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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 5 Hansard (8 May) . . Page.. 1808 ..

MR SMYTH (continuing):

politicians-people, who often get a little bit excited and hot under the collar and sometimes do not follow the running sheets-actually do make law as good as we can.

It is in the dignity that Mark holds himself and the self-effacing way that he has that he will go through this entire debate watching the clock and cursing all of us, but never showing it. You should not curse us, Mark, because we respect you. I do not think that it is a word that Australians use enough-we say "mate"instead-but I think that there is a great deal of love and respect here for you, Mark, for the way you handle yourself and the way that you carry yourself with poise.

Mark Joseph McRae has been stoic, ethical, confidential and private, but my lasting memory of him in this place will be of the day that he became cool. It was a nice, bright, sunny day when Mark McRae came in here with dark glasses on and sat there supreme behind a visage that no-one could read. Not only was he inscrutable, but also we could not see the colour of his eyes any more.

It took us a couple of days to work out why the hell the Clerk was wearing dark glasses. We all knew that he was cool; it was a given that the man was cool. If he wanted to wear dark glasses into the chamber and be cool, that was his right. But what he had not told people for years was that on certain days when the rays of the wretched sun hit the fountain the light would reflect in here and nearly blind him. So, not only was he cool, but also he was practical.

That brings me back to passion. Clearly, although Mark never shows it, he is passionate about many things. He is passionate about his country, because he helps defend his country and helps to make his country better, and he helps to make his territory better by participating in the practice of making law. He is passionate about his football. For the life of me, I cannot understand his support for Collingwood, having barracked for St Kilda since 1966. But I will agree with him on the Brumbies. I guess that is due to good Chevalier College training.

Mark, on behalf of the Liberal Party and the opposition, I would like to wish you well. I want to know what happened to the small enterprise in Wombat. I have driven past Wombat many times and it is a wonderful place. If you do not know where Wombat is, ask Mark. The Wombat pub is a place of great conviviality-that might be the nicest way of saying it.

I am sure that the citizens of Murrumbateman will enjoy your presence there with Beth, Alex and Andrew. In years to come, freed from the burdens and the responsibility of being part of the system that helps make law, perhaps you will enter into a position on the Murrumbateman ratepayers association, the Murrumbateman community association or whatever it is called out there and they will have you determining whether the bypass should go east or west at Murrumbateman.

Mark, we are sorry to lose you. I am sure that Murrumbateman will be delighted to have your presence out there. My father worked on Rileys. If you need a hand, he is not somebody who forgets much and all of his training was done on pre-1950s English automobiles. He is a bit of a hoarder and, if you need a hand, he probably has the manual for it under the bed.

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