Monica Mary Gould (born 5 May 1957) is a former

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n 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 ...

between September 1993 and November 2006, representing Doutta Galla Province. Gould was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, and finished her secondary studies at a technical college in the suburb of

Macleod MacLeod, McLeod and Macleod ( ) which cited: are surnames in the English language. Generally, the names are considered to be Anglicised forms of the Scottish Gaelic ', meaning "son of '". One of the earliest occurrences of the surname is of Gi ...

. She became involved in the Manufacturing Grocers Association

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

, which later merged with the

National Union of Workers The National Union of Workers was an Australian trade union formed in 1989. History The National Union of Workers of Australia was formed by a progressive amalgamation of unions from 1989 onwards in a time when all Australian unions were merging ...

. In 1980, she became its General Vice-President – a position which she held until her election to parliament. She was also a member of the

Australian Council of Trade Unions The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), originally the Australasian Council of Trade Unions, is the largest peak body representing workers in Australia. It is a national trade union centre of 46 affiliated unions and eight trades and la ...

executive between 1991 and 1993. In 1993, Gould decided to make a move into politics, and succeeded in securing Labor pre-selection for a by-election in the seat of

Doutta Galla Province Doutta Galla Province was an electorate 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. Bot ...

. During her first term, which was only three years, because of the circumstances of her election, she was a member of the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee. She was re-elected in 1996, and was subsequently appointed Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council and Shadow Minister for Aged Care. Gould also became a member of both the Law Reform and Legislative Council Privileges Committees. In the months leading up to the 1999 election, Gould was again promoted – this time to the position of Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council. She was also made responsible for the Housing portfolio. In late 1999, the Labor Party won government, defeating Premier

Jeff Kennett Jeffrey Gibb Kennett (born 2 March 1948) is a former Australian politician who was the 43rd Premier of Victoria between 1992 and 1999, and currently a media commentator. He was previously the president of the Hawthorn Football Club, serving ...

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 ...

government. Gould continued on as Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council, and continued her rise, becoming the Minister for Industrial Relations and Minister Assisting the Minister for WorkCover. By February 2002, Gould was demoted. She was appointed to the new position of Minister for Education Services and Youth Affairs. After the 2002 election, Gould was dumped from the ministry. She also lost her position as Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council, being replaced by

John Lenders John Lenders (born 1 October 1958) is an Australian politician. He represented the Southern Metropolitan Region in the Victorian Legislative Council. He was most notably the Minister for Education in the Bracks Government and Treasurer of Vic ...

. She was subsequently appointed as the first woman President of the Legislative Council. She retired from Parliament at the 2006 election. In March 2018 Gould was inducted into the

Victorian Honour Roll of Women The Victorian Honour Roll of Women was established in 2001 to recognise the achievements of women from the Australian state of Victoria. The Honour Roll was established as part of the celebrations of Victoria's Centenary of Federation. Public no ...

for her work encouraging women members of the Victorian branch in the Australian Labor Party.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gould, Monica 1957 births Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Presidents of the Victorian Legislative Council 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council