Vanessa Goodwin (22 April 1969 – 3 March 2018) was an Australian politician. She was 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. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

member for the seat of Pembroke in the

Tasmanian Legislative Council The Tasmanian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. It is one of the two chambers of the Parliament, the other being the House of Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in the state capital, H ...

from the Pembroke by-election on 1 August 2009 until her resignation due to brain cancer on 2 October 2017.

Early life

Goodwin was born in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

.Biographical details
''Parliament of Tasmania'' She received a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first pro ...

, a

Master of Philosophy The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil m ...

(Criminology) from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and a Doctor of Philosophy from the

.Pembroke 2009 by-election candidates
''ABC elections''

Career

Goodwin was a criminologist and lawyer who had worked for the Department of Police and Public Safety. She had previously worked as an Associate to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, as the Public Affairs Officer for the local Australian Hotels Association branch and as a research assistant for the Tasmanian Governor. Goodwin unsuccessfully contested the state seat of

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

at the 2006 Tasmanian election, and the federal seat of

at the

2007 federal election This electoral calendar 2007 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2007 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, although they are not elections. By-elections are not i ...

. In 2009,

member for Pembroke,

Allison Ritchie Allison Maree Ritchie (born 28 July 1974 in Hobart) was a member of the Tasmanian Legislative Council (upper house) for Pembroke from 2001 to 2009. Since 2022, Ritchie has served as Deputy Mayor of the City of Clarence. Life before Parliament ...

, resigned, causing a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

. Goodwin stood as the

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 ...

candidate, and won by a large margin. She was re-elected in 2013. After the 2014 Tasmanian election, Goodwin was appointed Attorney-General, Minister for Justice, Minister for Corrections and Minister for the Arts, as well as Leader for the Government in the Legislative Council. Goodwin resigned on 2 October 2017 due to health reasons. Her seat was filled in a by-election, which was won by

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

's Jo Siejka.

Health and death

On 25 March 2017, Goodwin was hospitalised with multiple brain tumours.Attorney-General Vanessa Goodwin hospitalised with multiple brain tumours
The Mercury. Retrieved 25 March 2017. On 6 April, Premier

Will Hodgman William Edward Felix Hodgman (born 20 April 1969) is an Australian diplomat and former politician who has been the High Commissioner of Australia to Singapore since February 2021. He was the 45th Premier of Tasmania and a member for the Divisio ...

informed the parliament that she was not expected to recover. She died from brain cancer on 3 March 2018, aged 48, on the day of the

2018 Tasmanian state election The 2018 Tasmanian state election was held on 3 March 2018 to elect all 25 members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly. The four-year incumbent Liberal government, led by Premier Will Hodgman, won a second consecutive term. It defeated the Labor ...

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodwin, Vanessa 1969 births 2018 deaths Politicians from Hobart Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Tasmania Members of the Tasmanian Legislative Council University of Tasmania alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge Australian criminologists Australian women criminologists 21st-century Australian politicians Women members of the Tasmanian Legislative Council Deaths from brain tumor Deaths from cancer in Tasmania Neurological disease deaths in Tasmania 21st-century Australian women politicians