Barrie Unsworth
Barrie Unsworth | |
---|---|
![]() Unsworth as premierc.1987 | |
36thPremier of New South Wales Elections:1988 | |
In office 4 July 1986 – 25 March 1988 | |
Monarch | Elizabeth II |
Governor | Sir James Rowland |
Deputy | Ron Mulock |
Preceded by | Neville Wran |
Succeeded by | Nick Greiner |
Member of theNew South Wales Parliament forRockdale | |
In office 2 August 1986 – 3 May 1991 | |
Preceded by | Brian Bannon |
Succeeded by | George Thompson |
Member of theLegislative Council of New South Wales | |
In office 6 November 1978 – 15 July 1986 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Dubbo,New South Wales,Australia | 16 April 1934
Political party | Labor Party |
Spouse |
Pauline Hennessy (m.1955) |
Profession | Trade union official |
Barrie John Unsworth(born 16 April 1934) is an Australian former politician, representing theLabor Partyin theParliament of New South Walesfrom 1978 to 1991. He served as the 36thPremierfrom July 1986 to March 1988. Since the death ofSteele Hallon 10 June 2024, Unsworth is the oldest living premier of an Australian state.
Early years[edit]
Unsworth, the son of Joseph and Olive Unsworth, was born inDubbo,New South Wales,and educated in Sydney, atKogarah High School.On leaving school at age 15, he was apprenticed as an electrical fitter. In 1955, aged 21 years, he married Pauline Hennessy and they subsequently had one daughter and three sons, one of whom has died; he and his wife have nine grandchildren, and two great grandsons. Unsworth was initially an Apprentice Electrical Fitter, then Electrical Fitter, Electrical Testing Officer and subsequently Sales Representative forSydney County Councilfrom 1950 until 1960.[1]
Unsworth had a brief period of military national service in 1953–1954 in theRoyal Australian Navy(RAN).[1]
Union career[edit]
In 1961, Unsworth became an organiser of theElectrical Trades Union,and continued to build his career in thelabour movement.He was awarded aChurchill Fellowshipin 1966 to attendHarvard UniversityTrade Union Program. The following year he was elected to theLabor Council of NSWand was its elected Secretary from 1979 to 1984. Unsworth was an Australian delegate to His Royal Highness theDuke of EdinburghStudy Conference,Oxford Universityin 1974.[1][2]
During his career as an elected union official, he was appointed by theWranLabor NSW Government to a range of positions on government bodies including:
- Public Transport Commission of New South Wales, Commissioner (1972–1975)
- Pipeline Authority, Member (1973–1978)
While working in the union movement Unsworth worked for the United States of America in what a historian has called "a discreet relationship".[3]
Political career[edit]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Barrie_Unsworth_1972.jpg/220px-Barrie_Unsworth_1972.jpg)
Unsworth was elected a member of theNew South Wales Legislative Councilin1978.While serving in the Legislative Council, Unsworth represented Australia as a delegate at theInternational Labour Organization(ILO) Worker Participation in Management Conferences held in Geneva (1980) and The Hague (1981).
In theWranLabor Government, Unsworth was Minister for Transport (1984–1986) and Minister for Health (February–July 1986).[4]
After the surprise retirement of PremierNeville Wranin May 1986, he became leader of the NSWLabor Partyand thusPremier,and was also Minister for Ethnic Affairs and Minister for State Development. As Premiers are required by convention to be members of theLegislative Assembly,Brian Bannon,the member for the normally safe Labor seat ofRockdale,resigned to accept a government job as Chairman of the Homebush States Sport Centre Trust,[5]and Unsworth contested theresulting by-electionheld on 2 August 1986. He only narrowly won the seat, with a 17.1% dive in the primary vote and hostile independent preferences giving him a margin of just 54 votes.[6]A by-election for Wran's equally safe seat ofBass Hillwas even worse, with a 22.2 per cent drop on the primary vote delivering a 103-vote victory to the Liberal candidate.[6]
Unsworth was Premier for two years[1]until the Labor Party's landslide defeat by the Liberals'Nick Greinerin the1988 elections.Unsworth did not contest the 1991 election.
Life after politics[edit]
Immediately following politics, Unsworth had little political involvement with his only public commitment being as Deputy Chairman and then Chairman of the Australian Executive Committee for His Royal Highness Duke of Edinburgh Study Conference (1982–1998). Unsworth was General Manager of 2KY Broadcasters Pty Ltd Racing Radio 1992–2000. In 2001, he was a recipient of theCentenary Medal.[7]
Following the election of theCarrLabor Government in 1995, Unsworth was placed on a number of key government and community bodies, including:
- Australia Day Council of New South Wales, Chairman (1995–2003)
- Totalizator Agency Board, Director (1997–2004)
- Delta Electricity, Director (1997–2006)
- New South Wales Centenary of Federation Committee, Chairman (1997–2002)
- Tempo Services, Director (1999–2005)
- Ambulance Service of New South Wales,Chairman (2001–2008)
- RailCorp,Director (2005–2008)
- State Transit Authority,Chairman (November 2004 to November 2009)[1]
- WorkCover Authority of New South Wales,Chairman (1995–1997)[1]
- Constitution Education Fund Australia, Trustee
During 2003 - 2008, Unsworth was a Director of FatherChris Riley's charity,Youth off the Streets,that provides crisis care, refuges, schools, drug programs and alcohol programs to young people in Australia and throughout Asia. Unsworth has also been a Director of Entherm Pty Ltd (2003–2005), Member of Overseas Trade Authority of New South Wales (1978) and a Director ofManly-Warringah Sea Eagles(2004–2006).[1]
In 2003 and 2004, Unsworth was commissioned by the NSW Government to conduct a formal review of public bus services.[8]In 2008 he headed a committee that considered the privatisation of the New South Wales' electricity industry.[9]The committee and Unsworth supported the sale.[10]
Unsworth lives in the Northern Beaches where he has participated in community campaigns to stop overdevelopment in NSW.[11]He also led the effort to purchase and preserve the former home of Gough Whitlam as a historic site which would be open to the public.[12]
References[edit]
- ^abcdefg"The Hon. Barrie John Unsworth (1934–)".Former members of theParliament of New South Wales.Retrieved10 May2019.
- ^"The Hon. Barrie John Unsworth (1934–)".NSW Parliamentary Papers.State Library of New South Wales.Archived fromthe originalon 19 February 2011.Retrieved13 June2010.
- ^Coventry, C. J., "The Eloquence of Robert J Hawke: United States informer, 1973-79,"Australian Journal of Politics and History,67:1 (2021), 69.
- ^"Chronological List of Ministries (1856 to 2009)".Former Members of Parliament.Parliament of New South Wales.Archived fromthe originalon 15 March 2011.Retrieved13 June2010.
- ^Green, Antony."1986 Rockdale By-election".New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007.Parliament of New South Wales.Retrieved1 July2020.
- ^ab"By-election bloodbaths".Crikey.27 November 2005. Archived fromthe originalon 5 October 2011.Retrieved13 June2010.
- ^"Centenary Medal".It's an Honour.Australian Government. 1 January 2001.Retrieved11 February2013.
- ^"Ministerial Review of Bus Services in NSW (Unsworth Review)".NSW Government, Ministry of Transport. 15 July 2004. Archived fromthe originalon 9 November 2007.Retrieved26 November2007.
- ^"Unsworth to head electricity committee".The Sydney Morning Herald.21 January 2008.
- ^"NSW electricity privatisation bid rejected".ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). 3 May 2008.
- ^"Former NSW Premier Barrie Unsworth sells Mona Vale townhouse - realestate.com.au".www.realestate.com.au.Retrieved30 April2023.
- ^"Group led by former NSW Premier buys Sydney home of Gough Whitlam after bidding war".ABC News.19 February 2021.Retrieved30 April2023.
- 1934 births
- Australian public servants
- Australian republicans
- Australian trade unionists
- Living people
- Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
- Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council
- People from Dubbo
- Premiers of New South Wales
- Royal Australian Navy sailors
- Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales