The lesson of the Federation should be that the lesson is over. Australia must have a new idea of itself. We have to strike out in a new direction, in a new way, armed with our own self-regard, our own confidence and fully appreciating our own uniqueness. All other roads will lead us into the shadow of great powers.

The great curse of modern political life is incrementalism.

In the end, the key ingredient for public life is imagination. You imagine something better, you try to bring the people with you.

I think Australia has to be a country which has the 'Welcome' sign out.

If one takes pride in one's craft, you won't let a good thing die. Risking it through not pushing hard enough is not a humility.

You know, in the WikiLeaks cables, the Chinese discovered that Kevin Rudd was urging the Americans to keep the military option open against them. This is hardly a friendly gesture.

No choice we can make as a nation lies between our history and our geography. We can hardly change either of them. They are immutable. The only choice we can make as a nation is the choice about our future.