Anthony Allan Staley (born 15 May 1939) is an Australian politician. A member of the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
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, he held the Victorian seat of
Chisholm from 1970 to 1980 and served as
Minister for the Capital Territory (1976–1977) and
Minister for Posts and Telecommunications (1977–1980) in the
Fraser government. He later served as national president of the Liberal Party from 1993 to 1999.
Early life
Staley was born on 15 May 1939 in
Horsham, Victoria
Horsham () is a regional city in the Wimmera region of western Victoria, Australia. Located on a bend in the Wimmera River, Horsham is approximately northwest of the state capital Melbourne. As of the 2021 Census, Horsham had a population of 2 ...
.
He was educated at
Scotch College, Melbourne
(For God, for Country, and for Learning)
, established =
, type = Independent, day and boarding
, gender = Boys
, denomination = Presbyterian
, slogan =
, ...
.
He completed the degree of
Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
at the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...
.
[
]
Parliament
Staley was elected to parliament at the 1970 Chisholm by-election
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Chisholm on 19 September 1970. This was triggered by the death of Liberal Party MP Wilfrid Kent Hughes.
The by-election was won by Liberal candidate Tony Staley
Anthon ...
, which followed the death of the incumbent Liberal MP Wilfrid Kent Hughes
Sir Wilfrid Selwyn "Bill" Kent Hughes (12 June 1895 – 31 July 1970) was an Australian army officer and politician who had a long career in both state and federal politics, most notably as a minister in the Menzies Government. He also ...
. He was the Member for Chisholm from 1970 to 1980 and was Minister for the Capital Territory from February 1976 to December 1977 in the Fraser Government and then Minister for Post and Telecommunications until his retirement from Parliament.
Subsequent activities
He later served as 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 ...
. In May 1994 when Liberal Leader John Hewson
John Robert Hewson AM (born 28 October 1946) is an Australian former politician who served as leader of the Liberal Party from 1990 to 1994. He led the Liberal-National Coalition to defeat at the 1993 Australian federal election.
Hewson was ...
called a leadership spill, Staley as Liberal President caused controversy when he withdrew his support for Hewson. The controversy was due to the expectation that the organisational wing of the party which Staley was in charge of as president did not interfere with the parliamentary party in selecting the leader. In the subsequent leadership spill Hewson was defeated by Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer (born 9 September 1951) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1994 to 1995, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 2007, and High Commissioner to the United King ...
but it was expected that Staley would not have survived as party president if Hewson had won the spill. He did continue on in the position and supported John Howard's bid to become Leader of the Opposition and ultimately Prime Minister.
Personal life
In 1990 he was involved in a serious road accident, which left him needing to use calipers to walk.
References
External links
Great Scot article
1939 births
Living people
Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia
Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Chisholm
Members of the Australian House of Representatives
People educated at Scotch College, Melbourne
20th-century Australian politicians
Officers of the Order of Australia
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