Ignatian spirituality and inspiring leadership here and across the world from people like the two Franks: Father Frank Brennan and Pope Francis. As for my career, some have asked me about teaching one Anthony Abbott for four of my seven years at Riverview. Do not be disappointed. Notwithstanding, my greatest achievement at Riverview was establishing One World days at the school and the introduction of Asian studies as a full-year subject in years 8 to 10. The Victorian government’s strong international perspectives include cultural, educational and trade ties with China and a warm welcome to refugees. Recently it has been a delight to represent the minister at Lunar New Year celebrations. Bronwyn and I are staunch advocates for increased Australian overseas aid and, along with many Victorians, subscribe monthly to Médecins Sans Frontières and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The world is desperate for leaders willing and able to address urgent issues facing our globe; climate change, poverty and violence are at the top. In this I am proud of the lead given by the Premier and his government. At age 28 I left Sydney as a teacher at Riverview and housemaster at Shore to be vice-principal at St Columba’s College, Essendon, with part-time roles as dean of studies at St Mary’s College of Melbourne University and as a flight lieutenant in the RAAF 21 City of Melbourne squadron at Laverton. Now, the Murdoch press originally had me as a retired naval officer, which is a bit of a worry—as I later told them in that article on Sunday—as I can barely swim, let alone command a warship across the bay. Twelfth September this year marks the 40th anniversary of my appointment in 1979 at the tender age of 31 as foundation principal of Loyola College, Watsonia. This was such a privilege and challenge. Much is owed to fantastic Loyola parents, staff and students, who collaborated so well to lay the foundations for this great school. In particular I acknowledge strong and loyal supporters such as Jenny Macklin from Jagajaga, John Cain from Bundoora, Father Myles Lynch from Our Lady of the Way, Kingsbury, and colleagues and friends, including Margaret Crichton, Reg Elder, Maureen Philp and Paul Ryan. Governing clergy played a role, though sadly some were impeded by that clericalism mentioned earlier. Loyola students have done well in service to others, academically and in satisfying employment and personal relationships. For example, a Watsonia girl is now professor of history at Oxford, a Watsonia boy is now dementia research leadership fellow and head of the motor neuron disease laboratory at the Howard Florey and many others are in service roles, including in local councils, education, health, politics and social welfare. In January 2008 I concluded over 28 years at Loyola and spent 2008 as an interim executive principal at Trinity Anglican College in Albury-Wodonga. At the end of 2008, at 61 years of age, I retired from full-time paid work. I am just disappointed with the amount of press covering this tonight, but the next question you might like to ask is: what do I have to show for these last 10 years? In the 10 years until that last election in November there has been extensive travel and the running of an educational consultancy business, with various assignments that included a six-month stint as executive officer for the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia, Victoria. My pro bono service included five years as a board director of the Caroline Chisholm Society in Essendon and Caroline Springs, supporting pregnant women and parents with young children, followed by five months filling in as its honorary CEO until the ongoing appointment of Helen Cooney was made, and 10 years on the board of directors of Catholic Ladies’ College, Eltham. However, I have to say that a highlight of my post-Loyola life was joining the ALP in 2011 and standing for Kooyong in 2013 and Hawthorn last year. I joined Labor because it strikes, to my way of thinking, the best balance in fairness, productivity and compassion. A particular satisfaction has been participation in the three branches that form Kooyong federal electorate assembly (FEA)—namely, Canterbury, Hawthorn and Kew. Charlie Murphy was the last Labor member for Hawthorn, from 1952 until 1955, when things fell apart over the so-called 'split’, with Charlie choosing to side with the Labor anti-communist party. With Labor now back in Box Hill, Burwood, Hawthorn and a strong swing in Kew, we look forward to a return to the good old days! A particular interest has been elected membership of the ALP’s Education and Youth Affairs Policy Committee and its work for the betterment of all schools without exception as well as tackling other youth issues. And so now to the lead-up to that election last November. We come to August and September last year, when I travelled to El Salvador and several countries in South America. Here I pause to relate a premonition. In Lima we witnessed and experienced the fantastic sky rail. Members interjecting. Mr KENNEDY: There was something there, wasn’t there? I just felt it in the waters. We saw its functional release of the beautiful lands beneath. Members interjecting. Mr KENNEDY: Fantastic. So there is a trip for somebody—to Lima. Get the photos, and onwards we go. Upon return to Melbourne on 5 October, a seven-week campaign for the seat of Hawthorn commenced in earnest. I used the theme I developed upon becoming president of the Kooyong FEA in 2014—namely, striving for an Australia that is fair, productive and compassionate. Each of these three commodities needs the other two. Proudly and unambiguously, during the campaign, I made known my active membership of ABC Friends, Labor for Refugees and the Australian Republic Movement. Following campaign leadership and support from Danny Milincic and Lindsay Sparrow, I found myself at last at home at 6.50 p.m. on Saturday, 24 November, in front of the TV to see Antony Green pull out a small booth in Glen Iris showing a 16 per cent swing to Labor. An intended visit to the Box Hill-Burwood-Hawthorn-Kew combined election party suddenly took on urgency! Then, after nearly two weeks of waiting, just 330 voters finally made the big difference. Initial shock about all this soon turned into tremendous joy at this wonderful gift from the constituents of Hawthorn and all the volunteers and benefactors in that campaign. How lucky am I to be in just 19 square kilometres of lively activity, restful beauty, history, loads of sporting options, Swinburne University, multiculturalism, quality schools and changing demographics. It has been a delight for my staff and me to visit, get to know and support parents, staff and students of our government and non-government schools, which without exception, I observe, do excellent work with and for young people. In setting up office I was greatly assisted by Vicki Ward and Adele Alm from Eltham and Bob Stensholt, formerly of Burwood. Since then I have appointed an outstanding Hawthorn team with four future MPs: Anna Daniels, Anna Gay, James Carfax-Foster and Darcy White. And what you are all waiting for now, ladies and gentlemen: what about my age? Speaker, let me ask: who in this place, besides me, remembers where they were on Saturday, 23 November 1963, when the evening papers, in Sydney at least, appeared shortly after 8.00 a.m. with the banner headline, 'Kennedy Dead’? I do not see any hands. In Hawthorn, of course, such a headline would understandably have caused more confusion and mayhem! I am so grateful to have been allotted more than the biblical three score and ten. Clearly I cannot lay claim to athletic triumphs of late, but just over four years ago, in 2014 at 67, I graduated with a masters degree in educational leadership. In the same year Bronwyn and I purchased an off-the-plan lease—not a subsidised one, as claimed in the Murdoch press last Sunday—in a Hawthorn retirement village, and in June 2016 we moved into our brand-new unit. We continue to enjoy and value the friendship and stimulus of our new community. Some even told me they broke a lifetime habit and sent a vote in my direction. Other friends give me the credit of sole responsibility for the intended sky rail at the Toorak Road crossing. As for this place, I am grateful to the members for Cranbourne on my left and Buninyong on my right for keeping me attentive and alert to the best speeches on offer. I also note with appreciation that the member for Melton, alongside the member for Cranbourne, is a retired ambulance paramedic. It does not get any better than that. Finally, my renewed thanks to pals of many years and new friends in Parliament and Hawthorn. I thank my siblings, Catherine, Anthony, Margaret, Mary and Tom, who is deceased, for support and tolerance over many years and in particular for making today’s journey from Sydney. I thank my children, Fionnuala and Patrick Kennedy, together with their partners for their love and good humour, especially when putting up with a father older and possibly more eccentric than their friends’ fathers. Above all I acknowledge and thank Bronwyn Lane, my wife of 33 years and dearest friend for 37, for her love, loyalty, outgoing nature, independence and practical support despite the inevitable excitement occasioned by a first-born being married to a first-born. Thank you. Members applauded.