John Odin Wentworth Watson (born 25 January 1937), is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

politician. He was 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 ...

member of 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 ...

from 1978 to 2008, representing the state of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. From July 2005 until he left parliament in June 2008, he was the Father of the Senate. Watson was born in Launceston and educated at the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first pro ...

, where he graduated in economics and accountancy. He was a chartered accountant, company director and lecturer in accountancy before entering politics. Watson was a member of the Coalition Shadow Ministry from 1990 to 1994 but never held ministerial office. He was however one of the Senate's leading experts on taxation and superannuation matters and is highly regarded by his Coalition colleagues. He was expected to announce his retirement at the 2007 election, but decided to apply for preselection, despite being 70 years of age. On 12 May 2007, Watson was defeated in his bid for preselection after his decision to recontest sparked anger within the party.

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Watson dumped from Liberal Party senate ticket
from ''ABC News Online'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, John 1937 births Living people Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for Tasmania Members of the Order of Australia 21st-century Australian politicians 20th-century Australian politicians