Sir Alister Maxwell McMullin, (14 July 1900 – 7 August 1984) was an Australian politician who served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

from 1951 to 1971, representing the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. He was

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...

for a record term of almost 18 years, from 1953 to 1971.

Early life

McMullin was the youngest of seven children born to Catherine (née McDonald) and William George McMullin. He was born on his father's grazing property ''Bingeberry'' in Rouchel,

, near the town of

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. He was educated at Rouchel Public School. After his father's death in 1928, McMullin bought ''Yarramoor'', a property where he raised prime lambs. He served on the

Upper Hunter Shire The Upper Hunter Shire is a local government area in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed in May 2004 from the Scone Shire and parts of Murrurundi and Merriwa shires. The Mayor of the Upper Hunter Sh ...

Council. McMullin enlisted in the Australian Army in July 1940, transferring to the Royal Australian Air Force in January 1941. He finished the war with the rank of

flight lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the India ...

and briefly commanded

No. 42 Squadron RAAF No. 42 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Minelayer, mine laying and maritime patrol Squadron (aviation), squadron of World War II formed in June 1944. It conducted patrol and mine-laying operations over the Dutch East Indies, Neth ...

. He was demobilised on 22 February 1946 and married Thelma Louise Smith on 23 November.

Politics

McMullin twice attempted to enter the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

, standing as a candidate at the 1931 Upper Hunter by-election and as one of three candidates at the 1941 Liverpool Plains election, but was unsuccessful. In 1951, he was elected to the

Australian Senate The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives (Australia), House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Chapter ...

as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Senator for New South Wales. In 1953, he succeeded Ted Mattner as

; he served as President for 18 years, until his retirement from the Senate in 1971. He is thus the longest serving President of the Senate in Australian history. He was closely associated with the planning and development of the

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

as Chairman of the Australian Advisory Council on Bibliographical Services, Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library Committee and Deputy Chairman of the Council of the National Library of Australia. He was also involved in the preparation of plans for the new

Parliament House Parliament House may refer to: Australia * Parliament House, Canberra, Parliament of Australia * Parliament House, Adelaide, Parliament of South Australia * Parliament House, Brisbane, Parliament of Queensland * Parliament House, Darwin, Parliame ...

in Canberra as Chairman of a special Parliamentary Joint Select Committee. He represented the Australian Government at numerous international events, including the

funeral of John F. Kennedy The state funeral of John F. Kennedy, 35th U.S. President, took place in Washington, D.C., during the three days that followed his assassination on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Kennedy's body was brought back to Washington afte ...

Whilst serving as President of the Senate, McMullin was appointed a Knight Commander of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

in 1957.

Other activities

Outside politics McMullin was Chancellor of the University of Newcastle from 1966 until 1977. He died at the Scone District Nursing Home in 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McMullin, Alister Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian Senate for New South Wales Members of the Australian Senate Presidents of the Australian Senate 1900 births 1984 deaths Australian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George 20th-century Australian politicians Chancellors of the University of Newcastle (Australia)