23 May, 1988 COUNCIL 349 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

Monday, 23 May, 1988

The President took the chair at 10.30 a.m. The President offered the Prayers.

DEATH OF THE HONOURABLE Dr RAYMOND WILLIAM ASTON, B.D.S., D.Orth., R.C.S., M.P., MINISTER FOR CORRECTIVE SERVICES The Hon. E. P. PICKERING (Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Vice-president of the Executive Council) [10.32]: I move: That this House desires to express and to place on record its deep sense of the loss sustained to the State and the Parliament of New South Wales in the removal by death of the Honourable Dr Raymond William Aston, B.D.S., D.Orth., R.C.S., M.P., Minister for Corrective Services, and that this resolution be communicated to the family of the deceased. Mr President, honourable members, it is with great sadness that I move this condolence motion today. The sudden and premature death of Dr Aston, the honourable member for Vaucluse and Minister for Corrective Services, came as a shock to all. It is indeed a tragedy that a man with so much to give should be taken from us at the dawn of what, no doubt, would have been a long and distinguished parliamentary career. Dr Aston was educated at Christian Brothers, Waverley, and at the University of Sydney, from where he graduated in 1968 with a degree in dental surgery. He supplemented this degree with study overseas, resulting in 1975 in his gaining a Diploma in Orthodontics from the Royal College of Surgeons, London. Until recently Dr Aston's orthodontic practice was at Bondi Junction. He also had practices at Port Macquarie and at Cootamundra, where his standard of dentistry was highly regarded and appreciated in a country area, where specialist skills are not always readily available. Dr Aston joined the Liberal Party in 1977 and became metropolitan vice-president of the party. His involvement in the party goes back a long way before his preselection and subsequent election as the member for Vaucluse in 1986. It will be of significance to honourable members that Dr Aston was a candidate for the Legislative Council in 1984. He was chairman of the electorate assistance committee for the Liberal Party at the last State election. This was an enormous task in which he made a substantial contribution towards the Government's victory in March. He was campaign manager for the seat of Waverley and he always kept a high profile in the eastern region of Sydney. Dr Aston's father, the Honourable Sir William Aston, K.C.M.G., was the member for the federal seat of Phillip from 1955 to 1972 and during this time was Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Gorton and McMahon Governments. In his spare time Dr Aston sailed and played golf and tennis. He was a former commodore of the Royal Motor Yacht Club at Rose Bay. Dr Aston had already made a substantial contribution in a very difficult portfolio, which is crucial to this new Government's commitment to law and order. 350 COUNCIL 23 May, 1988

On behalf of my Liberal Party colleagues and the Government of New South Wales our sincere condolences are extended to Sir William and Lady Aston, to Dr Aston's sisters, Margaret and Anne, to his former wife, Patty, and to his fiancee, Kathy Mayson. Dr Aston died at the age of 44. He will be greatly missed. The Hon. J. R. HALLAM (Leader of the Opposition) 110.351: I join with the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council in expressing, on behalf of the Opposition in this Chamber, sympathy and condolence to the family of the late the Hon. Dr Raymond William Aston. I had neither the pleasure nor the honour of meeting Dr Aston but many members of my party who did so informed me that he was a cordial and warm human being. Clearly he was highly regarded by the Premier of New South Wales. On the election of Dr Aston as the member for Vaucluse the Premier stated that Dr Aston had great potential and would rise to high office in the parliament. That prediction, of course, proved to be the case because on the assumption of Government the Premier appointed Dr Aston as Minister for Corrective Services. Dr Aston had a great interest in, and a thorough knowledge of, politics; it was part of his family background. This morning, before preparing my notes to speak to this motion, I read the maiden speech of Dr Aston, in which he concentrated particularly on the area of health, which, perhaps, is somewhat ironic. Clearly such an unexpected and tragic death, at such a young age, sharpens the clarity of one's thinking on the value of life. Dr Aston was the son of Sir William Aston, who was the federal member for Phillip from 1955 to 1972 and the Speaker in the House of Representatives for both the Gorton and McMahon Governments. The Leader of the Government in this House has traversed some of Dr Aston's involvement in State politics, not the least being his holding the office of vice president of the Liberal Party for a considerable number of years. It is patently obvious that Dr Aston was well grounded in politics, his chosen second profession. Regrettably he will not have the opportunity to exercise those skills for the benefit of the community at large. Dr Aston was patron of Double Bay Public School, was involved in many activities in the Woollahra area, and enjoyed such pursuits as sailing, golf and tennis. I reiterate the Opposition's regret at Dr Aston's passing and express deepest sympathies to the members of his family. The Won. R. B. ROWLAND SMITH (Minister for Sport, Recreation and Racing) [10.39]: I join with the Leader of the Government in this House and the Leader of the Opposition in this very sad condolence on the untimely death of our colleague and friend Ray Aston. Death is always untimely. In this instance it was tragic, as Ray was in the prime of his life. After the great success of 19th March he took on the challenge of the very difficult portfolio of corrective services. He was anxious to get on with the job of tackling problems in that area. His passing should be a salutary lesson to all of us, who have a great responsibility to the people of this State, to keep fit, but at the same time try to relax wherever and whenever that is possible. Ray was a fine man with a dry sense of humour. He was always good company and was highly respected by his friends and colleagues. His sudden death came as a great shock to those closely associated with him-but none more so than his fiancee, Kathy, and his immediate family. Our sincere sympathy goes out to Sir William and Lady Aston, Ray's fiancee Kathy, his sisters Margaret and Anne, and Patty, his wife by a previous marriage. On behalf of the members of the National Party in this Chamber, .I extend sincere sympathy to all those people. 23 May, 1988 COUNCIL 351

The Hon. ELISABETH KIRKBY [10.40]: It is very difficult for me to express fully my feelings about the sad and untimely death of the Hon. Ray Aston because, like the Leader of the Opposition, I had never met Ray Aston during his time in this Parliament but, he and his family were known to the wife of my colleague the Hon. Richard Jones. I know that members of my party who lived in his electorate have a very high opinion of him, although his political philosophy was different from theirs. For someone of that age to die so suddenly is the greatest shock that any family can sustain. Ray's death must be a profound shock to his parents, who have devoted their lives to community service and to parliament. Though I never knew Dr Aston personally, I have been asked on behalf of my colleagues to express very sincere sympathy to the family of Ray Aston, his previous wife, and his fiancee. On behalf of the Australian Democrats I add condolences on this very sad motion. Reverend the Won. F. J. NILE [10.42]: On behalf of Call to Australia I add sincere support for the motion of condolence moved by the Leader of the Government and supported by the Leader of the Opposition concerning the unexpected and tragic death of the Hon. Raymond William Aston, Minister for Corrective Services and member for Vaucluse, at the relatively young age of 44 years. During the Vaucluse by-election I had the opportunity to meet Ray Aston and have a number of discussions with him. I was most impressed with Ray Aston as a true gentleman and a caring person. I was also able to meet his father and establish a friendship with him. As has already been stated, Sir William Aston held a number of prominent leadership positions. I was impressed with the family's genuine concern for the true good and welfare of the people of New South Wales. There is no doubt that Ray Aston's unexpected commissioning as Minister for Corrective Services placed him in one of the most stressful and difficult positions in the new Cabinet. However, he approached his portfolio with diligence and a real desire to achieve a balance between justice and mercy as he pursued his ministerial duties. He sought my assistance and that of our group on those important duties. We join with all members of Parliament and the community in expressing our condolences and sympathy to the family.of Ray Aston, particularly his parents, on this sad occasion. We leave them wlth these words of encouragement from Our Lord Jesus Christ as recorded in St John, 1 4: 1-2: Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many manslons: ~f ~f were not so, I would have told you. 1 go to prepare a place for you. May God bless Dr Aston's family and all those associated with him. The Hon. VIRGINIA CHADWICK (Minister for Family and Community Services) f10.431: I join in the offer of condolences on the death of Ray Aston, a person whom I regarded as a good friend as well as a colleague. As has been said, Ray was the member for Vaucluse and thus continued a proud family tradition of service to the community. I have known Ray and his former wife Patty since we became members of the State executive of the Liberal Party. He has been a good friend to me and a good friend to the Hunter Valley-to Newcastle in particular. I shall miss his sense of fun, which was balanced by a fine intellect and a great depth of character. I know that Ray had mixed feelings about accepting the honour of becoming a Minister in the first Greiner Government. Certainly he was extraordinarily proud and honoured to be offered a ministry, but at the same time he was tinged with sadness and regret because the position had no doubt 352 COUNCIL 23 May, 1988 become vacant through the electoral disappointment experienced by another of his friends, Michael Yabsley. However, despite those mixed feelings, in his short time as a Minister-as Reverend the Hon. F. J. Nile said-Ray was striking a fine balance in his portfolio between fairness and compassion. As recently as a week or so ago when he and I were discussing our relative portfolios, he was positive and enthusiastic about his work in a portfolio which, as most honourable members would agree, in recent history has been a difficult one for every single occupant, whether Labor or Liberal. I shall certainly miss Ray as a colleague; more particularly, I shall miss him as a friend. My sincere sympathy goes out to Patty and to Kathy. It must be a terrible time for them and other members of the Aston family. The day we were sworn in as Ministers of the Crown was a very exciting one for Ray and Kathy as it was the day they became engaged. The Hon. J. H. JOBLING [10.46]: I rise briefly to join with my colleagues on this side of the House in expressing sympathy on the passing of the late Ray Aston. Ray was known to me for many, many years as a friend and colleague, someone with whom I could always spend an hour and enjoy a joke, and from whom I could take advice. He was an extremely friendly person. My acquaintance with Ray goes back to the 1950s and the 1960s when his father was then the federal member for Phillip. It was in those days that I came to know the Aston family and Ray in particular. It was always a privilege for me to have him as a friend-and a good friend. During his life Ray was always active in his profession, his care for his patients and in his recreational pursuits. Ray simply loved life and young people. To that end the Ray whom I knew spent a great deal of time in helping others try to make the world a better place. He will be sadly missed by all those people, both young and old, in New South Wales, particularly in the electorate of Vaucluse. Like everyone, I was saddened by his sudden death and I share the sorrow his family must be feeling. May I therefore join with the Leader of the House and those honourable members who have spoken to the motion and add my sincere condolences to his parents and his sisters, to Patty, and to his fiancee, Kathy. The Hon. J. C. J. MATTHEWS [10.48]: I join other members in expressing my support for the motion of condolence before the House. I take the opportunity to offer my sympathy to Sir William and Lady Aston, to Ray's former wife, Patty, and to his fiancee, Kathy. I knew Ray Aston for a considerable time, extending back to the mid-1970s. For a time I served with him on the State executive of the Liberal Party of Australia. As a resident of the eastern suburbs, I also knew him well locally. In the days when Ray was commodore of the Royal Motor Yacht Club of New South Wales, I saw him frequently at that venue. Ray assumed the position of commodore when the club was foundering. It was not a position that one would have sought, because it entailed a good deal of responsibility and much planning. It was a difficult job, but one that Ray accepted in the right spirit-the spirit of doing something for his friends and colleagues-as he had been a very active member of the club. It surprises me not that the Hon. Virginia Chadwick made the point that Ray had mixed feelings about accepting a ministry in the new Greiner Government because of the rather difficult circumstances involved. It is typical of Ray that he would have that attitude rather than be absolutely and totally ambitious. He was ambitious; but he had a sensible ambition. It was never his intention in the political sense to walk over bodies to achieve his goals. He had a highly respected position in the eastern suburbs community as a result of his 23 May, 1988 COUNCIL 353 own efforts and his ready acceptance by the community there, and because of the family tradition for service to that area. Ray Aston's father, Sir William Aston, whom I know and class as a friend, always regarded Ray very highly-apart from filial respect and love. He respected his ability. He was proud of his son. Before Ray became a member of Parliament, which was only recently, he had achieved great success in his profession. That is the type of parliamentarian all sides of politics should be seeking: someone who has achieved success in his own field before coming here to serve the people. Ray Aston had certainly done that. He had attained a higher education degree within his profession. It is typical of the man that he took his services into country areas-to Cootamundra and Port Macquarie-and offered to those communities his special professional skills. Ray shared with his father the common touch. That was something that really marked the man. Though his father had achieved high ofice when Ray was young, the Astons always had their feet on the ground. Ray could mix very well with any level of society. He had a genuine feeling for people and shared that common touch, which is a great asset in politics. I find it extraordinary that I am speaking on this subject today. None of us expected Ray's demise; it came very suddenly. I was shocked to hear the news this morning. He was a young man who will be a great loss to the party, to Parliament and to the State. He had not had time to develop fully his political skills, as I am sure he would have done within the ministry. Be that as it may, one featu.e for which we can all be thankful is that he had achieved his long time ambition to enter politics. Although he was successful in his profession, which he valued, nevertheless he wanted to serve in politics. That ambition had been burning within his breast for many years. Like many who have political aspirations, he did not succeed at his first attempt to become a member of Parliament. It took him some time, but he achieved his ambition and was elected to Parliament. Moreover, he had been appointed to the ministry. Though Ray Aston died a very young man, he had achieved a great deal in his lifetime. Thank God he achieved his ambition to enter politics and reach high office, if only for a short time. The PRESIDENT: I desire to associate myself with support for the motion of the Leader of the Government. Ray Aston was a man of kindly personality and friendly disposition. I have known his family for approximately 30 years and was pleased to number Ray Aston as one of my friends. The death of Ray at a very early age removes from Parliament a man who showed much promise. Above all, it should remind all honourable members of the mortality of man. It is my prayer that God will grant him eternal rest. Members and oficers of the House standing in their places, Motion agreed to. ADJOURNMENT Motion by the Hon. E. P. Pickering agreed to: That as a tribute to the memory of the Honourable Raymond William Aston, B.D.S., D.Orth.. R.C.S.. M.P., this House do now adjourn.

House adjourned at 10.56 a.m.