Harry Holgate

The Honourable Harry Holgate AO
36thPremier of Tasmania
In office 11 November 1981 – 26 May 1982
Deputy	Michael Barnard
Preceded by	Doug Lowe
Succeeded by	Robin Gray
Constituency	Bass
Personal details
Born	(1933-12-05)5 December 1933 Maitland,NSW,Australia
Died	16 March 1997(1997-03-16)(aged 63) Launceston,Tasmania,Australia
Political party	Labor Party
Spouse(s)	Rosalind Wesley Katharine White
Occupation	Journalist

Harold Norman HolgateAO(5 December 1933 – 16 March 1997) was an Australian politician. He waspremier of Tasmaniafrom 1981 to 1982, serving as state leader of theAustralian Labor Party(ALP) during that period. He succeededDoug Loweas party leader and premier during internal conflict over theFranklin Dam controversy,leading the ALP to defeat at the1982 state electionjust over six months after taking office.

Early life

Holgate was born on 5 December 1933 inMaitland, New South Wales.He was the son of Aleen Margaret (née Norman) and Harold William Holgate. His father, a journalist by profession, was killed in action during World War II while serving with theRoyal Australian Air Force(RAAF).

Holgate attendedMaitland Boys' High School.He joined theSydney Morning Heraldas a cadet in 1952 and later moved to Melbourne where he worked forThe Herald.He was also active in radio and television.He arrived in Tasmania in 1963 to work forThe ExaminerinLaunceston.He was the newspaper's political correspondent and deputy chief of staff, later transferring to the state government's Directorate of Industrial Development and Trade where he was a publicity manager. He joinedABC Televisionin 1970 as the executive producer of the Tasmanian edition ofThis Day Tonight.

Holgate's time at the ABC was controversial due to his open alignment with the ALP. Following his endorsement as an ALP candidate in 1972, four reporters onThis Day Tonightstated that his role would compromise the political independence of the program and their role as independent reporters.Holgate was reinstated to the ABC after the 1972 election and the four reporters subsequently resigned.

Politics

Holgate joined the ALP in the 1950s. He first stood for parliament at the1972 state election,unsuccessfully contesting the seat ofBass.He subsequently served as press secretary to Tasmanian MP and deputy prime ministerLance Barnard.

Holgate was elected to theTasmanian House of Assemblyin 1974 following a recount after the resignation ofAllan Foster.He was electedspeaker of the House of Assemblyin 1975 in place ofEric Barnard,after less than a year in parliament. According to his ALP colleagueMichael Polley,"other MPs, includingMichael BarnardandHedley Farquhar,saw Harry as a threat and decided to shut him up and put him in as Speaker ".

As speaker, Holgate developed a high profile and was nicknamed "Headline Harry" for his use of publicity stunts.He studied part-time at theUniversity of Tasmaniaduring his first years in parliament and graduatedBachelor of Artsin 1976.Holgate was re-elected in Bass at the1976 state electionand subsequently resigned as speaker to take up a ministerial appointment in the government ofBill Neilson.He was initially responsible for the housing and reconstruction portfolios, then after a reshuffle in 1977 held the education, recreation and arts portfolios.

Premier of Tasmania

Holgate became Premier in 1981 after amotion of no confidencewas raised againstDoug Lowe,who subsequently resigned from the party. Holgate only stayed in office for seven months, before being defeated byRobin Gray'sLiberalsat the1982 election—only the second time in 48 years that Labor had been consigned to opposition in Tasmania.

By March 1982, Holgate's public approval rating as premier was just 11 percent, with 66 percent disapproving of his performance according to a Morgan Gallup poll.He resigned as leader after the election, stating that he had "tried my best, but we were brought down before I could lead the Labor government back into a position of public esteem".

UntilLara Giddingsin 2014, Holgate was the last defeated Premier who did not then serve as Leader of the Opposition. When the ALP next achieved government in 1989, underMichael Field,Holgate was not included in the cabinet. Nevertheless, he remained a member of parliament until he retired at the1992 election.

Personal life

In 1957, Holgate married Katharine White, the daughter of federal parliamentary librarianHarold White.They soon divorced and in 1963 he remarried to Rosalind Wesley, with whom he had four children.

Holgate was diagnosed with lung and liver cancer in 1996.He died on 16 March 1997 inHillwood, Tasmania,and was granted a state funeral.

External links

• "Harry Holgate".Members of theParliament of Tasmania.Retrieved24 July2022.