Maureen Anne Lyster (born 10 September 1943) is an Australian politician. She was a Labor Party member of the

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Co ...

from 1985 to 1992, representing

Chelsea Province Chelsea Province was an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Council. It existed as a two-member electorate from 1976 to 2006, with members holding alternating eight-year terms. It was a marginal seat throughout its existence, and was won by ...

. Lyster was educated at Brigidine College, the Gippsland Institute of Advanced Education, and the Melbourne College of Education. She was a primary and secondary teacher and librarian for most of her career prior to entering politics, though she worked as a teachers' union official from 1983 until her election to parliament in 1985. She held a number of roles in the Labor Party prior to her election, serving on the party's administrative committee from 1980 to 1982, its public office selection committee from 1974 to 1986, and as a member of its education policy committee from 1982 to 1984. Lyster was elected to the Legislative Council at the 1985 state election, succeeding veteran Labor MP

Eric Kent Daniel Eric Kent (30 June 1919 – 26 April 2019) was an Australian politician, elected as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council in 1970. Early life Kent was born at Areegra near Warracknabeal to Daniel Kent, a wheat and wool grower ...

in his seat of Chelsea Province. She became parliamentary secretary to the Cabinet in 1988. In 1989, she was promoted to Minister for Local Government after the National Party blocked a Labor attempt to increase the number of ministers that could be constitutionally appointed from the Legislative Assembly, resulting in her appointment instead of right faction candidate and MLA

Barry Rowe Barry John Rowe (born 15 October 1945) is a former Australian politician. He was born in Melbourne, and attended St Bernard's College in Moonee Ponds and then Monash University, where he received a Bachelor of Economics, and Hawthorn State Colle ...

. In September that year, she was subject to a successful no-confidence motion in parliament, which would not happen to a state minister again until 2009. Lyster was promoted again to

Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Count ...

in 1991. She was defeated by Liberal

Sue Wilding Sue deCarteret Wilding (born 13 September 1948) was an Australian politician. She was born in Guernsey, migrating with her family to Australia in 1957. She attended Dandenong North Primary School and Frankston High School and worked as a denta ...

at the 1992 state election, one of many Labor MPs to lose their seats in the party's landslide defeat that year. Lyster held a number of roles in the health sector after leaving politics, including as CEO of Riding for the Disabled (1993), CEO of the Alzheimers' Association of Victoria (1993–1996), CEO of Aged Care Australia (1996–2000), and a stint as a board member of Mercy Health and Aged Care thereafter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyster, Maureen Anne 1943 births Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Ministers for Health (Victoria) Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council