Medibank Private sale could unleash cutthroat competition, critics warn

By Deborah Snow
Updated October 25 2014 - 9:13am, first published 12:15am
Gough Whitlam, Kay Swinney and John Menadue arrive at Parliament House in 1967. Photo: Fairfax Archive
Gough Whitlam, Kay Swinney and John Menadue arrive at Parliament House in 1967. Photo: Fairfax Archive
"A lot of work lay ahead, but we felt that this could be a breakthrough": Whitlam adviser John Menadue reflects on the birth of Medibank.  Photo: Jim Rice
"A lot of work lay ahead, but we felt that this could be a breakthrough": Whitlam adviser John Menadue reflects on the birth of Medibank. Photo: Jim Rice

John Menadue still carries a sharp image in his head of the night in Melbourne, 47 years ago, when Medibank began crystallising as an idea for Labor.