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Former Labor senator, powerbroker and political commentator Graham “Richo” Richardson has died aged 76. Richardson served as a cabinet minister in the Hawke and Keating governments and was a Labor senator for NSW for the duration of his parliamentary career. He later became a political commentator and a regular contributor to Sky News Australia. He died early on Saturday after years of health issues, issues. But he had vowed to hang on till his son D’Arcy had completed his HSC exams – which he did on Thursday. “When he had his big health challenge, he said to his wife Amanda, ‘I’m going to live till I see Darcy finish exams and his HSC’,” 2GB host Ben Fordham told the station on Saturday. “Darcy did his last HSC exam on Thursday, which was his French exam. And Richo died this morning.” Fordham said Richardson had suffered bouts of influenza and pneumonia and had been undergoing dialysis. He is survived by his wife Amanda and his son D’Arcy. He had a son and daughter from his first marriage. “I’ve lost the love of my life. D’Arcy’s lost the greatest dad and Australia’s lost one of its best. He was a man ahead of his time,” Amanda said in a statement. Anthony Albanese described Richardson as a “Labor legend”. “He was someone who was very passionate about the cause of Labor,” the Prime Minister told Sky News on Saturday. “He was a true believer, someone who was very much loved within the Labor Party. “He was an ultimate machine man, but also someone who had a real policy impact … the Daintree remains intact today because of Graham Richardson.” Sky News chief executive Paul Whittaker also paid tribute. “During his almost 15 years delivering his frank yet charismatic commentary on political affairs on Sky News, Richo added an insight, expertise, and depth that enhanced political discourse in Australia,” Mr Whittaker said in a statement. “His uncompromising style and enviable ability to call the election result, often before anyone else, cemented him as a key fixture of Sky News’ election night coverage, while his contributions across the network helped shape Sky News into the leading destination for live political news coverage it is today. “Richo was an inspiring and loyal member of the Sky News team whose presence in the newsroom, and on our screens, will be greatly missed. Fordham phoned into the station on Saturday with the news. “This has come as a huge shock to me,” Mr Fordham said on the program. “I’m a great mate of Richo. We were regular lunch companions.” “We’ve been great mates for many years now.” The outspoken political powerbroker had battled ill health for years – dating back to a cancer diagnosis in the 1990s. Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison was among the country’s political figures to pay tribute to the Labor powerbroker. “Jen and I extend our deepest and sincere sympathies to Amanda and Darcy Richardson following the passing of their husband and father Graham and to Graham’s broader family,” he wrote on Instagram. “I first properly met Richo on a seven news set at the old national tally centre in Canberra where we shared a panel on 2010 election night. We struck up an unlikely friendship that continued ever since. “Richo was a good friend. He was loyal, tribal, insightful and truly one of a kind. He showed extraordinary courage during his long running illness and was cared for selflessly by his loving wife Amanda, who has been a saint to him, along with Darcy, as they shared these years together. He was very grateful for his second chance.” Sky News chief news anchor Kieran Gilbert said Richardson had been a great political commentator and friend. “We should remember the career that he had, from the Labor Party machine into the Senate,” Gilbert said. “He served was elected on three occasions. He served across various portfolios, from the environment to transport to health,” “But his legacy is much broader than that. He’s been one of the great political commentators for so long, a key part of our election nights. “It’s is a sad day for all of us at Sky News, a sad day for Labor.” Richardson was a central – and at times controversial – figure in NSW Labor politics for decades.In 1983, became the youngest elected senator at the time. He held several portfolios in the Hawke and Keating governments and has been credited for securing increased protections for native forests in Tasmania, in addition to the heritage listing of Queensland’s Daintree Rainforest and the Northern Territory’s Kakadu National Park while environment minister. Richardson was awarded an Order of Australia honour in 2020 for his service to Parliament, his subsequent career as a political commentator, as well as his philanthropic support of the Fred Hollows Foundation and the Asthma Foundation. More to come
