Page 1857 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 5 May 2009
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It is his leadership that has created a culture within the PCO that has engendered lateral thinking, good advice, high quality analysis, finding the way through minefields of legislative consequences, working with members in a proactive, respectful and patient manner and producing legislation that often leads the country and that always stands the test of time. As such, Mr Speaker, John Clifford is one of the great quiet achievers. He seeks no accolades in the quality of his work, yet his calm and patient willingness to take on technically complex assignments and deliver them against seemingly impossible timelines is surely inspirational. There is never a fuss; nothing is too difficult; no-one is less important than another.
Sometimes I wonder whether John Clifford carries a persona like that of a duck swimming. On the surface, all is calm and serene. Underneath, the legs are paddling like crazy. The proof is in the pudding, Mr Speaker. That calmness is a hallmark not only of John Clifford’s work style and ethic but of the PCO as a whole. Perhaps the water is too murky to see what is happening underneath but if it is furious paddling, John Clifford and his team hide it with great skill. When he is able to relax, John Clifford loves to chew the fat on issues that confront society and the world. He has knowledge about and views on a very broad range of issues. He can discuss them at length and to a depth of understanding that few could emulate and many would envy.
In his retirement, John Clifford’s mind will still work as it has during his career. It will continue to analyse, learn, be aware and be observant. It will continue to be patient and calm, and he will maintain, no doubt, his good humour. John Clifford the Parliamentary Counsel will be a loss to the ACT government and to the people of Canberra and particularly to this Assembly. John Clifford in retirement will be a wonderful asset to our community. Mr Speaker, on behalf of the Canberra Liberals I thank John Clifford for his dedication, his professionalism, his counsel and his leadership. I wish him a long, happy, busy and productive retirement doing all those things that he wants to do.
MS HUNTER (Ginninderra-Parliamentary Convenor, ACT Greens): Mr Speaker, the ACT Greens join with the Attorney-General in paying tribute to the great service given by John Clifford. John has been one of those quiet achievers who have worked tirelessly in the ACT’s Parliamentary Counsel’s Office, leading a team which has ensured our i’s are dotted and our t’s are crossed on legislation, so that the territory functions and MLAs appear as if they always know what they are talking about. Only last week, my staff had a briefing with the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office to help learn a bit more about the complexities of preparing legislation. The Parliamentary Counsel’s Office staff were lamenting John’s departure, as he was the go-to person on legislation matters. They could not speak highly enough of his contribution and leadership.
This is easy to understand, as John left the commonwealth public service in 1987 to join the ACT public service as part of the team tasked with the converting of sections of the commonwealth legislation to ACT government legislation in preparation for self-government. John has said that his fingerprints are on just about every law made since 1987. This is a remarkable achievement and a sign of his patience and
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