Former prime minister Scott Morrison has received a standing ovation after finishing his final speech to Federal Parliament by quoting from the Bible and declaring his faith in Jesus.
“I leave this place appreciative and thankful, unburdened by offences, and released from any bitterness that can so often haunt post-political lives. This is due to my faith in Jesus Christ, which gives me the faith to both forgive, but also to be honest about my own failings and shortcomings,” he declared.
“During my time as prime minister, the power and necessity of forgiveness was demonstrated to me most profoundly by the families whose children were taken from them, and they found the strength to forgive. To those who may feel uncomfortable with my Christian references and Scripture references here or at other times, I can’t apologise for that, because of what it says in Romans 1:16: For I am not ashamed of the Gospel. It is in the power of those who believe and in Timothy 1:17: I am not ashamed. I am convinced he is able to entrust what I have given to him until that day.”
“In that vein, let me give you one last Scripture, in this place it is an encouragement to all who continue to serve: Thessalonians 2:16: Now may I Lord Jesus Christ Himself and our Lord and Father, whose love has given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and deed.”
In his valedictory speech to the House of Representatives after more than 16 years in parliament, Mr. Morrison said: “I leave this place not as one of those timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat, I leave having given all in that arena, and there are plenty of scars to show for it. While politics may be an important and necessary place for service, I would also warn against it being a surrogate for finding identity, ultimate meaning and purpose in life. There are far better options than politics.”
The former prime minister warned: “Looking forward, we must be careful not to re-institutionalise our economy. Such an approach will only negate the capacity we have as a nation to deliver on the essentials that Australians rely on. Crush entrepreneurial spirit and that wonderful spirit of small business [will] leave us vulnerable in the face of new threats to our sovereignty.”
In reference to the potential threat from China, Mr. Morrison observed: “The 2022 election may have provided an opportunity for Beijing to step back from their failed attempts at coercion, but we must not be deluded. Tactics change, but their strategy remains the same. We’re not alone in waking up to this threat.”
“During my time in this place, and especially as prime minister, we have seen an end to the post-Cold War period of globalisation, and the emergence of a new era of strategic competition where our global rules-based order is being challenged by a new arc of autocracy [which] ranges from Pyongyang to Beijing to Tehran and Moscow. A cord of would-be regimes who care little for the price their own citizens pay to achieve their ends.. For these reasons, our government stood firm against the coercion of an aggressive Chinese Communist Party in Beijing, who thought we would shrink when pressed.”
He cited the AUKUS defence agreement with the US and the UK which is set to deliver nuclear-powered submarines to Australia plus the Quad partnership with the US, India and Japan, and new trading and defence relationships as key achievements of his government . His successor as Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton noted AUKUS “will be the underpinning of our security for decades to come in an uncertain part of the world and Scott Morrison has that as part of his legacy.”
Our first Pentecostal Prime Minister urged Australia’s increasingly secular society to remain connected to Judaeo-Christian values: “You don’t need to share my Christian faith to appreciate the virtue of human rights. I’m not suggesting you do. But equally, we should be careful about diminishing the influence and the voice of Judaeo-Christian faith in our Western society, as doing so risks our society drifting into a valueless void. In that world, there is nothing to stand on. There is nothing to hold onto. And the authoritarians and autocrats win.”
“Individual liberty, the rule of law, equality of opportunity, responsible citizenship, morality, liberty of speech, thought, religion and association. All of these stem from the core principle of respect for individual human dignity. So does representative democracy. And even market-based capitalism. This is a unique Judeo-Christian principle.”
The Australian Associated Press reports that: “At times choking up, the 30th prime minister said his final speech was not a chance to run through a “bullet point list.” He paid tribute to his parliamentary staff and party colleagues, public servants for their work during the COVID pandemic, as well as his protection team, singling out officers who were injured in a car crash in Tasmania during the 2022 election.”
Mr. Morrison thanked his successor and current prime minister Anthony Albanese. “Too often in this place we confuse differences of policy with judgements about people’s intent and motives, this is not good for our policy. We might disagree, but we need to honour the good intentions of all of us.”
In tribute, Mr. Albanese said: “He has certainly left nothing on the field, and he can be proud of that, he has shown a real respect for this parliament. I can say on behalf of the Australian Labor Party that Prime Minister Morrison was a truly formidable opponent.”
The PM told his predecessor: “I’m sure, in the solitary moments, of which there were too many of them, of course, for all of us, due to the COVID restrictions, that you must have gone through some really difficult times in trying to reassure yourself that the decisions that were being made — big decisions — were the right ones. But I don’t doubt for one second that the motivation in that was absolutely right.”
Scott Morrison ended with a rallying cry for his beloved rugby league team: “As always, up, up, Cronulla!” He will now join US-based consulting firm American Global Strategies and take up an advisory role with DYNE Maritime.
