Michael John (29 April 1943 – 6 June 2003) was a Welsh-born Australian politician. He was born in

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

to G. H. and Beryl John, and the family migrated to Australia in 1956. He graduated from Hamilton High School with Honours and was awarded the Myer and Commonwealth Scholarships to 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 ...

, where he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

and a

Bachelor of Law 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 ...

in 1965. He worked as a barrister and solicitor and is a partner in a law firm in

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...

. In 1965 he married Belinda, with whom he had three daughters. He was a keen athlete, and competed in the final of the 1969

Stawell Gift The Stawell Gift is Australia's oldest and richest short-distance running race. It is the main event in an annual carnival held on Easter weekend by the Stawell Athletic Club, with the main race finals on the holiday Monday, at Central Park, St ...

. In 1985 John was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

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 ...

member for

Bendigo East Bendigo East is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Victoria. It covers an area of covering the part of the city of Bendigo east of the Yungera railway line and surrounding rural areas to the north, ...

. He was made Shadow Cabinet Secretary in December 1985 and moved to the opposition front bench as Shadow Minister for Planning and Environment, Tourism and Aboriginal Affairs in 1988. He left the front bench in 1989 but returned in 1991 as Shadow Minister for Community Services and Aboriginal Affairs, taking the ministry following the

Coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

's victory at the 1992 state election. He served as a minister until 1996 and was defeated at the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

election. John died in Bendigo on 6 June 2003.

References

1943 births 2003 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly 20th-century Australian politicians {{Australia-Liberal-politician-stub