Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Assistant Minister for the Public Service, Assistant Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
[Deputy] Speaker,
September is, arguably, Australia's most patriotic month.
Today is Australian National Flag Day.
Two days ago - the start of spring - it was National Wattle Day.
17 September is National Citizenship Day.
And while my Rugby League-loving colleagues may disagree, September ends with our biggest sporting occasion - the AFL Grand Final!
And I am delighted to have the opportunity, here in the people's house, to celebrate National Flag Day.
A chance to reflect on our identity, our future, and our many stories.
Flag Day was first formally observed in 1996, but it has its origins in events 125 years ago.
In 1900, a delegation of Australians travelled to London.
One person each from Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales, and Western Australia.
Students of history will know, just like today, our state representatives did not see eye to eye on every issue.
But on this occasion, we were aligned with a single goal:
To have an Australian Parliament make laws for Australians.
The group presented the 'Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Bill' to the British Parliament.
And on the first of January, 1901, the Commonwealth of Australia came into being.
Australians had the right to establish their own Parliament.
Now, we just needed a flag.
Did we leave it up to our newly minted Parliament to choose the design?
Of course not.
In true Australian fashion, we made it a competition!
More than thirty-two thousand designs were submitted.
And the results were…
… Good, bad, and quirky.
Our fauna inspired many designers, with submissions including:
A kangaroo with six tails
A kangaroo - with just the one tail - leaping through the Southern Cross.
And native animals in a game of a cricket.
Clearly, tough choices had to be made.
And, while I am sure many Australians would salute a wombat hitting a winged ball for six, the judges chose the design that flies above this House today.
It is, in its simplest form, stars and crosses.
The crosses represent our recent history.
The seven pointed stars represent our states and territories.
And then there is the iconic constellation of the Southern Cross, under which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have lived for more than 65,000 years.
Just as the push for Australian nationhood was a collaborative affair, the final design was also a team effort.
Five designers were declared the joint winners:
Annie Dorrington, an artist from Perth
Ivor Evans, a schoolkid from Melbourne
Leslie Hawkins, an apprentice optician from Sydney
Egbert Nutall, a Melbourne architect
And William Stevens, of the Union Steamship Company of New Zealand.
People of different ages, different talents, different backgrounds, all with a shared vision for Australia.
And on the third of September, 1901, - 124 years ago today - their Australian flag was formally flown for the first time at Melbourne's Exhibition Building.
More than half a million Australians have served under the Australian National Flag.
In wartime - as well as in peace time - our flag is an inspiration.
A reminder of who we are.
And what we are capable of.
During World War Two, Sergeant Darcy Smith - a tailor from East Gympie - and other allied prisoners made a handmade version.
In a Prisoner of War camp in Singapore.
They used blue sheet material liberated from the stores.
Red Cross handkerchiefs for the stars.
And thread from unravelled socks.
And when news came that the war was over, the flag was brought into the light and proudly flown.
Our flag is an inspiration.
A reminder that, as Australians, we can seek to do the best of things at the worst of times.
Our flag is also a symbol of aspiration.
So many of us have first acts that began elsewhere.
Nearly a third of Australians were born overseas.
Almost half of us have parents born overseas.
Our diversity is our strength as a nation.
In the global contest of ideas, we want the best talent to call Australia home.
Every year, at citizenship ceremonies around the country, we welcome the newest Australians under our flag.
The Australian flag is a beacon.
A symbol of our values.
Fairness.
Aspiration.
Opportunity for all.
A country where we are free to dissent and disagree.
Where we can come together - like we do in Parliament - and debate ideas.
I say debate, mind you - not argue.
Our recent election showed the world a democracy where its citizens are empowered to have their say.
Whether that is at the polling booth, or standing for representation.
And that even at the most fractious times, when the stakes are highest, our representatives can conduct themselves with civility and respect.
We are a country where there is no single pathway to representing Australia.
Nowhere is this better exemplified than the speeches delivered by our newest members of Parliament.
The Member for Lyons spoke of her journey from the family farm to the first woman elected to represent her seat in the federal parliament.
The Member for Bradfield spoke of her parents immigrating from the Netherlands, and the challenges of finding their sense of belonging.
And the Member for Calwell spoke of his father's quiet sacrifice, and of the dignity offered by a healthcare system that treats you as one of its own.
Their stories are a reminder that our flag, like our nation, finds its meaning in both where we have come from and where we can go together.
The Albanese Government has made clear its commitments.
To fair wages and conditions.
To a Medicare system that provides care for all.
And to a world-leading superannuation system that provides dignity in retirement.
These are the things that set us apart from the world.
The things that - as our national anthem says - let us rejoice.
[Deputy] Speaker,
Our anthem was officially adopted by the Hawke Government in my birth year, 1984.
And in the four decades since, only one line has changed - in 2021.
From "young and free" to "one and free".
It is a small edit, with a big meaning.
It recognises that our national journey did not begin in 1788 or 1901.
It began more than 65,000 years ago.
The fact that Australia's story is 65,000 years old is, rightfully, a source of national pride.
It is why we honour the two official flags that represent the Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Islander people.
The Aboriginal Flag, designed by Harold Thomas, features the black, the red and the yellow.
The top half of the flag is black to symbolise the Aboriginal people.
The red in the lower half stands for the earth and the colour of ochre used in Aboriginal ceremonies.
And the circle of yellow represents the sun.
Proud symbols of identity, survival, and connection to Country.
In 2022, the flag's copyright was transferred to the Commonwealth - ensuring it remains freely accessible to all Australians.
I thank former minister Ken Wyatt for his leadership on this.
The Torres Strait Islander Flag - designed by Bernard Namok and adopted in 1992 - features green for land, blue for sea, and black for the people.
The white Dhari headdress and star represent culture, navigation, and peace across the island groups.
It stands proudly for the strength, seafaring heritage, and unity of Torres Strait Islander peoples.
It is these flags - along with the Australian flag - that our Prime Minister stands with when he speaks to the nation.
Together. United.
History and future as one.
[Deputy] Speaker,
Above this building - Australia's home of democracy - flies the Australian flag.
It is supported by a mast of Newcastle steel - one of the largest stainless steel structures in the world.
And if you have ever done one of the wonderful Parliament House tours, you will learn the flag is 12.8 metres long and 6.4 metres high.
Or if you prefer a more localised measurement, six Members for Hunter by three Members for Leichhardt!
It takes a team of three specially trained people from the Department of Parliamentary Services to raise and lower the flag.
And if Australians want to learn about flying their own Australian flag, all they need is an email address.
I encourage them to join the more than 7,000 people who have signed up for the Commonwealth Flag Network.
The network's regular email alerts gives advice, such as when to fly the flag to honour departed prominent Australians.
Or to commemorate special occasions, as we are today.
Raising the flag comes with a responsibility to follow flag protocol.
We raise it briskly.
Lower it with ceremony.
And we do not fly the flag at night, unless it is illuminated.
The flag can be used to cover the coffin at a funeral.
This is a right given to any Australian, not only those who have lost their lives in battle.
We treat the flag with respect.
Not out of habit, but for self-respect.
This flag is our flag.
It represents us all.
Love of your country can be demonstrative.
It can be noisy.
Passionate.
It can also exist in the quiet moments, such as our appreciation and care for our flora and fauna.
'Australia' is in our experiences - our understanding of the land we call home.
It is in our very earth, like our national gemstone: the opal.
Known to some First Nations peoples as 'the fire of the desert', 95% of the world's opal supply comes from Australian soil.
The opal is uniquely Australian, like the symbols on our official shield.
Australia's shield is held up by the native Australian animals - the kangaroo and the emu.
They were chosen to symbolise a nation moving forward, based on the fact that neither animal can easily move backwards.
Then there is the national symbol we recognised two days ago: the wattle.
Something that perfectly captures 'Australia'.
For many thousands of years, Aboriginal peoples have used it for food, tools and medicines.
It is also plentiful - you will find it in every state and territory.
It is diverse - there are more than 1,200 species.
And it thrives in tough conditions - from droughts and floods, to bushfires.
We also see it in the green and gold of our sporting teams.
Our Socceroos, our Matildas, our Wallabies, our Olympians, and all our sportspeople on the global stage.
And it is there every time we pull out our Medicare card to visit the doctor, too.
Our symbols are special because we live our lives with them.
[Deputy] Speaker,
I would like to finish with a call out.
One of the best ways to celebrate Australia's values is to celebrate the people who embody them.
The Australian of the Year Awards and the Order of Australia celebrate the ordinary Australians, who do extraordinary things.
Australians who make a profound impact on lives, communities and society.
The Order of Australia is fifty years strong, started by Queen Elizabeth II and Gough Whitlam in 1975.
The Australian of the Year Awards started as a Victorian initiative.
Like the VFL became the AFL, these awards became awards for all of Australia.
The awards are about the recipients, and also about how they inspire the nation.
Any Australian can nominate someone.
And any Australian can be nominated.
Last week we welcomed Neale Daniher to this place.
Neale exemplifies our national spirit.
Brave, determined, compassionate and hardworking - all with a tremendous sense of humour.
That is the best of the Australian spirit.
Whether a love of the flag, our other national symbols, or a love of the people who inspire us, patriotism is a love of one's country.
Patriotism has never demanded blind adoration.
It calls on all of us as Australians to take responsibility for the future of our shared country.
When you look at our flag, you see a map of stars.
Stars give us direction, but the path we take is up to each of us.
Australia is the best country on earth.
And I believe it will remain that way only if we are always striving for improvement, for all Australians.
Those who have grown up here.
Those who come to make a life here.
And those who have always been here.
We are all Australian.
Happy National Flag Day.
