Percy John Robert "Perc" Tucker (5 December 1919 – 20 August 1980) was a member of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly ...

. He was the

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

in 1974.

Biography

Tucker was born in

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of the ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, the son of Percy Clifford Tucker and his wife Beatrice (née Guthrie). He was educated at Rockhampton state and high schools before being employed in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

by the Department of Public Works in 1937. He then worked as a

draftsman A drafter (also draughtsman / draughtswoman in British and Commonwealth English, draftsman / draftswoman or drafting technician in American and Canadian English) is an engineering technician who makes detailed technical drawings or plans for m ...

in Rockhampton before moving to

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

in 1955Death of Mr P.J.R. Tucker
—

Hansard ''Hansard'' is the traditional name of the transcripts of parliamentary debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833), a London printer and publisher, who was the first official print ...

. Retrieved 24 April 2016. and continuing the trade until 1960. 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 ...

Tucker enlisted with the

RAAF "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

in December 1940 but was discharged a month later. Then in March 1943 Tucker once again enlisted, this time with the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

and served with the 42nd Australian Infantry Battalion in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

and Bouganville.TUCKER, PERCY JOHN ROBERT
— World War II Nominal Roll. Retrieved 24 April 2016. From 1948 until 1955 he was a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the reserve army. On 20 June 1944 he married Isabel Mary Campbell, a hairdresser, at the Holy Trinity Church in

Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airpor ...

Tucker, Percy John Robert (Perc) (1919–1980)
—

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

. Retrieved 24 April 2016. and together had three sons and a daughter. One son, Rodney, died at a young age in 1956Family history research
– Queensland Government births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. Retrieved 24 April 2016. after breaking his arm and died on the operating table whilst under

anaesthetic An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; see spelling differences) is a drug used to induce anesthesia ⁠— ⁠in other words, to result in a temporary loss of sensation or awareness. They may be divided into two ...

. Tucker died in Townsville in August 1980 and his funeral was held at the John Knox Presbyterian church and he was later

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

Public life

Tucker, representing the Labor Party, won the new seat of Townsville North at the

1960 Queensland state election Elections were held in the Australian state of Queensland on 28 May 1960 to elect the 78 members of the state's Legislative Assembly. The election followed the enactment of the ''Electoral Districts Act 1958'' which increased the Assembly from ...

s. He held the seat until it was abolished for the

1972 Queensland state election Elections were held in the Australian state of Queensland on 27 May 1972 to elect the 82 members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The Country-Liberal Coalition won its sixth consecutive victory since it won government in 1957 and als ...

s, at which Tucker followed most of his constituents into the new seat of Townsville West. From July 1966 until July 1974 Tucker was the deputy opposition leader under

Jack Houston John William Houston (30 December 1919 – 27 October 2008) was an Australian politician. He was the Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch), Labor member for Electoral district of Bulimba, Bulimba in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland f ...

. In July 1974 he challenged Houston for the leadership and defeated him by 17 votes to 15. Facing an election later that year, Tucker famously vowed to give Premier

Joh Bjelke-Petersen Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen (13 January 191123 April 2005), known as Joh Bjelke-Petersen, was a conservative Australian politician. He was the longest-serving and longest-lived premier of Queensland, holding office from 1968 to 1987, during ...

a "hiding." However, the Queensland ALP was roundly defeated, falling to a "cricket team" of only 11 seats. Tucker himself lost his own seat to National

Max Hooper Maxwell David "Max" Hooper (20 January 1926 – 19 November 2000) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Biography Hooper was born in Townsville, Queensland, the son of Archibald David Hooper and his wife Ada Beatrice (née Carr ...

–one of the few instances in which a major-party leader at the federal, state or territory level has been rolled in his own seat. Tucker wasn't finished with politics however, and in 1976 he was elected the mayor of Townsville, holding the role until his death in 1980. The Perc Tucker Regional Gallery (opened 1981) in Townsville is named in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, Percy Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 1919 births 1980 deaths Leaders of the Opposition in Queensland Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Queensland 20th-century Australian politicians Mayors of Townsville Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Army officers