Denis Gabriel Burke (born September 22, 1948) is an Australian politician. He is the leader of the conservative Country Liberal Party and the current Opposition Leader of the Northern Territory. A former soldier, he underwent a rapid rise through the ranks of the party before succeeding Shane Stone as Chief Minister of the Territory in 1999. Two years later, he became the first ever CLP Chief Minister to be defeated in the 27 years since self-government. Though he was toppled as party head by Terry Mills in 2003 after a short stint as Opposition Leader, he was re-elected to the position after Mills' sudden resignation in early 2005. September 22 is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years). ... 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... In Australian politics, the Country Liberal Party (CLP) is the Northern Territory equivalent to the Liberal and National parties. ... The Leader of the Opposition of the Northern Territory is an official role usually occupied by the leader of the second largest party in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. ... Motto: None Nickname: ? Other Australian states and territories Capital Darwin Government Administrator Chief Minister Const. ... Shane Stone is an Australian political figure. ... In Australia, a Chief Minister is the head of government of a self-governing territory, while the head of government of a state is a Premier. ... 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Common Era, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

Early life

Burke was born in Queensland, and entered the army as a national serviceman in 1969. In a 25-year career, he rose to become Colonel of the Darwin-based 2nd Cavalry Regiment. His army tour of duty led to a stint with the United Nations peacekeeping and observer forces in the Middle East in 1984-85 (in Beirut, Lebanon and the Sinai peninsula in Egypt). Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... National Service was the name given to the system of military conscription employed in Great Britain (but not Northern Ireland) between 1949 and 1960. ... 1969 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... This is the current Australian Collaboration of the Fortnight! Please help improve it to featured article standard. ... The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization established in 1945 and now made up of 191 states. ... Peacekeeping, as defined by the United Nations, is a way to help countries torn by conflict create conditions for sustainable peace. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Central Beirut (2004) Beirut ( Arabic بيروت - the French name, Beyrouth, was also commonly used in English in the past) is the capital, largest city and chief seaport of Lebanon. ... Sinai Peninsula, Gulf of Suez (west), Gulf of Aqaba (east) from Space Shuttle STS-40 The Sinai Peninsula (in Arabic, Shibh Jazirat Sina) is a triangle-shaped peninsula lying between the Mediterranean Sea (to the north) and Red Sea (to the south). ...

Political rise

In 1994 he left the army and entered politics, winning Country Liberal Party endorsement to contest the safe Palmerston-based seat of Brennan, at the expense of sitting member and Perron government minister Max Ortmann. Ortmann subsequently contested the seat as an independent, but was easily defeated by Burke. 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... In Australian politics, the Country Liberal Party (CLP) is the Northern Territory equivalent to the Liberal and National parties. ... In Australia, Palmerston is a satellite city of the Northern Territory capital, Darwin. ... Brennan is an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in Australias Northern Territory. ... Marshall Perron is a former Chief Minister of the Northern Territory of Australia. ...

Burke was first promoted to the Cabinet of the Northern Territory the following year, serving as Minister for Water and Power, Work Health and the Minister Responsible for the Territory Insurance Office. He quickly rose through the party, and in June 1996, was appointed Attorney-General and Minister for Health. He was re-elected at the 1997 election, and was once again promoted, taking on several more minor portfolios, as well as being appointed Vice-President of the Executive Council. In early 1998, he was one of two Country Liberal Party parliamentary delegates to the territory's Statehood Convention. In October 1998 he was appointed as the Leader of Government Business, and in December, took on a new set of responsibilities - among them industry, regional development, gaming and defence support. June is the sixth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of four with the length of 30 days. ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... October is the tenth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

Chief Minister

In February 1999, CLP Chief Minister Shane Stone resigned, and Burke was soon appointed as his replacement. He also continued on as Attorney-General, and took on several additional portfolios. Burke's term as Chief Minister is probably most remembered for his vehement defence of the territory's mandatory sentencing policy, which required a minimum of 90 days imprisonment after someone had been convicted three times, regardless of how minor the offence. Though it had been introduced by the Stone government, much of the controversy surrounding the laws fell to the new Burke government. The policy was eventually toned down slightly for juveniles after Prime Minister John Howard and federal Attorney-General Daryl Williams intervened. While the policy led to criticism from some prominent organisations, it also created a significant debate about the issue on a national level, and some national polls suggested that a majority of Australians supported the stand. However, Burke's stance was also to lead to some scandal in late 2000, when he demanded the resignation of a magistrate who had criticised his mandatory sentencing laws. The comments sparked contempt of court charges and angry criticism from the Chief Justice and the bar. February is the second month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Common Era, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Shane Stone is an Australian political figure. ... A mandatory sentence is a judicial decision setting the punishment to be inflicted on a person convicted of a crime where judicial discretion is limited by law. ... John Howard John Winston Howard (born July 26, 1939), is an Australian politician and the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, coming to office on March 11, 1996 and winning re-election in 1998, 2001 and 2004. ... Hon Daryl Williams Daryl Robert Williams, AM, QC (born 10 April 1955),Australian politician, was a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives from March 1993 to October 2004, representing the Division of Tangney, Western Australia. ... 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Contempt of court is the failure to obey a lawful order of a court, disrespect for the judge, disruption of the proceedings through poor behavior, or publication of material deemed likely to jeopardize a fair trial. ...

By the time Burke faced his first election at the 2001 election, the Country Liberal Party had been in power in the Northern Territory for 27 years - the entire history of the Legislative Assembly. He called the election on a minor high, only weeks after the beginning of construction on the Adelaide-Darwin Railway, a major infrastructure project that had been planned for decades. However, his chances suffered a blow when a planned deal concerning gas from the Timor Sea, which would have produced significant employment opportunities in the territory, ran into difficulties and had to be postponed. He also caused some controversy by deciding to preference the far-right-wing One Nation Party - which was considerably unpopular in the territory's large ethnic community - over the left-wing Australian Labor Party in five seats around Katherine. This had the effect of allowing ALP Opposition Leader Clare Martin to claim that the only way to resist One Nation influence was to vote for the ALP. Several weeks later, Burke apologised for the decision, admitting that the tactic had backfired and had cost him a number of votes. The Timor Sea is the stretch of the Pacific Ocean situated between the island of Timor, now split between the states of Indonesia and East Timor, and the Northern Territory of Australia. ... The term preferential voting (or preference voting) has several different meanings: A ranked ballot or preferential voting system is a type of voting system in which each voter casts their vote by ranking candidates in order of preference. ... One Nation is a conservative, nationalist and protectionist political group in Australia. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... Katherine, with a population of around 7,500 is a town situated 320 km south east of the city of Darwin in the federal Northern Territory of Australia. ... Clare Majella Martin (born June 15, 1952) is an Australian politician. ...

In addition, the election fell against the backdrop of an ALP resurgence across the nation. In the preceding eighteen months, two Liberal state governments that had been thought highly secure (Victoria and Western Australia) had fallen to the ALP and two incumbent ALP governments had been easily re-elected. While there was some speculation that the ALP could win their first NT election, electoral opinion national was swinging back towards the CLP's federal counterparts. Most commentators were predicting a close result, but suggesting that the CLP would be returned. However, in a shock result, the ALP achieved majority government by one seat, and Burke, suddenly out of government, became Opposition Leader. Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ...

Fall, Rise and Fall

As Opposition Leader, Burke struggled to impact on the government, and presided over a disunited party that found it difficult to come to terms with being in opposition. Amidst this environment, speculation soon began that Burke would step aside in favour of rival Terry Mills. Burke was determined to remain leader, however, and fended off several challenge attempts by Mills, with the support of several influential MPs, such as Jodeen Carney. He was also briefly boosted by victory - despite a significant swing against the party - in the 2003 Katherine by-election. His support began to evaporate, however, when he made comments on radio suggesting that he had tolerated marijuana use in his unit while an army officer, allegedly prompting the Chief of the Defence Forces, Peter Cosgrove, to call him a "goose". While Cosgrove quickly backed away from the comment, it had nevertheless damaged his leadership. The final straw came when Burke refused to allow a conscience vote on the issue of lowering the age of consent for gay males; Carney crossed the floor to vote with the ALP and shifted her support to Mills, and was soon followed by newcomer Fay Miller. Mills subsequently launched a formal leadership challenge, and Burke was easily defeated. Jodeen Terese Carney (born December 9, 1965) is an Australian politician. ... General Peter John Cosgrove AC MC CNZM (born July 28, 1947) is an Australia Soldier. ...

After being toppled as leader, Burke's political career seemed largely over. This changed suddenly when, fourteen months later, Mills abruptly resigned from the leadership. Burke nominated for the vacancy, and was unanimously re-elected as leader on February 7, 2005. He led the party to the 2005 election, but was defeated by the ALP under Martin. As of June 18, 2005, Burke will possibly lose his seat of Brennan to the ALP. February 7 is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... Legislative elections will be held in the Northern Territory of Australia on June 18, 2005. ... June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

He is married with two children, Sam and Tom. He also has two daughters from his first marriage, Lisa and Angela. His second wife, Annette, was elected Mayor of Palmerston in 1998. Palmerston is the name of several places, and also of several notable people. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

Shane Stone is an Australian political figure. ... In Australia, a Chief Minister is the head of government of a self-governing territory, while the head of government of a state is a Premier. ... 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Common Era, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Clare Majella Martin (born June 15, 1952) is an Australian politician. ... Clare Majella Martin (born June 15, 1952) is an Australian politician. ... The Leader of the Opposition of the Northern Territory is an official role usually occupied by the leader of the second largest party in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. ... 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Leader of the Opposition of the Northern Territory is an official role usually occupied by the leader of the second largest party in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...