A statue will be built in the nation's capital to honour former prime minister Gough Whitlam.

Fifty years after the reforming Labor leader was sacked by the governor general, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the statue would honour the achievements of the Whitlam government.

"Australians will be able to stand with Gough, put an arm around the great man's shoulders, and remind ourselves that if we maintain our enthusiasm, it's always time," Mr Albanese said on Monday night in a speech at Old Parliament House.

Mr Albanese said the statue would welcome Australians to the building where Mr Whitlam served as prime minister and on whose steps he was ultimately dismissed.

Labor figures see Mr Whitlam as a reforming hero who introduced the precursor to Medicare, took the first steps toward

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