Former Army Chief David Morrison has been named Australian of the Year.
As head of the army David Morrison championed gender diversity and acceptance of LGBT service personnel.
Since retiring last year Morrison has been the chair of the Australian Diversity Council.
The Lieutenant General, who retired last year, was the Australian Capital Territory’s nominee for the award. General Morrison accepted the honour from Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull at a ceremony held outside at Parliament House.
Accepting the award General Morrison said he would focus on three areas over the coming year, including domestic violence, diversity and the gender pay gap and the republican movement.
General Morrison said the work combating domestic violence undertaken by 2015’s Australian of the Year Rosie Batty could not be achieved in single year. General Morrison vowed to continue the work Ms Batty had begun.
The General also highlighted that women in Australia still earn significantly less than men and announced his support for Australia becoming a republic.
General Morrison made national headlines in 2013 when he released a video outlining a significant shift of attitude within the Australian army. General Morrison bluntly said those who could not accept women as equals in the service should “get out”.
His famous speech was written by Catherine Mcgregor, the highest ranking transgender woman in the armed forces. Ms McGregor was also a candidate for Australian of the Year.
