Hawke was forced to sack Kerin for making a public gaffe in December 1991, Willis was finally appointed to the role of Treasurer in his place. Keating Government Willis's initial time as Treasurer was brief as Paul Keating launched a second and this time successful challenege to Hawke, just three weeks later. Keating had long promised to appoint his close political ally John Dawkins as Treasurer, and so Keating moved Willis back to the role of Finance Minister in order to accommodate this. Willis retained the role after Labor unexpectedly won a fifth consecutive election in 1993, and was expected to remain in the role until the sudden resignation of Dawkins in December 1993, who had grown frustrated with the role. Willis was duly appointed as Treasurer for a second time by Keating, and was responsible for helping to roll-out the Government's major 'One Nation' economic package on which it had won the 1993 election, including a round of middle-income tax cuts and the establishment of a national infrastructure commission. Willis remained as Treasurer until the 1996 election, which Labor heavily lost; in the weeks before the election, Willis chose to unilaterally release a letter purportedly written by Liberal Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett, which suggested that a Coalition Government led by John Howard would cut grants to the states. However, media examination quickly revealed the letter to be a forgery, allegedly foisted on Willis by Melbourne University Liberal Club students. This successful ruse had a significantly adverse impact upon the last week of Labor's campaign. After the 1996 election, Willis chose to move to the backbench and announced his retirement from Parliament prior to the 1998 election. Willis was one of only three people to be a member of the Cabinet continuously during the Hawke-Keating Government between 1983 and 1996, the other two being Kim Beazley and Gareth Evans. At the time of his retirement from Parliament, Willis was the only MP from the time of the Whitlam Government still serving. Following his retirement from politics, Willis has served on several boards of companies and charities. Honours Willis was awarded the Centenary Medal in 2001 for long service to the Commonwealth Parliament. On 13 June 2011, he was named an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia, particularly in the areas of economic development and industrial relations, to the superannuation industry, and to