Keith O'Connell (24 November 1923 — 28 November 2006) was an Australian politician. He was a
Labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
member of 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 ...
from 1971 to 1984, representing
Gosford
Gosford is the city and administrative centre of the Central Coast Council local government area in the heart of the Central Coast region, about north of Sydney and about south of Newcastle. The city centre is situated at the northern extre ...
until 1973 and
Peats thereafter.
O'Connell was born in
East Greta and attended government schools at
Morisset East and
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
before becoming an electrical fitter. In 1952 he became a storekeeper at
Toukley. He was elected to
Wyong Shire Council
Wyong Shire was a local government area located in the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The incorporation of the Wyong area dates back to 7 March 1906 when the entire area of the Brisbane Water Police District outside of the T ...
in 1959, where he served until 1971. He was chairman of
Brisbane Water
Brisbane Water is a wave-dominated barrier estuary located in the Central Coast region, north of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Brisbane Water has its origin at the confluence of the Narara and Coorumbine Creeks, to the south–east ...
County Council from 1960 to 1971 and a member of the local government electricity association from 1960 to 1971, becoming President in his last year. He was also a member of the New South Wales Electricity Authority (1961–1971).
In 1971, O'Connell was selected as the
Labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
candidate for
Gosford
Gosford is the city and administrative centre of the Central Coast Council local government area in the heart of the Central Coast region, about north of Sydney and about south of Newcastle. The city centre is situated at the northern extre ...
and defeated sitting
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 ...
MP
Ted Humphries
Edward Harris Humphries (25 September 1914 – 27 January 1994) was an Australian politician. He was a Liberal Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1965 to 1971, representing the seat of Gosford
Gosford is the city a ...
.
In 1973, the creation of
Peats left Gosford with a Liberal majority, and O'Connell contested the new seat instead. He held the seat easily until his retirement in 1984, which allowed
Paul Landa
David Paul Landa, QC (29 May 194124 November 1984) was an Australian politician. In public life, he was called "Paul Landa". He was a Labor member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1973 to 1984, and the member for Peats in the ...
, Labor's leader in the
Legislative Council, to shift to the Assembly.
O'Connell died in 2006.
[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnell, Keith
1923 births
2006 deaths
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales
20th-century Australian politicians