Summary: This retirement speech given by a politician speaks of his memories over the years and thanks all those who contributed to his success.

Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen

Today I am not looking for votes. I am, instead, giving a vote of thanks. I am thanking my colleagues, my staff, my family and indeed my friends for all they have done for me in my political career. Any thing I achieved I achieved because of their hard work, their support and their understanding. The things I didn't achieve were, of course, entirely due to the vagaries of politics!

There is a saying that says, "Uneasy is the head that wears the crown". I don't know about that but I have to say that being a politician is not easy either. Your voters may prefer the party you represent. They themselves, though, are split up into a thousand different groups with varying interests and varying opinions. I might add that they are very vocal about such opinions and they expect their representative to be equally vocal on their behalf.

That, of course, is the true meaning of democracy and we are very lucky to live in a country where we can express our beliefs openly. As a politician I have spent much time meeting representatives of other countries who are not as liberal as our own. There is all the difference in the world between being strangled with red tape and actually being strangled or tortured.

I have tried in my career to cut through that red tape on behalf of groups with whom I have shared beliefs. I have also tried, and this is much more difficult, to see to it that those whose beliefs are different to my own get a fair hearing. I am very glad to see here today those who, though they do not always share my opinion, do share my opinion of true democracy.

Being a politician involves long hours of travel, longer hours of work and often a complete invasion of privacy. Today I must pay tribute to my wife and family who have always been very supportive although there were times they must have cursed the democratic system. In fact let's be honest about it there were times when they did curse the democratic system and me too! For some unknown reason it seems that there is always an important political meeting on birthdays, school sports days and wedding anniversaries!

Nonetheless they too gained, as I did, from an exposure to different ideas, different cultures and different people. They gained from learning that there were others who had less than they did and others who demanded much of us all. I am speaking in particular for the homeless because, as you all know, their cause has been the one nearest to my heart. I consider that in a civilized society the fact that people remain homeless is a cause for deep shame. Although I am leaving active politics I will continue to be active on their behalf.

Today then I am retiring from the hurly burly of politics but I will take with me many memories of a career that was stimulating, challenging and usually far too busy. I will take with me memories of people who have been abusive, confrontational and sometimes, believe it or not, some who actually agreed with me.

I thank you for your kindness, your consideration and today I have to thank you too for your wonderful gift. It will be a constant reminder to me that my time in office achieved one thing. That is that I made many, many good friends. I am very glad that from now on I will have time to talk to them about the really important things in life such as their grandchildren or their golf handicap.

Politics is my past. My interest is in the future. After all, as the old saying goes I am going to spend the rest of my life there.