Shane Leslie Stone (born 25 September 1950) is an Australian
political figure
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
. He is currently the
Chair of the Council for the Order of Australia. He was also the Coordinator-General of the
National Recovery and Resilience Agency and its predecessors until August 2022. He was previously the
Chief Minister of the Northern Territory
The chief minister of the Northern Territory is the head of government of the Northern Territory. The office is the equivalent of a state premier.
When the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly was created in 1974, the head of government was ...
between May 1995 and February 1999, representing the
Country Liberal Party
The Country Liberal Party of the Northern Territory (CLP) is a centre-right political party in Australia's Northern Territory. In local politics it operates in a two-party system with the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It also contests federal ...
.
He was also the
President of the Liberal Party of Australia between July 1999 and 2005.
Political career
1990s
First elected to the
Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory is the unicameral legislature of the Northern Territory of Australia. The Legislative Assembly has 25 members, each elected in single-member electorates for four-year terms. The voting method f ...
Electoral division of Port Darwin
Port Darwin is an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in the Northern Territory of Australia. It was first created in 1974, and is an entirely urban electorate, covering only 5 km² and taking in the Darwin central business di ...
as a member of the
Country Liberal Party
The Country Liberal Party of the Northern Territory (CLP) is a centre-right political party in Australia's Northern Territory. In local politics it operates in a two-party system with the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It also contests federal ...
(CLP) in 1990, Stone held several portfolios, including Attorney-General, Education and the Arts, Employment and Training, Mines and Energy, Industries and Development, and Asian Relations and Trade.
In late 1997 Stone attracted sustained criticism when as the First Law Officer being the Attorney-General he appointed himself a
Queen's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...
.
Stone was the Chief Minister during the
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
for statehood for the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
in 1998. Electors were asked to vote on whether the Northern Territory should become a state with a constitution that had been approved by a Constitutional Assembly. A bipartisan committee of the
Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory is the unicameral legislature of the Northern Territory of Australia. The Legislative Assembly has 25 members, each elected in single-member electorates for four-year terms. The voting method f ...
had recommended a constitution and that it should be further considered by an elected Constitutional Assembly. The CLP Government put forward a different constitution to a non-elected Constitutional Assembly. The referendum failed narrowly. The following year Stone resigned as Chief Minister; 18 months later the CLP under
Denis Burke lost the next Territory election after 27 years in power. In 1999 he became the federal President of the
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is a centre-right political party in Australia, one of the two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-left Australian Labor Party. It was founded in 1944 as the successor to the United Au ...
, and was appointed a
Commander of the Order of Kinabalu by the Malaysian state of
Sabah
Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory o ...
.
2000s
In 2001 he wrote a memo, later leaked to the press, that suggested that the government of
John Howard
John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
was seen as "mean and tricky". The ensuing controversy quickly mushroomed, with Stone and Howard both being accused of leaking the memo.
Stone is the Executive Chairman of the APAC Group of Companies. He was the National Chairman of the
Duke of Edinburgh's International Award - Australia from 2012 to 2018. He is currently an Award Ambassador. Awarded the
Centenary Medal in 2001, Stone was appointed a
Companion of the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...
in the 2006 Queen's Birthday Honours for his service to politics, industry, and bi-lateral relations between Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. In 2018, Stone was appointed chair of the
Council for the Order of Australia
The Council for the Order of Australia is the body responsible for deciding on new appointments within the Order of Australia. It was established by Letters Patent issued by Queen Elizabeth II on 14 February 1975 and as amended subsequently. . In 2019 he was presented with the Gold Distinguished Service Medal, The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award – Australia, this being the highest level of recognition made by the Award in Australia. The award was made by
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.
2020s
In March 2019, he was appointed by
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
Scott Morrison
Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...
as head of the North Queensland Livestock Industry Recovery Agency following the
North Queensland floods.
In December 2019, North Queensland Livestock Industry Recovery Agency was expanded to include drought and renamed into a new National Drought and North Queensland Flood Response and Recovery Agency, with Stone appointed the Coordinator-General of the new agency. The agency was further subsumed into the
National Recovery and Resilience Agency (NRRA) on 5 May 2021 and Stone continued to be the Coordinator-General of the new agency.
During the
Queensland and New South Wales floods in March 2022, Stone suggested inundated homes in flood-prone areas should not be rebuilt, and residents of flood-prone areas needed to "face realities". He was criticised by the opposition
Labor Party for being "insensitive to those who had lost properties and livelihoods" and should be sacked for "victim blaming".
Following Labor's victory at the
May 2022 federal election, in July 2022, the new
Albanese government announced the merger of the NRRA and the
Emergency Management Australia on 1 September 2022 to form the National Emergency Management, Resilience and Recovery Agency (NEMRRA). Following the announcement, Stone took leave and left the NRRA on 31 August.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, Shane
Country Liberal Party members of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
1950 births
Living people
Companions of the Order of Australia
Members of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
Delegates to the Australian Constitutional Convention 1998
20th-century Australian politicians
Attorneys-General of the Northern Territory
Australian King's Counsel
Melbourne Law School alumni
Chief Ministers of the Northern Territory