Simon Crean state funeral: Praise for a ‘great Australian’ from all sides, past and present
One of Simon Crean’s last wishes would have been for Australians to support an Indigenous voice to parliament, his wife Carole told the hundreds of mourners.
One of Simon Crean’s last wishes would have been for Australians to support an Indigenous voice to parliament, his wife Carole told the hundreds of mourners who filled St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne to commemorate the life of the labour movement icon.
Anthony Albanese, who attended Mr Crean’s state funeral on Thursday along with an array of prominent politicians and unionists past and present, lauded the former Labor leader, federal cabinet minister and ACTU president as a “great Australian who served his country and his community with humility and compassion, with integrity and intellect”.
“He often greeted the world with a crinkle-eyed geniality,” the Prime Minister said, describing how while many politicians believed in their right to hold grudges, “Simon wasn’t one of them”.
Mr Albanese, who later joined former premiers and cabinet ministers on Flinders Street to follow Mr Crean’s family behind his hearse, highlighted his opposition to sending Australian troops to the Iraq War.
“Simon’s principles did not turn with the breeze,” he said.
Mr Crean’s brother, David, a former Tasmanian MP, recalled his teenage brother as a “bit of a rebel – not much but a bit of a rebel” – dressed in tapered trousers and pointy-toed shoes.
He recalled how Simon snuck off to a Rolling Stones concert at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda as their mother did not approve of the music.
David said the love he and his brother had for each other, and “our special bond over our 72-year history with all our treasured memories”, was present recently when they shared a twin room as they travelled around Ireland and Scotland to trace their family history.
He said his brother died from a pulmonary embolism last month while in Berlin. “He was unlucky not to have received warning signs or symptoms. It was a tragedy for us all and we’re all devastated. I will miss him terribly.”
Former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty, who first met Mr Crean when he came to work with him at the former Storemen and Packers Union under Bill Landeryou in 1970, spoke of how they believed in the power of the union to improve the lives of workers,
“Simon was a great Australian, one of the icons of the labour movement, one of the Labor heroes. Judge him by what he did,” Mr Kelty said, adding his DNA was in so many of the policies, including wages, superannuation healthcare, trade and education “that have made this country”.
“I loved Simon. I did,” Mr Kelty said. “I see him there and I know this – I would say, rest in peace … you’re a wonderful person, Simon. I miss you.”
Carole Crean said her husband had been in Berlin as chair of the European Australian Business Council working on a free-trade agreement “using all his skills to help achieve a result”.
“He has left a huge hole in our lives but also a huge legacy,” she said. “If he could be asked one last question, what would you wish for Australia now, he would say the FTA is agreed and signed, and that Australians support a voice as a positive step for all.”
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