Peter Duncan (Australian politician)
Peter Duncan | |
|---|---|
| Minister for Employment and Education Services | |
| In office 19 January 1988 – 4 April 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | Bob Hawke |
| Preceded by | Clyde Holding |
| Succeeded by | Peter Baldwin |
| Minister for Land Transport and Infrastructure Support | |
| In office 24 July 1987 – 19 January 1988 | |
| Prime Minister | Bob Hawke |
| Preceded by | office established |
| Succeeded by | Clyde Holding |
| Member of the Australian Parliament for Makin | |
| In office 1 December 1984 – 2 March 1996 | |
| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Trish Draper |
| Minister for Health | |
| In office 15 March 1979 – 18 September 1979 | |
| Premier | Des Corcoran |
| Preceded by | Jennifer Cashmore |
| Succeeded by | Don Banfield |
| Attorney-General of South Australia | |
| In office 9 October 1975 – 15 March 1979 | |
| Premier | Don Dunstan |
| Preceded by | Don Dunstan |
| Succeeded by | Don Banfield |
| Member of the South Australian House of Assembly for Elizabeth | |
| In office 10 March 1973 – 25 October 1984 | |
| Preceded by | John Clark |
| Succeeded by | Martyn Evans |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1 January 1945 |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Party | Australian Labor Party |
| Alma mater | University of Adelaide |
Peter Duncan (born 1 January 1945) is an Australian politician and businessman who has represented the Australian Labor Party in both state and federal politics. He served as a member of the South Australian parliament from 1973 to 1984, and as a member of the federal parliament from 1984 to 1996. He is one of relatively few members of parliament to have served not only in both a state and national parliament, but also as a minister in both cases.
Peter Duncan was born in Melbourne and attended the University of Adelaide, where he studied law and was co-editor of the student newspaper On Dit in 1968. He was elected to the South Australian House of Assembly for the electorate of Elizabeth in the 1973 South Australian election, when he was 28.[1]
In state parliament, Duncan served as 41st Attorney-General of South Australia from 1975 until 1979, and then as Minister for Health until the defeat of the Corcoran Labor government at the 1979 state election. He resigned from state politics in 1984, sparking an Elizabeth by-election, in order to contest the seat of Makin in the 1984 Australian federal election, which he retained at every election until Labor’s federal defeat in 1996.[2]
Duncan was Minister for Land Transport and Infrastructure Support for the last half of 1987 and Minister for Employment and Education Services for over three years from 1988 to 1990. After leaving the ministry in 1990, he became Parliamentary Secretary to the Attorney-General in December 1991, a post he held until Labor lost office.[1]
Duncan had a business career after politics, which became a source of controversy when he was charged in September 2007 with 'making an untrue statement in application for a Commonwealth grant and with dishonestly causing loss to a Commonwealth entity'.[3] It was reported that this had occurred in the wake of the failure of his plastic recycling business Omnipol.[4] He was subsequently ordered to stand trial on three counts in the South Australian District Court.[5] Duncan went on trial on 3 November 2008, pleading not guilty.[6] On 11 November, he was acquitted on all charges.[7]
Notes
- ^ a b "The Hon. Peter Duncan". Australian Parliamentary Handbook online. Parliament of Australia. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
- ^ "Hon Peter Duncan". Former members of the Parliament of South Australia. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
- ^ Riches, Sam (5 September 2007). "Peter Duncan arrested". AdelaideNow. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
- ^ "Former Hawke minister refused passport by court". ABC News. 12 September 2007. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
- ^ Pia Akerman, 'Hawke minister to stand trial on fraud charge', The Australian, 31 October 2007
- ^ "Duncan fraud trial starts in SA". ABC News. 3 November 2008. Archived from the original on 6 November 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ "Former minister acquitted in fraud trial". ABC News. 11 November 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2009.