Australian Bicentenary

HL Deb 25 January 1988 vol 492 cc465-80

6.30 p.m.

Lord Willis rose to ask Her Majesty's Government, on the occasion of the Australian Bicentenary, whether they will use their influence to secure the renaming of one of London's major streets in honour of Australia.

The noble Lord said: I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

Perhaps I should first say that I have just heard that the "Young Endeavour", which was built with a subsidy of £¾ million from Her Majesty's Government, £¾ million raised by public subscription in this country and £¾ million given by Arthur Weller, an Australian living in this country, has just won the Tall Ships Race.

I believe I am qualified on two counts to ask this Question. First, I live in Chislehurst, where Lord Sydney of Chislehurst preceded me and his name was given to that great city which now exists on the east coast of Australia. In fact in Chislehurst we have a Botany Bay Lane and my local pub is the Sydney Arms. Therefore, I have a special affection for Australia.

The second reason is that in 1956 I sailed as a £10 emigrant to Australia under the government's scheme. I was really a phoney emigrant because I was there to write a film on emigration, but I did everything else that the emigrants did. I lived on the emigrant ship as an emigrant and my cover story was that I was going to he a tram driver in Melbourne. When I arrived in Australia—it was my first visit—I spent four months going round every state as far as Albany and Broome in West Australia, Cairns in Queensland and all over Victoria, New South Wales and so on. I came to love that great sunburned country.

A lot is said about Pom bashing in Australia. Let me give your Lordships an illustration of what happened on that first visit. I went into a small pub in Western Australia and was standing at the bar chatting to the barman when three huge men from the forestry works came in, all tattooed with "I love Lucy" and everything else on their arms. Suddenly I heard a deep Australian voice say, "That's a Pom up there, ennit Bert?" I quaked in my shoes a little. The reply was "Yes. Where are they getting them from?" The voice said, "Oh, they're scraping them off the keels of the ships in Fremantle Harbour".

I thought that I should do something, so I said to the barman, "Would you ask those three gentlemen to come and have a drink with me?" They did so and once we got talking it turned out that they were all Poms. They had been there for 30 years and had rather forgotten it. All I can tell your Lordships is that I was supposed to travel on that day but I spent another night there because Australian hospitality is fabulous. It originates from the old bush country where if you saw a traveller coming through you did not let him pass; you bought him a drink and gave him a meal.

It is impossible to imagine today when one goes to Australia—I have just returned from a recent visit—the hardships that those early settlers we sent there had to endure. In Western Australia last November I was shown what was called a saw pit. It was about as long as these Benches. A tree was placed on it. They had no mechanical means of operation in those days, so one man had to get down under the log, one man stood on top of it and they sawed in into planks. They did that for 12 hours a day. The man underneath got all the sawdust on him and was standing knee deep in mud, but that was how they carved out of that country the nation that we have today.

Two hundred years ago we sent to Australia not only criminals but some good people. We sent good trade unionists like the Tolpuddle Martyrs and people who had been deported simply because they had stolen a chicken or poached one of the lord's rabbits. They laid the foundation of that stern, sturdy, wonderful, independent spirit which I and I believe most other people admire so much in Australia.

The Australians have no side. I do not know how many of your Lordships have seen "Crocodile Dundee" but the film sums up the Australian spirit. He is driving around New York and winds down the window and says, "How do you? I'm Crocodile Dundee from Australia". That is the spirit that I find all over Australia.

The flow from this country has never really stopped. About 2 million Britons have gone to Australia since the end of the last war. They still make up the greater proportion of the inhabitants. Last year about 23,000 Britons went to Australia. There has of course been a higher proportion of emigrants from the Pacific region because that is the area in which Australia is set. Nevertheless, it is still basically a British country in its outlook and in its base. It is a country which still thinks of this place as "the old Dart", as I have heard the Australians affectionately call it. Australians ask, "Do you come from the old Dart?" or they say, "We are going home to the old Dart".

We must remember that we remain an important trading partner of Australia. Exports of Australian goods to the UK increased from about £353 million to £500 million last year and our exports to Australia have increased from £650 million to about £1,000 million. We are still the third biggest investor in Australia.

Britons are not only going to Australia; we have a flow of Australians coming here. Apart from His Excellency the High Commissioner, who is sitting in the guest seats below the Bar, I have some Australian guests here who are part of that constant flow of people. From April onwards my phone never stops ringing with Australians calling to say, "How are you?" and "Are you free for a drink?" I know that the same has happened to the noble Lord, Lord Parry.

Most significant—and to be really serious—is the debt we owe to Australia from the First and Second World Wars for the ANZACS; and not only to the Australians but to the New Zealanders and the Canadians. That country, 12,000 miles away, in 1914 and 1939 did not hesitate, did not even blink an eyelid, but came to our support. What doughty fighters they were. It is an established fact about which nobody can argue that in the greatest battles of the First and Second World Wars the Australians, the Canadians and the New Zealanders were in the heat of battle because they were the best fighters.

They were an undisciplined mob. There is a classic story from the First World War: the Australians found a British soldier tied to the wheel of a gun carriage undergoing a 48-hour field punishment. They just cut him down and said, "Oh, we do not stand for that sort of thing". Nothing that the British command could do could persuade them to tie him back up again and there were too many Australians to discipline. That was their attitude. However, once they were put into battle, they were fantastic.

There are changes taking place. Australia is in the Pacific region. It has been taking in non-European migrants and we for our part have joined the Common Market and our links with the Commonwealth are of necessity growing thinner. It is important that we maintain our links with our ancient friend, this old friend that sprung from our loins. It is important that we keep the mateship and the friendship which have sustained us throughout the years.

In view of our movement towards Europe and Australia's essential movement towards trade in its region, it is more important than ever today that we maintain these links. Tomorrow is Australia Day. I should like to think that from this House we send our love and greetings to our brothers and friends in Australia and thank them for all they have done for this country in the past and all that I know that they will do in the future.

Noble Lords

Hear, hear!

Lord Willis

How appropriate it would be—and I know the Government have no power in this—if we could mark it by naming a street. I have had some facetious suggestions like Hawke Highway and so on, but it should not be beyond the bounds of possibility to persuade Westminster Council to rename, for example, Northumberland Avenue ANZAC or Australia Way. "Northumberland" does not have a particular significance, or at least not the significance of "Australia" or "ANZAC".

Lord Harmar-Nicholls

Would it not be more appropriate in view of the young and up and coming continent that Australia is to build a new road instead of revamping an old one?

Lord Willis

My Lords, nothing would please me more and nothing would please the Australians more. The occasion ought to be marked because we owe them so much, as I say, from the First World War; thousands of their dead lie in Flanders. We owe them so much from the Second World War. Therefore it is appropriate to make such a gesture.

6.41 p.m.

Lord Ferrier

My Lords, I confess that I had not worked out in my mind what the noble Lord had planned until I heard his speech. I am most interested in what he said and thrilled that from Ted Willis we have got an imaginative idea.

I feel compelled to support any step designed to celebrate the bicentenary of our association with Australia. I feel particularly justified for various reasons which are not altogether the same as those of the noble Lord. A great-grandfather of mine was a pioneer and explorer 150 years ago. As a boy of 19 he took his patrimony and saw a vision of the Australia of the future. He went there, stayed there and bred there.

He established the settlement of Port Essington, which has now disappeared. It was cleared out by malaria—we have been talking of hardships—and it is now the Port of Darwin. George Windsor Earl was his name and he was a friend of Darwin. Among other things he took a share in the reduction of the Aborigines' language to writing. Indeed it was his knowledge of Polynesian languages which led him to accompany Darwin on some of his voyages in "The Beagle".

He was also an advocate of a telegraph link between London and Sydney and I have seen his plans in the Mitchell Library. The only part he was not sure of was an area he said would be under water and where the natives would take the copper. As I have said, his plans are to be seen in the Mitchell Library today. He had a voluminous correspondence with Mitchell himself.

George Windsor Earl's daughter (my grandmother) was born in Wooloomooloo, and now one of my daughters has produced a daughter in Melbourne who has been graciously pleased to refer to me as "Grandpa Pom".

I have many pleasant memories of Australia. I shall never forget my first sight of Sydney, which was from the flight deck of an aircraft, with the bridge below me. I have raced in the harbour, but I shall not continue with that because this is not an occasion for personal recollections. I love Australia and I shall never forget that view from the aircraft.

A cousin of mine has settled there with an old friend and they have a large family. A niece of mine is running an air company of her own. How could I resist the urge to support the noble Lord in this debate? I am not sure that his proposals will meet with the desires of Australia. It is for the Australians to say, but that can be left to the future or to the noble Lord.

There is the point of view of London. I am a Scot and although I love London I do not feel competent to make any suggestion. I have turned over names in the watches of the night stretching from "Anzac" to "Southern Cross" to "Wooloomooloo". There are thousands we can choose from. I agree with the noble Lord, and I hope your Lordships will too, that this is an occasion to send out affectionate and friendly greetings to that great country and to the people who live in it. I served in the Army with a number of Australians and one cobber has recently died, ending a friendship of 50 years. I commend this Question to your Lordships and I look forward to the debate which is to take place and to my noble friend's reply from the Front Bench.

6.47 p.m.

Earl Grey

My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble, Lord Willis, for raising this matter. After hearing his description of Australia and its people he has given the strongest possible argument for his request to be granted. I obviously support him; it would be a worthy recognition of Australia's celebrations if a part of London could be named in honour of this event. I am a firm believer in the Commonwealth and strongly support its continued existence. To me it is a unique and most valuable club. People from all over the world who choose to live in Australia, on being granted citizenship, swear an oath of allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen which strengthens the bond between our countries.

I believe a word or two should be said regarding the Aborigines, who after all claim quite emphatically that Australia is not 200 years old but has been inhabited by them for 40,000 years. I suggest that if Australia is to be recognised in this manner, respect can be shown to the original inhabitants by naming a street after them. Doing this would go some way to give a satisfaction that is deserved.

If the Government are at a loss in deciding where a street should be named, may I suggest that a part of the new Dockland area would be very suitable? I hope that the Minister is willing to take on board what is being said this evening.

6.48 p.m.

Lord Parry

My Lords, in a disciplined response to the Motion on the humble Address I took a moment or two of the time of the House to speak of at least one famous London Welshman who had made a major contribution to the history of Australia. I do not propose to repeat tonight the words that I used then, but I believe it would be fairly apt if the somewhat badly named M.4 that leads to Wales were to become New South Wales Way since it would link old South Wales and, through London, New South Wales. I believe that is at least as good a suggestion as one that was made to me that the Inns of Court should be named Kangaroo Court.

The serious point that noble Lords make today in this debate initiated by my noble friend Lord Willis is that we as a House wish to associate ourselves with the joy, happiness and seriousness of tomorrow's Australia Day and the celebrations that Australia is holding.

We have all enjoyed friendships with Australians; we have all respected them for what they have been, as has already been said, in war and in peace. Some of us have had the great privilege of seeing a great deal of Australia and something of the parliamentary systems which are so close, so akin, to our own and which still uphold democracy in that part of the world.

One of the most exciting aspects of the present time—I speak now of the moments immediately before the financial collapse which has caused echoes to run round the financial systems of the world is that Australia is establishing itself in South-East Asia as a confident nation in its own right.

Lord Graham of Edmonton

My Lords, may I intervene for a moment? The noble Lord, Lord Harmar-Nicholls, appears to be indicating that he wishes to speak for a few moments before I rise. Perhaps I should inform him that another noble Lord has also said that he wishes to speak in the gap.

Lord Parry

My Lords, happily today we are free of some of the restraints and I think there is time to develop a theme. Here is Australia, confidently taking its place as the leader of South-East Asia. In my own particular spheres of interest—the growth and development of international tourism and all that that means—Australia has placed itself firmly in the forefront, and the developments that are taking place there are exciting in the extreme. All down the coasts of Australia there have been developments which will make it the sunshine coast for the world, and we rejoice in that.

I pointed out that the people who originally went out to Australia went not of their own volition. It is inevitable that at this time there should be some reference to the difficult beginnings of that nation. In reading the literature (which is now copious) on the subject of the early development of Australia, one finds evidence of people from all parts of Great Britain—the Scots, the Irish, the Welsh and the English themselves—who, finding themselves in an environment that was strange and difficult. nevertheless thrived.

One of the things which always excites and interests me in the folk literature of Australia is that the women who found themselves with their men in Australia setting up home, giving birth to families in that difficult territory, contributed to the development of the nation in a substantial way and in a similar way kept the apron strings with home strong and tied. There was one case that I read about of a mother who, every Sunday afternoon, used to take the chair from the kitchen to the extreme point of their piece of land, the nearest point to Great Britain, and her children grew up with a feeling of a home beyond the sea. Perhaps in some ways that both helped to develop the growth of the native Australian and at the same time limited that growth in a way which took some years to put right.

It is now a fact that while Australians look to Britain, and those who came from Western Europe to Western Europe, as home, they also know that their true home is in Australia. While they reach hack for the heritage that they share, while they take pride in their origins as a family, now much more than ever the native Australians see themselves as a part of, and contributors to, the development of the whole of South-East Asia.

That is part of the dream that Phillip had. When the first fleet, having, as he said, touched on the African continent and the American continent, eventually arrived off the shores of Australia, Phillip said that they were about to create a society in that part of the world which would take its place among the great nations; and tonight that is true.

Australia is an independent nation within the commonwealth. It has now broken some of the ties which restricted its growth. It is confident. Given the difficulties that we are all facing in the economies of the world at the present time, its economy is optimistic. It is also conscious that some of the wrongs have to be righted. Australians do not need to be told how they should react to the social history of their land, because they react in the same robust way now as they have done to all the difficulties of the ages.

I support the noble Lord, Lord Willis, not simply on the technical issue of whether we name an old street anew, or whether we name—as has been so aptly suggested—a new street in favour of Australia in its third century, but because he has given this House a chance to show that here there are people who realise that Australia and Australians have devoted so much of themselves to the country from which they came that it is a joy for this country to congratulate them now on what they have become.

6.54 p.m.

Lord Taylor of Gryfe

My Lords, I apologise to the House for not putting down my name to speak. I simply subscribe to all the eloquent things that have been said by previous speakers about our association with Australia and our debt to that country. Just as the noble Lord, Lord Parry, has said something about the Welsh contribution to Australia, it occurs to me that the nation which has exported more of its people to the Canadas and Australias of this world than any other country is Scotland, for obvious economic reasons as well as for the great zest for pioneering and adventure of those people.

I take this opportunity of putting on record a few words about one of the early emigrants to Australia. I refer to Thomas Muir of Huntershill. He will not be known in this House but he deserves to be placed with the Tolpuddle Martyrs among the great pioneers of the struggle for democratic liberties who found himself on a boat and shipped to Botany Bay.

Thomas Muir was an Elder of the Church of Scotland, and a distinguised young advocate in Edinburgh. He distributed the works of Thomas Paine among the people of Edinburgh and addressed a meeting at which he expressed the view "that the spirit of freedom should move across this nation of Scotland." For these seditious words, and for spreading of the works of Thomas Paine, he was sentenced to be shipped to Botany Bay.

That is not the end of the story by a long chalk. The young Edinburgh advocate's fame had spread, and the Americans sent a frigate to Australia to rescue him because even there he had become a well known radical. Leaving Australia after three years, he was shipwrecked off Havana which, at that time, was in Spanish hands. The Spanish authorities recognised this great radical clutching his Church of Scotland Bible in his hand. Such a seditious character, they decided, must be shipped back to Spain. He was put in prison and only finally rescued from his Spanish gaol by the French Directorate who declared him an honorary citizen of the new French Republic.

When I think of Australia I like to think of people like Thomas Muir and two or three of his colleagues—farmers from the Borders in Scotland—who made their way out there, or were sent out there, because of their witness for freedom. I like to think that some of the inspiration and spirit of people like Thomas Muir, who were punished for their advocacy of democratic rights in 1794, flourishes in the present Australian democracy.

Thomas Muir of Huntershill had a small suburb of Sydney named after Huntershill where he had established a small community. It might be a good thing if some of the radical convict pioneers of Australia were recognised in any street-naming. I notice that the city of Glasgow has called a square Nelson Mandela Square; it might be appropriate to name some place Huntershill Square in honour of this great man.

6.59 p.m.

Lord Harmar-Nicholls

My Lords, the historical references and reminders of the past are fascinating and interesting, but to me Australia is the future. The importance of the inspiration behind the speech of the noble Lord, Lord Willis, is the fact that it has such a part to play in the future. There was one part of the noble Lord's speech which alerted me to a point which ought to he on the record. He suggested—and of course he is right—that the Common Market, and our movement there, had to some extent given the appearance of weakening the Commonwealth ties and links. That may have happened. We must see that that does not go on, if indeed it has happened.

It is absolutely vital not only this country but for the whole of Europe to recognise the important part that Australia can play in future development, because of its geography. There is no doubt that the ocean of the future will be the Pacific Ocean. Russia, China and America all have borders there. We see that the interest in the great America is rapidly moving from the east coast to the west. We do not have any direct foothold in the Pacific, except through our partners in Australia and also in New Zealand. It is important to let the whole of Europe know that it is vital to maintain a link which will give us that foothold, so that we in Western Europe can continue to play our part in world development through the ocean of the future, the Pacific.

I was a Member of the European Parliament along with my noble friend who is to reply to the debate. As part of a delegation, and for my own business, until last year I had to go to Australia once a year. I am so sad that I have lost my chairmanship, which means that I cannot continue to do so at their expense. I so looked forward to it.

To begin with, the European delegation—made up of people of all political groups from the other European countries—was a little disdainful that we had decided to go to Australia on an official basis. However, when we returned its mood was very different. It could see the Atlantic as an ocean of the past. The Mediterranean, for all sorts of reasons, is the ocean of the present. But the ocean of the future is the Pacific. If we wish to maintain a foothold, and to play an important part in ensuring that any development will be for the world's good, it has to come through Australia.

It is therefore the future of Australia that interests me. I have intervened to suggest that if we are going to name a street we should name a new one rather than revamp an old one. My noble friend Lord Ferrier, who is always full of bright ideas gave the answer. We have this great development in the Dockland Area. We are very proud of it. It is reviving a part of this country that looked as though it was fading away. If we were to name part of that new developing, important Dockland Area—whose name will spread throughout the world because of its general position as a port—to let the Australians know how deeply we feel about our continued partnership with them, it would not be a bad idea. I hope that when my noble friend is talking about and considering the matter she will keep such an idea in mind.

7.2 p.m.

Lord Graham of Edmonton

My Lords, from these Benches perhaps I may first congratulate my noble friend Lord Willis on seizing this timely opportunity. His good luck has meant that we are able tonight to discuss this Question. The words "joy", "pride", "pleasure" and "satisfaction" have been used in this debate. I feel all those emotions when I think of Australia. The noble Lord, Lord Willis, said that he visited Australia for the first time in 1956. But I had to wait until 1986 before I visited it. I went there for 10 days and came hack as enchanted in 1986 as he was in 1956. I cannot believe that anyone from this or any other country, who may be borne down by worry, despair and a great many of the other feelings that can beset us, can return without having become a friend of Australia for the rest of his or her life.

When I look around the House and listen to those who have spoken, I see many reasons for us to feel satisfaction about the nation of Australia, whose bicentenary celebrations we are discussing. Many people for many good reasons think of Australia with humility and a great deal of emotion. I can certainly recall the Second World War, although not the Great War. Perhaps some can remember that too. But no words can adequately describe the emotion that many of us felt in 1939, 1940, 1945, and throughout the war. We have the medium of film, which is well known to my noble friend Lord Willis. We have documentaries. There is a programme called "Neighbours" which is televised now. I cannot abide it but the rest of my family think it is marvellous! The medium of television portrays Australia as a country and as a nation. Individuals who are known first and foremost as sportsmen or personalities are also Australian personalities, and one warms to them.

We are all taking this opportunity to reminisce. Without one sad note perhaps we can remember some of the beginnings of the nation. My noble friend set the scene very fairly by pointing out the way in which we are tomorrow celebrating the events of 200 years ago and some of the history such as the Tolpuddle Martyrs. That is part of our history.

We have also had reference to the sad plight of the aboriginal indigenous population of Australia. I am delighted to note in recent years some of the utterances of the statesmen of Australia. It is quite clear, as my noble friend Lord Parry said, that they may not need any lessons on how to deal with their affairs. However, I am delighted to note a tendency in speeches by their statesmen which leads me to believe that grievances which have been held by the aboriginal nation and others appear to be about to receive some redress.

The House will be aware that the British Parliament has celebrated this great event in two ways. There were the events in this House and in the other House during the last two weeks. Fine words, well said, well meant and true, were uttered in respect of the presentation to Australia of the vice-regal chair. That must bring great joy and satisfaction to those, unlike myself, who have been inside their Parliament. We then had the debate last year on the Australia Bill. Perhaps I may say a word about that.

We are asked in this Question to consider whether it is a good idea to name a street or streets in London in commemoration of the bicentennial celebrations. I for one say hallelujah, if it is possible. I realise that it is not within the gift of the Government to say that these streets shall be so named because it is up to the local authorities, councils and other bodies.

As the noble Lord, Lord Harmar-Nicholls, has already indicated, some authorities have decided to name streets after individuals of other nations. There is absolutely nothing wrong in London boroughs such as Westminster, Kensington, Camden or, if it is to be the Dockland area, Tower Hamlets, Greenwich or Newham, taking that initiative. I hope that those who wish to mark this year for Australia, besides considering a range of options such as the naming of trees or other places, can celebrate the bicentenary in that way.

My noble friend Lord Willis referred to Botany Bay and Chislehurst. Coming from Tottenham, from my part of the world, he will know that there is a Botany Bay just outside Enfield. I do not know which comes first.

Lord Willis

My Lords, Chislehurst always comes first!

Lord Graham of Edmonton

The last shall be first; and where there is a Willis there is a way!

We come up against a problem with the naming of places. My noble friend suggested that one of the great London streets should be renamed. He asked about Northumberland Avenue. I come from Northumberland. I imagine that many people will have even stronger views than I have about changing a name. If the suggestion were made to change the name of Regent Street or The Strand people would say no. I think the answer lies with new developments, wherever they are, which must be grand and prestigious. They would benefit from having such a name.

When looking at the map of Canada or Australia it is a joy to see the names of places in this country. Emigrants have gone out from this country and have wanted to attach some feeling of the places they come from. I come from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and there is a Newcastle in Australia. There is an Enfield, a Southgate and a Peterborough. Every place one can think of is replicated by people who want to remember.

We are celebrating the end of one era and the beginning of a new one. The noble Lord, Lord Harmar-Nicholls, epitomised Australia not as a nation of the past but as one with a great future. I remind the House that our relationships cannot he dictatorial or formalised. They are all about trust and confidence. I repeat the words of my noble friend Lord Cledwyn on the Australia Bill: However, Clause 7 holds out the hand and the hope of friendship and mutual trust. This is not the 'farewell Australia' Bill, as a few have described it, but a Bill passed in a spirit of co-operation and understanding by two equal and friendly countries which have almost as many things in common as there are miles which separate them".—[Official Report, 16/1/86; col. 1171.] Those were prophetic words which presaged what we are about tonight. My noble friend Lord Willis has given us a first-class idea. I hope that the Minister is kind in her response but more importantly that those outside the House will take to heart what we have said and give substance to the words of my noble friend.

7.12 p.m.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Education and Science (Baroness Hooper)

My Lords, perhaps I may also congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Willis, on his timing and say how grateful we all are to him for introducing this entertaining but short debate. I know that in addition to all those who have taken the opportunity this afternoon to join in wishing the Australian nation well there are many more who would wish to he associated with the remarks that have been made. In particular, I should like to mention the noble Baroness, Lady Gardner of Parkes, who has been prevented from attending only for the very good reason that she is even now in her native Australia attending the celebrations there. I can assure your Lordships that she has no inconsiderable influence on the Lord Mayor of Westminster. When she returns I undertake to draw to her attention the many suggestions that have been made in the course of this debate.

Many of us have happy recollections of Australia and of Australian friends, so perhaps I may also be permitted some personal reminiscences. My own first visit to the country of the Southern Cross was in 1984, so I beat the noble Lord, Lord Graham of Edmonton, by two years. Little did I think then, as I visited Liverpool in Australia and as I viewed the commemorations of the first centenary celebrations in the Botanic Gardens in Sydney and the foundations of the new Parliament House in Canberra, that I would be privileged some three years later to reply to this debate.

Despite our common roots and shared ideas, a form of tyranny has dulled our relationship for many years. I speak of the tyranny of distance. Many a family felt that they were to be split forever when a member emigrated to Australia. The great distance meant that our perceptions of developments in Australia were also limited. For the first centenary celebrations I think it took something like six weeks to travel there, and that is nothing in comparison to the rigours of earlier voyages about which we have heard this evening. But thanks to technological advances, all that has changed.

When we can see Australia on our television screens, speak instantly over the telephone—and I pay tribute to my noble friend Lord Ferrier's ancestors in this respect—and when we can travel there in a day (we are promised that it will soon be possible to travel there in six hours by HOTOL) we now feel that we know Australia and Australians so much better. The broad and rapid exchanges of people, information and images brighten our relationship today. We probably now have a greater appreciation of the changing nature of Australian society and the cosmopolitan mix which makes up that modern country. But we continue to have a special feeling for a country which still has such a large proportion of its people who trace their roots hack to these islands of ours and who take the trouble to come hack and visit those roots with vigour and enthusiasm.

Australia's bicentenary celebrations are therefore of particular significance to Britain and we look forward to our participation in a wide range of events both in this country and in Australia. As has been said, Britain's bicentennial gift to Australia, the sailing training ship "Young Endeavour", has been widely praised as an excellent choice. As the noble Lord, Lord Willis, clearly realised in arranging for this debate today, it was actually handed over to Mr. Hawke a few hours ago by our High Commissioner in Canberra in the presence of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. I am sure that it will serve the young people of Australia well, and I hope that it goes on to win many more tall ships races.

The Lord Privy Seal announced to your Lordships last week the joint gift from both Houses of Parliament of a vice-regal chair to the Australian Parliament. The chair will stand in the Senate Chamber of the new Parliament House in Canberra, which is to be opened in May by Her Majesty the Queen as one of the major national projects commemorating the bicentenary. Perhaps the largest single event of the celebrations will he the world Expo 88, to be staged in Brisbane from April to October. Its theme will be "Leisure in the Age of Technology". Britain, I am happy to say, was the first country to accept the Australian invitation to participate and we have secured an excellent pavilion in a central position. Our display will feature the very best of British design and high technology in the field of leisure. The Government are sponsoring the pavilion, with additional contributions from the private sector.

The Britain-Australia Bicentennial Committee has endorsed about 150 other national and regional bicentennial events to take place both in Australia and in this country. They include, as well as the visit of a group of 60 or so schoolchildren and teachers from Lincolnshire (of which I am aware in the context of the Department of Education and Science), tours by the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal Ballet and the exhibition, which I warmly commend to your Lordships, First Impressions—The British Discovery of Australia, currently on display at the Natural History Museum in South Kensington. I cannot contribute to this debate without in this respect paying a warm tribute to Sir Peter Gadsden, chairman of the Britain-Australia Bicentennial Committee, and to the many others involved in Britain's participation in the celebrations.

As we have been reminded, our trade with Australia remains healthy, despite Australia's current economic difficulties. We see Australia as an attractive and valuable market for British exporters. In the course of 1988, the Department of Trade and Industry is sponsoring 21 trade missions to Australia by United Kingdom companies. Furthermore, the Government have been making a particular effort recently to strengthen our political relations with Australia. We are convinced that we can learn a great deal from Australia as we work together on international political problems.

The Government are totally in sympathy with the affection for Australia that prompted the noble Lord, Lord Willis, to ask his Unstarred Question. The natural and spontaneous affection of the people of this country for Australia and Australians has been evidenced in this debate.

The proposal which stimulated our debate, however, is not one which, as we have been reminded, Her Majesty's Government have it in their power to carry out. The power of assigning street names in London is vested in the City of London and the London boroughs. I am sure that noble Lords will agree that, when Parliament has given a discretion to a local authority in a particular matter, it is for that authority to make up its own mind on it. But I feel sure that the many suggestions made by your Lordships will be taken on board by the boroughs; for example, the appropriateness of the new London docklands, as suggested by, I believe, the noble Earl, Lord Grey, for a special association with Australia.

In fact, I have to say that it is not only in this country that people might wonder about changing the name of a major London street. I believe that many Australians would object if, for example, we re-named Piccadilly "Australia Way", and where would they stay if there was no longer an Earl's Court?

However, it may interest your Lordships to know how widely Australian names already feature in the role of London streets. Sydney features no less than 19 times, Melbourne 18 times, Canberra six times and Brisbane five times. Austral, Australia, Hobart and Tasmania, among others are also represented.

These Australian names of our streets are a reminder of the enduring nature of our warm and friendly tics with Australia. Most of them, of course, come from this country. Since the arrival of the first fleet in Botany Bay in 1788, our histories have been, and are still, very closely linked. We have naturally had some differences over the years but these have never been great. How much more often, as we have been reminded, have we stood side by side. On the field of battle we have both paid dearly to defeat together tyranny and totalitarianism.

Australia started her modern history as an outpost of Empire, a branch of Europe in the South Pacific. She reaches her bicententary as a major Pacific state with which the United Kingdom is on the very best of terms. Tomorrow, 26th January, is Australia Day and the 200th birthday itself. Among the many celebratory parties will be one at Australia House here in London, given by the High Commissioner, Doug McClelland. he will be well known to many of your Lordships, who, I am sure, will agree that he and his staff do a tremendous job here for Australia and for relations between Britain and Australia, as indeed does our own High Commission in Canberra. I am sure that all your Lordships will join me in hoping that the Australian people will continue to flourish and prosper. We now look forward to the next hundred years.

House adjourned at twenty-four minutes past seven o'clock.