Prime Minister Paul Keating’s last ever parliamentary speech, on the last sitting day of 1995

Filmed on 1 December 1995 - the final sitting day that took place before the end of year adjournment, and before the federal election that was held on 2 March 1996. As such, this was the last parliamentary sitting day for the Keating Government, and this turned out to be the last ever speech Keating would give in Parliament in a career that stretched back to 1969. Following the defeat of the Keating Government, Keating immediately tendered his resignation as MHR for the Division of Blaxland, triggering a by-election held on 15 June 1996 in which Michael Hatton retained Blaxland for Labor. Much like Malcolm Fraser before him, whose precedent Keating followed, his resignation was so swift that he was gone before he even had the chance to sit in the new Parliament - which therefore means the speech he gave here is the closest Keating ever gave to a valedictory speech in federal politics. You can view the other parts of the 1 December 1995 end-of-year adjournment here, including valedictories: Opposition Leader John Howard:    • Opposition Leader John Howard's end-of-yea...