Mr STEPHEN JONES (Throsby) (13:53): I am very pleased that Labor legend and former Prime Minister Bob Hawke is here in the chamber today, as I rise to pay tribute to Mr David Hamilton, a Labor legend from my electorate of Throsby, who sadly passed away last month after a long battle with leukaemia. Dave was a steelworker, a passionate trade unionist, a steadfast party member and a loyal and supportive friend to us all. If ever there were a man who embodied the true spirit of Labor in the Illawarra, it was Dave.
One of nine kids born in Westrigg in Scotland in 1945, David learned the ropes of the steel industry very early. He juggled his formative years between working at BHP and playing the 'beautiful game' of football or, as we uncultured Aussies refer to it, soccer. I am told by his brother Alex that he left his home in Scotland and migrated south to England to play semiprofessionally for a few years down there before migrating to Australia in the 1960s.
It was after his arrival that David attended his first ALP branch meeting in Warrawong Community Hall, and he was a Labor man from that day on. David is remembered by all those who knew him as always fighting for the underdog. It was this passion for the core Labor values of equality and a fair go which sparked his interest in unionism at an early age. He became delegate for the then union known as FIMEE, representing his fellow steelworkers before rising to the role of New South Wales secretary. He will be remembered and loved by his family (Time expired)
