Premier’s Farewell Reception for the Honourable Dr Jeannette Young AC PSM

Premier and Minister for Veterans, the Honourable David Crisafulli MP and Mrs Tegan Crisafulli; Deputy Premier, Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning and Minister for Industrial Relations, the Honourable Jarrod Bleijie; the Honourable Chief Justice Helen Bowskill and President of the Queensland Court of Appeal, the Honourable Justice Debra Mullins AO; Members of the Queensland Executive Council; Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, the Honourable Pat Weir MP; 25th Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia and 24th Governor of Queensland, the Honourable Dame Quentin Bryce AD CVO; 22^nd Governor, the Honourable Leneen Forde; Former Premier of Queensland, the Honourable Rob Borbidge AO; Leader of the Opposition, the Honourable Steven Miles MP; Governor-designate, the Honourable Justice Thomas Bradley and Justices of the Supreme Court; Members of Parliament; Senior Officers from the Royal Australia Navy, Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force; Members of the Consular Corps; Mayors from around Queensland; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen.

I, too, acknowledge the Original Custodians of the lands around Brisbane, the Turrbal and Jagera people, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to all First Nations people here this evening.

Thank you, Premier, for so generously hosting this farewell reception and for your reflections on my time in office, and our time working together.

I have greatly appreciated the unfailing courtesy you, your Ministers and staff have extended to me over that time.

I also take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank the former Ministers and the two Premiers with whom I worked before the 2024 election: the Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk AC, and the Honourable Steven Miles.

Five years ago, when I was sworn in as Queensland’s 27^th Governor, I did not anticipate that I would eventually work alongside three different Premiers, but the seamless transition on each occasion was a textbook example of the strength of the Westminster system and the enduring value of its customs and traditions.

I saw that value demonstrated symbolically not only in the pomp and ceremony of the opening of the 58^th Parliament and the accompanying 19-gun salute but every time the Speaker, the Clerk of the Parliament and the Sergeant-at-Arms arrived at Government House, bearing the magnificent Queensland mace, for me to grant Royal Assent to Bills.

Such symbols and ceremonies can seem out of place, even quaint at a time in our history when informality dominates, but they are profoundly important to us as a society because they give us a sense of order, stability, and predictability. They offer structure, meaning, and continuity in an increasingly fragmented world.

I have been part of literally hundreds of ceremonial events in the course of the last five years, from proclaiming the accession of His Majesty King Charles III to presenting an Order of Australia honour to a Queenslander in palliative care, and every time — whether it’s taking the salute at the Anzac Day March, inspecting a Guard of Honour, or laying a wreath at the Queensland Police Memorial — every single time — I am reminded that these are much more than symbolic acts.

They are part of our heritage, and they’re to be celebrated and cherished.

I was privileged to experience the power and importance of tradition on many occasions during my term, but two in particular will remain with me: first, representing all Queenslanders at the Coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla in Westminster Abbey and, before that, seeing the outpouring of public grief following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

On that occasion, a condolence book was opened at Government House and thousands of Queenslanders made a special trip to Fernberg to leave messages and floral tributes — even cups of tea and a Paddington Bear.

It is not only loyalty to our Sovereign than unites us as Queenslanders; we have always pulled together in response to a common cause.

In the 1850s, settlers united to fight for separation from New South Wales; in 1893 the public response to the calamitous Brisbane flood that year was as immediate and generous as that of the legendary “Mud Army” more than a century later; but nothing (apart from State of Origin football) has united Queenslanders this century quite like the COVID pandemic.

When my term began, we were still wearing masks and avoiding handshakes, and the public health emergency still had a year to run. Even though I was leaving my role as Chief Health Officer, my greatest concern, as a career-long health professional, was the health and wellbeing of the people of Queensland, especially the thousands of exhausted health workers who were dealing with the greatest health crisis in living memory. I was also very conscious of the challenges facing local Councils, each of which had to find their own solution to the pandemic while continuing to grapple with natural disasters and the unrelenting demands of local government.

I felt that, as Governor, I could best serve the state and provide the most meaningful support and reassurance to Queenslanders by making a public commitment at my swearing-in to visit every Local Government Area and every public hospital in the state during my five years in office so that I could meet people where they live and hear directly from them about their experience and their concerns.

Today, I can proudly say that I have reached both goals — I have visited every one of our state’s 77 LGAs, including all Indigenous councils, and a total of 150 public hospitals and health services. The last in that long list was Charleville Hospital just last month, where Queensland Health staff even organised a special celebratory cake to mark the occasion.

That cake-cutting in Charleville was very special, but it is only one example of the extraordinary welcome extended to Graeme and me at more than three thousand other community events, all around Queensland.

As a champion of literacy, I’ve sat on small chairs in numerous primary school classrooms to share our children’s picture book about Government House with primary school classes.
And, as the committed advocates and patrons of more than 170 charities and community-based organisations, Graeme and I have hosted hundreds of events at Government House and elsewhere around the state to encourage them and support the vital work they do.

Every occasion has been memorable, but there are some unique experiences that I will always cherish:

• I’ve been deeply moved by commemorations of the end of the Second World War in Townsville;
• I’ve had the honour of opening the historic 150^th Royal Queensland Show;
• I’ve presented the winner’s Cup at the Birdsville Races;
• I’ve heard some of the world’s greatest opera singers perform under a starry sky in Winton; and
• I’ve swung on a gate at the cattle yards behind the Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach to officially start the Outback Queensland Cattle Drive — twice!

But beyond those activities that are at the core of the Governor’s role here at home, I have also had the great privilege of participating in Queensland’s Trade and Investment missions to China, Japan and India as well as visiting key organisations in Europe and the UK and representing the State at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and the Olympic Games in Paris.

Those experiences, together with welcoming more than 120 diplomatic representatives from around the world to Government House, have given me an exceptional opportunity to promote Queensland as an investment destination, a source of expertise, and an exporter of high-quality goods and services.

At Government House we are very proud to back our state’s reputation for excellence by serving only Queensland produce and beverages at dinners and receptions — yes, even our sparkling wine!

After attending more than 250 Executive Council meetings in the past five years, it will be some time before my waking thought on Thursday mornings is not of the Council agenda for that day.

But most importantly, Graeme and I will miss the care and professionalism of the Government House staff and our Honorary Aides from the Army, Navy, Air Force and the Queensland Police Service.

They have given loyal service in everything they do from organising every detail of our daily program to planning menus for special dinners, writing thousands of speeches, annual report messages and social media posts, and even ensuring that I don’t wear the same dress twice to an annual event!

We will also miss the immaculate gardens, grounds and lawns that are tended with such care and passion by Fernberg’s horticultural staff, and the pleasure of living in one of our State’s most cherished heritage buildings and seeing it brought back to life through a splendid restoration project.

We will miss the pleasure of greeting the thousands of individuals and families who visit the estate each year to explore the Christmas Lights or join a guided tour of the house and gardens. Government House today is truly a place for all Queenslanders and it has been a joy to see the extent to which our Picnic Days, Open Days and bushland walks have been embraced by the public.

And we will certainly miss the warm welcome we have received from Queenslanders in every corner of this amazing state. Those thousands of friendly smiles and handshakes over the past five years have shown me how vital it is to the future of this nation to develop and sustain the values of trust, kindness, fairness and respect.

For that reason, after what Graeme and I now refer to as a ‘gap year’, I am determined to do all I can in retirement to strengthen those values in this State because they’re fundamental to the volunteering that underpins our response to emergencies, sustains vital services, and helps create cohesive, inclusive communities.

Places where people know their neighbours, feel safe, solve problems together and rely on each other when things get tough, may sound like a Utopian dream in the 21^st century when there is more that divides us than unites us, but dreams are important and I can’t wait to do everything I can to make that one come true.