Former Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam has died at the age of 98.

He was credited with transforming Australian society in the 1970s after 23 years of conservative government, introducing many far-reaching reforms.

But his government was plagued by resignations and the governor-general dismissed it after just three years.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott described Mr Whitlam as a "giant of his time" and said flags across Australia would fly at half-mast on Tuesday.

In a statement, Mr Withlam's family said he was an "inspiration to us and our families and for millions of Australians".

Mr Whitlam's reforms included introducing free university education, abolishing the death penalty and allowing non-white immigrants into Australia.

It is difficult to overestimate the influence of Gough Whitlam on the Australian political and civic landscape.

A giant both physically and politically, his vision for a modern Australia was loved and loathed in almost equal measure. He spent less than three years in office but much of the legacy of his government's reforms remains today.

His achievements range from those on the international stage - he was one of the early few to openly advocate for Australian and international recognition of communist China - to the more pedestrian such as connecting all houses in Australia's capital cities to sewerage.

Along the way, his government managed to shake-up conservative, white Australia by reforming family law, moving to equal pay for women and starting what would turn out to be a very long process of entrenching in law Aboriginal land rights.

He tackled the nation's cultural cringe too by introducing Australia's own honours system and introducing free access to universities, which saw a wave of people become the first in their families to receive higher education.

(BBC)