All my life I've believed that men and women have equal capacities and talents...consequently there should be equality in life's chances.

So in many ways for me, having lived through what I've lived through, and endured what I've endured, I've got more confidence that I can do the next bit - and there's something sustaining about that.

I'm angry and I understand why Australians paying mortgages are angry.

We are constantly being told that we've never been wealthier. And many of us are. On average we all are. But that's just the problem.. no one is average.

As our economy faces up to potential labour shortages due to our ageing population and as it moves to a new level of sophistication to compete with the rest of the world, we're going to need every Australian on board pulling their weight, rejoining the workforce, gaining new skills. Writing off individuals and communities suffering from poverty just creates a dead weight for our economy to drag along.

The death of Malcolm Fraser underwrites a great loss to Australia... I always thought Malcolm would be around a lot longer. I must say, I wished he had been.

He will always know as we know now that in the heat of battle he did not fail when mateship and duty called.