Gordon John Walsh (30 December 1932 – 14 June 2000) was an Australian politician for the Labor Party.

Early life

Walsh was born in

Welling Welling is an area of South East London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley, west of Bexleyheath, southeast of Woolwich and of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

(now in the

London Borough of Bexley The London Borough of Bexley () is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Crayford, Welling and Old Bexley. The ...

) in England. He was twice evacuated from London with other children during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

at 15, and graduated from the St Omer Military School as a catering instructor. He served in Singapore and Malaya, and emigrated to Australia in 1956 following a voyage there as a ship's cook. After his emigration, he served as a caterer at the

1956 Olympic Games 1956 Olympics refers to both: *The 1956 Winter Olympics, which were held in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy *The 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport even ...

Politics

He was elected as an

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

member of the

Australian Capital Territory Advisory Council The Australian Capital Territory Advisory Council was an elected body that operated from 1930 until 1974, when it was replaced by the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly. The Council originally consisted of three elected members, being ...

in 1964, serving until the Council's abolition in 1974. He was elected to the new Legislative Assembly as a Labor member for

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

in 1974, resigned in 1977, was elected to the renamed House of Assembly in 1979, and served until its abolition in 1986. He was a staunch advocate of self-government for the Territory throughout his time in elected office. In 1968, he challenged the popular and long-serving Labor federal MP Jim Fraser for party preselection, and defeated him on the first vote in a shock result that was later overturned following intervention by the ALP's New South Wales Executive. He was the first Labor leader in the Legislative Assembly from 1974 until 1977, but resigned from the Assembly and the ALP and joined the

Australia Party The Australia Party was a minor political party established initially in 1966 as the Liberal Reform Group. As the Australia Party, it became influential, particularly in the landmark 1972 federal election when its preferences assisted the Austr ...

and then its successor the

Australian Democrats The Australian Democrats is a centrist political party in Australia. Founded in 1977 from a merger of the Australia Party and the New Liberal Movement, both of which were descended from Liberal Party dissenting splinter groups, it was Australia ...

, which he would represent until the dissolution of the House of Assembly in 1986. He served as the president of the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

(ACT) branch of the Democrats starting in 1979, but resigned from that role in 1986 when the federal party opted for a weaker model of independence for the Territory. He was heavily involved in the movement for self-government in the late 1980s, working with a number of other former MHAs in the Home Rule Movement. He had ceased to be involved with any political party by 1989, and did not nominate for the inaugural 1989 election for the modern Legislative Assembly.

Death

Walsh died in 2000, aged 67. He was survived by his wife Naomi.

References

Members of the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly 1932 births 2000 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly Australian Democrat members of the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly 20th-century Australian politicians {{Australia-politician-stub