John had a quick wit and a sense of mischief and was a very accomplished writer (a skill clearly shared with his award winning journalist son James).
But beneath this humorous style lay a determined and hardnosed reformer who could drive through great changes to his party and to the Australian economy – particularly in the manufacturing sector.
The Button Steel Plan and the Button Car Plan are testament to that determination and also to the skill of his advisers which included economists of the calibre of Nick Gruen and Mike Lawson.
My last correspondence with John centred on his two great loves – the Geelong Football Club and politics as we discussed the Cats’ record grand final win last September and of course, the Kevin-07 campaign and election result in November. He received the news about his illness about the same time as he was finally finding joy in his two winning teams.
John died in the same week as
