CANBERRA, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called for the country to establish a fund to help pay for the restoration of France’s Notre Dame Cathedral.
The world is in grief over the 850-year-old Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, which is devastated by ferocious blaze on Monday afternoon.
Responding to the fire on social media on Tuesday morning Australian time, Turnbull, who was deposed as the prime minister by his own party in August 2018, called on his successor Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten, leader of the Opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP), to agree to the fund.
“Our heartfelt sympathies are with the people of Paris as their ancient Notre Dame Cathedral is engulfed by flame,” he wrote.
“Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten should today agree to establish an Australian fund to support the restoration of Notre Dame so that Australians can show their solidarity once again with the people of France.”
Addressing Turnbull’s proposal, Shorten offered his support.
“I would like to echo something Malcolm Turnbull has just said, I think Australia should contribute to a restoration fund,” he told reporters on the campaign trail for the general election, according to The Australian.
“Notre Dame doesn’t just belong to Paris or France it belongs to the world.
“I think all of us who have enjoyed that architecture, that history, should perhaps rally around and help Paris and Notre Dame.”
Morrison recalled visiting Notre Dame with his wife Jenny nearly 30 years ago.
"It's a pretty special place and to see it in flames today was just really sad," he told Adelaide's 5AA radio on Tuesday.
"Paris is an eternal city and it will rebuild and it will restore."
