SPEAKER ORATEUR: HON. PAUL J KEATING

Mr Keating joined the Australian Labor Party at the age of 15. He became President of the New South Wales Youth Council, the forerunner to Young Labor, in 1966 and was President of the New South Wales Branch of the Labor Party from September 1979 to February 1983.

Elected to the House of Representatives for the seat of Blaxland (NSW) in 1969, Mr Keating became Minister for Northern Australia in the Whitlam Cabinet from October to November 1975. He served in the Opposition Shadow Ministry in January 1976 and held the following portfolios: Agriculture (Jan-Mar 1976), Minerals and Energy (Mar 1976-Nov 1980), Resources and Energy (Nov 1980-Jan 1983) and Treasury (Jan-Mar 1983).

The Australian Labor Party was elected to Government in March 1983 when Mr Keating became Treasurer, and he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in April 1980. He resigned from the Ministry in June 1991 after being unsuccessful in a ballot for the Prime Ministership. Then he was elected leader of the Australian Labor Party and Prime Minister by Caucus on 19 December 1991.

During his period as Treasurer Mr Keating implemented the most far-reaching economic reforms in Australia's post-war history and in 1984 was named Finance Minister of the Year by the financial/economic journal Euromoney.

Among the most significant of the reforms overseen by Mr Keating was the progressive deregulation of the financial sector, the float of the Australian dollar (1983), extensive reform of Australia's taxation system, the achievements of a budget surplus, reform of retirement incomes policy, an historic low inflation rate and the maintenance of the Accord with the Australian trade union movement.

As Prime Minister, Mr Keating was able to further pursue the micro-economic reform agenda he set as Treasurer, including the deregulation of the airline and telecommunications industries, a national standard gauge rail highway and the establishment of a National Electricity Grid Corporation. Achievements in other areas include the establishment of a new National Training Authority, the introduction of legislation to ensure the protection of endangered species, a major review of the Sex Discrimination Act and the adoption of the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

On 13 March 1993 Mr Keating led the Federal Government to an historic fifth term of Government, and his second as Prime Minister. His achievements during this period included the introduction of major reforms designed to address the issue of long-term unemployment, historic legislation to provide land rights to Australia's indigenous people and proposals for constitutional reform to make Australia a republic by the year 2000.

On 2 March 1996 the Labor Party was defeated in the Federal Election. Mr Keating relinquished the leadership of the parliamentary party and resigned from Parliament on 23 April 1996. In May 1996 he was appointed as a Visiting Professor at the University of New South Wales, with a special relationship with the University's Asia-Australia Institute.

He was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws for his work in the Asia-Pacific region by Keio University in May 1995.