Frederick Michael Chaney, AO (born 28 October 1941) is a former Australian politician who was deputy leader of 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 ...

from 1989 to 1990 and served as a minister in the Fraser Government. He was 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

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

from 1974 to 1990, and then served a single term in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from 1990 to 1993. Chaney was born in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, the son of Sir Frederick Chaney. He was a lawyer before entering politics, graduating from the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

. Chaney was elected to the Senate at the 1974 federal election. He held several portfolios in the Fraser Government, serving in the ministry from 1978 until the government's defeat at the 1983 election. From 1983 to 1990, Chaney served as Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. He was elected deputy leader of the Liberal Party in 1989, under

Andrew Peacock Andrew Sharp Peacock (13 February 193916 April 2021) was an Australian politician and diplomat. He served as a cabinet minister and went on to become leader of the Liberal Party on two occasions (1983–1985 and 1989–1990), leading the par ...

, but served less than a year before being replaced by

Peter Reith Peter Keaston Reith (15 July 1950 – 8 November 2022) was an Australian politician who served in the House of Representatives from 1982 to 1983 and from 1984 to 2001, representing the Liberal Party. He was the party's deputy leader from 1990 ...

. Chaney transferred to the House of Representatives at the 1990 election, but served only a single term. After leaving politics he focused on indigenous policy matters, serving on the

National Native Title Tribunal The National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT) is an independent body established under the '' Native Title Act 1993'' in Australia as a special measure for the advancement and protection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (Indigenous Au ...

(1994–2007), as co-chair of

Reconciliation Australia Reconciliation Australia is a non-government, not-for-profit foundation established in January 2001 to promote a continuing national focus for reconciliation between Indigenous (i.e. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) and non-Indige ...

(2000–2005), and as co-founder and Vice-President of The Graham (Polly) Farmer Foundation (1995–current).

Early life

Chaney was born in

Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, the son of Sir Frederick Chaney (a minister in the

Menzies Government Menzies is a Scottish surname, with Gaelic forms being Méinnearach and Méinn, and other variant forms being Menigees, Mennes, Mengzes, Menzeys, Mengies, and Minges. Derivation and history The name and its Gaelic form are probably derived f ...

). His six siblings include businessman

Michael Chaney Michael Alfred Chaney (born 15 April 1950) is an Australian businessman and former chancellor of the University of Western Australia. Early life Chaney was born in Perth on 15 April 1950. He was the third-youngest of seven children born to F ...

and judge John Chaney. Chaney was educated at

Aquinas College, Perth , motto_translation = Truth ConquersMassam, p. 18 , location = Salter Point, Perth, Western Australia , country = Australia , patron = Saint Thomas Aquinas , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Australia Perth , pushpin_image ...

, and the

. He practised law and was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in Western Australia in 1963. He spent two years practising in the

Territory of Papua and New Guinea The Territory of Papua and New Guinea, officially the Administrative Union of the Territory of Papua and the Territory of New Guinea, was established by an administrative union between the Australian-administered territories of Papua and New G ...

. Chaney helped found the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia in 1973.

Politics

Chaney first attempted to enter politics at the 1971 Ascot by-election, running for the state Legislative Assembly. He was elected to federal parliament as a Senator for Western Australia for the

at the 1974 election. He was Leader of the Opposition in the Senate from 1983 until 1990 when he became the first member for the

Division of Pearce The Division of Pearce is an Australian electoral division in the state of Western Australia. It was created at the 1989 redistribution and named after George Pearce, the longest serving member of the Australian Senate, serving from 1901 to 1 ...

in the

, a position he held until 1993. Although still a Senator at the time, Chaney was named deputy leader of the Liberal Party in May 1989. He retained this post until April 1990, two months after transferring to the lower house. He was elected Deputy Leader as part of the successful coup that saw Andrew Peacock overthrowing John Howard. This was seen as a betrayal by Howard as he and Chaney had been close friends prior to the coup. Chaney was ousted as deputy leader after the 1990 election, when he unsuccessfully recontested the position in a field of eight candidates and came in third. Chaney had earlier defeated Reith for the deputy's position in the leadership coup that ousted Howard in May 1989 in which Reith was Howard's running mate. Chaney was Minister for Administrative Services from August to December 1978, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs from December 1978 until November 1980 and Minister for Social Security from November 1980 until the defeat of the Fraser Government at the 1983 election. He was also Minister Assisting the Minister for Education from August 1978 to December 1979 and Minister Assisting the Minister for National Development and Energy from December 1979 to November 1980. When Chaney retired in 1993,

John Hewson John Robert Hewson AM (born 28 October 1946) is an Australian former politician who served as leader of the Liberal Party from 1990 to 1994. He led the Liberal-National Coalition to defeat at the 1993 Australian federal election. Hewson was ...

unexpectedly led the Coalition to defeat at that year's election and it is the opinion of analyst and commentator

Antony Green Antony John Green (born 2 March 1960) is an Australian psephologist and commentator. He is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's chief election analyst. Early years and background Born in Warrington, Lancashire, in northern England, Gree ...

that Chaney could have succeeded him as Liberal leader had he not decided to retire. John Hewson described Fred Chaney as the little ..... from the west.

Later life

Chaney was appointed to the

in 1994, initially on a part-time basis. He became a full-time member in 1995 and deputy president in 2000, retiring in 2007. He was also chancellor of

Murdoch University Murdoch University is a public university in Perth, Western Australia, with campuses also in Singapore and Dubai. It began operations as the state's second university on 25 July 1973, and accepted its first undergraduate students in 1975. Its n ...

from 1995 to 2002, and co-chair of

from 2000 to 2005. Chaney left the Liberal Party in 1995, believing that his work "required engagements across party lines and without political involvement". On 15 January 2020, it was announced that Chaney would be one of the members of the National Co-design Group of the Indigenous voice to government.

Criticism of the Liberal Party

In early May 2022, Chaney wrote an article criticising the Liberal Party, saying that the party lost its way. Chaney stated "members f parliamentare no longer able to successfully execute what the electorate demands and it is now in the sad position of being held hostage by its extremes and those of he National Party, in particular the party's lack of action on climate change. Chaney called for the election of more centrist independents, against "politics as usual". Chaney announced support for his niece,

Kate Chaney Katherine Ella Chaney (born 21 January 1975) is an Australian independent politician, who was elected to the Australian House of Representatives at the 2022 Australian federal election, succeeding Liberal Party MP Celia Hammond in the divisi ...

, running as a

Climate 200 Climate 200 is an Australian company that provides political funding. It describes itself as a "community crowdfunding initiative" that supports community-backed independents to stand for election to advance climate policy, reduce greenhouse g ...

-backed independent for the seat of Curtin against the incumbent Liberal member

Celia Hammond Celia Hammond (born 25 July 1943) is an English former model who has since become known as a campaigner against fur and for neutering of cats to control the feral population. Early life Hammond was born to English parents and raised in Australia ...

in the

2022 Australian federal election The 2022 Australian federal election was held on Saturday 21 May 2022 to elect members of the 47th Parliament of Australia. The incumbent Liberal/National Coalition government, led by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, sought to win a fourth conse ...

. Kate Chaney subsequently won the seat at the election.

Honours

Chaney was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AO) in 1997 "for service to the Parliament of Australia and to the Aboriginal community through his contribution to the establishment of the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia and mediating with the National Native Title Tribunal". Chaney was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws from Murdoch University in 2003 "for services towards Aboriginal reconciliation and as Chancellor", and in 2017 the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

awarded him the same honour, "for his exceptional contribution to public service through parliament and his lifelong commitment to Indigenous issues". On 25 January 2014, Prime Minister

Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...

announced Chaney as the 2014 Senior

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territo ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaney, Fred 1941 births Living people People educated at Aquinas College, Perth Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for Western Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Pearce Members of the Cabinet of Australia University of Western Australia alumni Murdoch University Chancellors Officers of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian politicians