Peter Douglas Beattie (born 18 November 1952), Australian politician, was the 36th Premier of the Australian state of Queensland for nine years and leader of the Australian Labor Party in that state for eleven and a half. His sweeping victories in the 2001, 2004 and 2006 state elections confirmed him as one of the most electorally successful politicians in Australia. Image File history File links Peter_Beattie_orig. ... List of Premiers of Queensland Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in Queensland. ... is the 171st day of the year (172nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Hon Rob Borbidge Robert Edward Borbidge AO, (born 12 August 1954), Australian politician, was the 35th Premier of Queensland, and leader of the Queensland branch of the National Party. ... Anna Maria Bligh is an Australian politician and the current Premier of Queensland. ... The district of Brisbane Central is an electoral division in the state of Queensland, Australia. ... is the 322nd day of the year (323rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1952 (MCMLII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This is about the city of Sydney in Australia. ... “NSW” redirects here. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... is the 322nd day of the year (323rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1952 (MCMLII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... List of Premiers of Queensland Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in Queensland. ... Slogan or Nickname: Sunshine State, Smart State Motto(s): Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Constitutional monarchy Governor Quentin Bryce Premier Anna Bligh (ALP) Federal representation  - House seats 28  - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05)  - Product ($m)  $158,506 (3rd... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... An election was held in the Australian state of Queensland on 17 February 2001 to elect the 89 members of the states Legislative Assembly. ... An election was held in the Australian state of Queensland on 7 February 2004 to elect the 89 members of the states Legislative Assembly. ... An election for the Queensland Legislative Assembly will be held on September 9, 2006, after being announced by Premier Peter Beattie on 15 August 2006. ...

His Premiership lasted from 20th June 1998 to 13th September 2007 when he retired electorally undefeated. In his later years he groomed and was then succeeded by his Deputy Anna Bligh who became the first woman Premier of Queensland. (Redirected from 20th June) June 20 is the 171st day of the year (172nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 194 days remaining. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... (Redirected from 13th September) September 13 is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years). ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Anna Maria Bligh is an Australian politician and the current Premier of Queensland. ...

Before Parliament

Beattie was born in Sydney as the youngest of seven children. He was raised by his grandmother at Atherton, a small town in Northern Queensland. At school, he met Heather Scott-Halliday, whom he later married. They have three teenage children and live in Windsor, a suburb of Brisbane. This is about the city of Sydney in Australia. ... Atherton is the hub of the Atherton Tableland region in Queensland, Australia, located at , 752 m above sea level. ... Students in Rome, Italy. ... Windsor is an inner northern suburb of Brisbane. ... For other uses, see Brisbane (disambiguation). ...

After Beattie moved to Brisbane, he graduated with a law degree from the University of Queensland, earned a master of Arts degree from Queensland University of Technology, and then entered the practice of Law. In 1974 he joined the Labor Party, which had been in opposition for 17 years and had just suffered the worst defeat in its history at the hands of the dominant National Party Premier, Joh Bjelke-Petersen. The degree of Bachelor of Laws is the principal academic degree in law in the majority of common law countries other than the United States, where it has been replaced by the Juris Doctor degree. ... The University of Queensland (UQ) is the longest-established university in the state of Queensland, Australia, and a member of Australias Group of Eight. ... QUT Gardens Point Campus Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is located in Brisbane, Queensland, and is one of Australias largest universities, however is globally known as one of the worst in the region. ... For other uses, see Law (disambiguation). ... The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party. ... Sir Johannes Joh Bjelke-Petersen, KCMG (13 January 1911 – 23 April 2005), New Zealand-born Australian politician, was the longest-serving and longest-lived Premier of the state of Queensland. ...

Beattie became involved in the campaign led by Dr Denis Murphy to reform the Queensland branch of the party, which was dominated by elderly and conservative trade union leaders, nicknamed the 'Old Guard.' In 1981 the federal Labor Party leader, Bill Hayden, led a federal intervention in Queensland, and Beattie became Queensland State Secretary. The result of his reforms was eventual electoral success, with the election of Wayne Goss as Queensland's first Labor Premier since Vince Gair in 1957. Conservative may refer to: Conservatism, political philosophy A member of a Conservative Party Conservative extension, premise of deductive logic Conservativity theorem, mathematical proof of conservative extension Conservative Judaism britney spears Category: ... William George Hayden AC (born 23 January 1933), Australian politician and 21st Governor-General of Australia, was born in Brisbane, Queensland, the son of an American-born sailor of Irish descent. ... In several countries, Secretary of State is a senior government position. ... Wayne Keith Goss (b. ... Vincent Clair Gair (25 February 1901 – 11 November 1980) was an Australian politician. ... Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ...

Prior to his election to Parliament and in addition to State Secretary, Beattie was a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Queensland and secretary of the Railway Stationmasters' Union. A solicitor is a type of lawyer in many common law jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Republic of Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, but not the United States (in the United States the word has a quite different meaning—see below). ... The Supreme Court of Queensland, which is based at the Law Courts Complex, is the superior court for the Australian State of Queensland. ...

Early parliamentary career (1989-1996)

At the 1989 election Beattie was elected to the Queensland Parliament as MP for Brisbane Central. Something of a maverick within the parliamentary party during his early term, Beattie was mistrusted by faction leaders and kept out of the ministry. His main post was as chairman of the parliamentary committee overseeing the Criminal Justice Commission (now the Crime and Misconduct Commission), a role in which he frequently took the side of CJC Commissioner Sir Max Bingham against the Goss government, earning Goss's ire. Beattie also publicly criticised Goss for being out of touch. Goss did not appoint him to the ministry until Labor's near defeat at the 1995 election, where Beattie became Minister for Health. The following year, however, the Goss government lost office following defeat in the Mundingburra by-election. The Queensland Parliament is located in george Street, Brisbane. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ... The district of Brisbane Central is an electoral division in the state of Queensland, Australia. ... A Chairman is the presiding officer of a meeting, organization, committee, or other deliberative body. ... The Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) is an independent[1] Queensland Government entity created to combat and reduce the incidence of major crime and to continuously improve the integrity of, and to reduce the incidence of misconduct in, the Queensland public sector[2]. The CMC also has a witness protection... The electoral district of Mundingburra is a Queensland State Parliament electorate in the city of Townsville, Queensland. ... A by-election or bye-election is a special election held to fill a political office when the incumbent has died or resigned. ...

Premier (1998-2007)

At the 1998 state election Labor won 44 seats out of 89 and succeeded in forming a minority government with the support of an independent MP, Peter Wellington; this saw Beattie become Premier. Later following a by-election the Labor Party achieved a majority in its own right. A by-election or bye-election is a special election held to fill a political office when the incumbent has died or resigned. ...

In office, Beattie proved to be a shrewd populist leader. He travelled tirelessly to all parts of the large and diverse state, and despite his Brisbane base made the most of his background in Atherton, winning considerable popularity in regional areas. He was expected to be comfortably re-elected in 2001, but shortly before the election he faced a crisis when an inquiry revealed that a number of MPs and party activists (including the Deputy Premier Jim Elder, a former State Secretary and newly elected MP Mike Kaiser, and a senior adviser to Wayne Goss) had been engaged in breaches of the Electoral Act by falsely enrolling people to boost their faction's strength in internal party ballots. Beattie acted swiftly, forcing the MPs to quit politics and others involved to resign from the ALP. He was rewarded with a crushing victory, winning 66 seats of 89. Jim Elder, (born 1936 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian horse rider famous for his accomplishments in Equestrian. ... Mike Kaiser was the member for Woodridge in the Queensland State Parliament briefly in 2000-2001. ...

Beattie’s key agenda has been to transform Queensland into Australia’s Smart State by restructuring the education system, skilling the workforce and encouraging research and development and high tech biotechnology, information technology and aviation industries to locate in Queensland. In 2003, the Premier was awarded an honorary doctorate of science from the University of Queensland "in recognition of his leadership and commitment to higher education through Smart State initiatives and his support for research in the fields of biotechnology and nanotechnology".^[1] Look up Agenda in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The workforce is the labour pool in employment. ... The phrase research and development (also R and D or, more often, R&D), according to the Organization of Economic Coopeation and Development, refers to creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use... High tech refers to high technology, technology that is at the cutting-edge and the most advanced currently available. ... The structure of insulin Biological technology is technology based on biology, especially when used in agriculture, food science, and medicine. ... Information and communication technology spending in 2005 Information technology (IT), as defined by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), is the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of computer-based information systems, particularly software applications and computer hardware. ... Look up aviation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... An Honorary degree (Latin: honoris causa ad gradum) is a degree awarded to someone by an institution that he or she may have never attended, it may be a bachelors, masters or doctorate degree - however, the latter is most common. ... Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... The University of Queensland (UQ) is the longest-established university in the state of Queensland, Australia, and a member of Australias Group of Eight. ... Buckminsterfullerene C60, also known as the buckyball, is the simplest of the carbon structures known as fullerenes. ...

2004 state election

In February 2004 Beattie again went to the polls, and again a crisis blew up shortly before the election, with a highly critical report on the state of Queensland's system of child protection. Beattie accepted full personal responsibility for the issue, and paradoxically turned the issue into a positive for the government. At the 7 February elections Beattie won 63 seats, a net loss of only three, losing four seats to the National-Liberal Opposition but gaining one from them. This made him one of the most successful state politicians in Australian history. In the United States, the term child welfare is used to describe a set of government services designed to protect children and encourage family stability. ... Look up paradox in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article concerns the modern Australian political party. ...

2005/2006 Queensland Health crisis

In the latter part of 2005, Beattie faced potentially his most serious political crisis: the revelations and inquiries into Queensland Health and the Bundaberg public hospital after Jayant Patel, an Indian-born surgeon who was struck off the register in the United States for malpractice, performed several botched operations in the hospital, some of which resulted in death, and then fled the country to the US. Amid this controversy, the Speaker, Ray Hollis, resigned after controversy associated with his use of Parliamentary expenditure, and the Deputy Premier and Treasurer, Terry Mackenroth, retired, forcing by-elections in the safe Labor seats of Redcliffe and Chatsworth on 20 August. The ALP suffered major swings against it and both seats were lost to the Liberal Party, the first serious electoral setback for Beattie since becoming Premier. For the Bundaberg Distillery, see Bundaberg Rum. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Speaker (currently the Honourable Mike Reynolds AM MP) is the Member of Parliament elected by the House to preside over sittings of the Legislative Assembly and to maintain orderly proceedings. ... The Honorable Terence Michael Terry Mackenroth former Queensland ALP politician who served in a number of ministerial roles, including Deputy Premier and Treasurer during his almost 18 years in parliament. ... A by-election or bye-election is a special election held to fill a political office when the incumbent has died or resigned. ... The Electoral District of Redcliffe is a Queensland Legislative Assembly electoral division in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. ... The division of Chatsworth is a Queensland Legislative Assembly electoral district in Brisbane in the Australian state of Queensland. ... is the 232nd day of the year (233rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

A Newspoll in late 2005 showed support for Labor in Queensland down six percentage points to 50 per cent, an all-time low since Beattie became Premier. Following the retirement of the Premier of New South Wales, Bob Carr in 2005, Beattie became the longest-serving state Premier among his contemporaries. Newspoll Market Research is an Australian company providing opinion polling and other market research services. ... List of Premiers of New South Wales Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in New South Wales. ... Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947), Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 25 March 1995 to 3 August 2005. ...

2006 state election

Despite this, Beattie went on to win the September 2006 election convincingly, with a slight swing towards the ALP in terms of its primary vote, and two party preferred result.^[2] Coalition Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg stepped down. Before the election Liberal Leader Bob Quinn was forced by his party colleagues to step down a fortnight before polling day.^[3] The campaign of Quinn's replacement Dr Bruce Flegg was characterized by inexperience and indecisiveness and lacked a clear organisatorial and professional approach.^[4] Premier Beattie therefore was never challenged by the opposition and was able to secure a fourth consecutive term in office. This result puts Beattie in the realm of iconic political figures. He is the only state Labor leader since Neville Wran, NSW Labor Premier from 1976 to 1986, to do so and is Queensland's fourth longest serving Premier after Labor's William Forgan Smith (1932 - 1942), the Country Party's Frank Nicklin (1957 - 1968) and National Party Premier Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen (1968 - 1987). A coalition is an alliance among entities, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own self-interest. ... Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. ... Lawrence Springborg is the youngest person ever elected to the Queensland Parliament, in 1989 at the age of twenty-one. ... This article concerns the modern Australian political party. ... Bob Quinn is an Australian Liberal Party politician and leader of the Liberal Party in the Parliament of Queensland. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Neville Kenneth Wran AC QC (born October 11, 1926) was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 until 1986. ... William Forgan Smith (1887-1953), was Premier of Queensland from 1932 to 1942. ... Sir George Francis Reuben Nicklin (1895-1978) was Premier of Queensland from 1957 to 1963, the first Country Party Premier since 1932. ...

Retirement

Beattie announced on 10 September 2007 his decision to retire from politics. His resignation as Premier officially took effect on 13 September 2007. At the time of his retirement, he was the longest-serving state premier in the country.^[5] The Labor caucus elected Anna Bligh as its leader on Wednesday the 12th.^[6] is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Anna Maria Bligh is an Australian politician and the current Premier of Queensland. ...

He officially stood down as the Member for Brisbane Central on Friday, 14 September 2007. is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ...

Other matters

Beattie's popularity has led to speculation that he would leave Queensland and enter national politics,^[7] particularly after federal Labor's defeat at the 2001 federal election. But Beattie has resisted such suggestions, saying that he loved Queensland too much to leave, and anyway Canberra was "too cold".^[8] On announcing his retirement he again ruled out a move to federal politics, saying that he would, politically speaking, disappear. ^[9] Legislative elections were held in Australia on 10 November 2001. ... For other uses, see Canberra (disambiguation). ...

In May 2005 Beattie released his autobiography "Making A Difference", in which he described his upbringing, political life and his views on key issues, including health, education and social reform. The book is part memoir, part manifesto.^[10] Beattie says that the reason he released the book while he is in office, rather than when he is retired, is because no-one would want to read about him if he was not in the public arena. This is Beattie's third book after his earlier autobiographical piece "In the Arena" (1990) and the thriller "The Year of the Dangerous Ones". Cover of the first English edition of 1793 of Benjamin Franklins autobiography. ...

In the media

Beattie's self-description as a "media tart"^[11] as well as his political successes have led to a love-hate relationship with The Courier-Mail, Brisbane's daily newspaper. Columnist Peter Wear, for example, ran a long-running satire on Queensland politics in general with the major role played by "President for Life Mbeattie". The Courier-Mail is a daily newspaper published in Brisbane, Australia. ... Peter Wear is a Brisbane-based writer whose columns appear regularly in The Courier-Mail. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

The controversy over the performance of the government-owned electricity supplier Energex during the severe 2003-2004 storm season in South East Queensland resulted in the characterisation of Beattie as "Power Point Pete" by Courier-Mail cartoonist Sean Leahy, with the location of the drawing's eyes and nose designed to replicate the holes of a power point. Energex is a corporation owned by the Government of Queensland. ... For other uses, see Thunderstorm (disambiguation). ... The South East Queensland region. ... Sean Leahy (born 1958) is a cartoonist working for the Courier Mail in Brisbane, Australia. ...

In August of 2007 Beattie engendered further controversy through reforms of Local Councils in Queensland. Proposals to reduce the number of councils from 154 to 72 further eroded his popularity in regional areas.^{[citation needed]} Public servants were found to have rigged on-line polls and to have called talk back radio programmes in attempts to portray the changes as being more popular than unpopular.^{[citation needed]} Beattie was forced to remove a section of the reform legislation that threatened to fine local councilors who called for plebicites on the issue.^{[citation needed]}

Personal

Peter is married to wife Professor Heather Beattie. They have three adult children, Larissa, Denis and Matthew Beattie. He is an Anglican, and his wife is the daugter of an Anglican clergyman.

References

1. ^ Queensland Premier to receive UQ honour - University of Queensland, 7 Dec 2003
2. ^ "Bulletproof Beattie cruises to fourth victory in a row", Sydney Morning Herald, September 10, 2006. 
3. ^ "Party changes renew Qld election speculation", ABC News, August 8, 2006. 
4. ^ "Nothing great about debate or the campaign", The Australian, September 09, 2006.  - Media clipping re-published by Queensland Media Club
5. ^ 'Beattie retires as Qld Premier', ABC News online, 10 September 2007.
6. ^ 'Anna Bligh: first woman to be Queensland Premier', Australian Labor Party, retrieved 12 September 2007.
7. ^ "Is Peter Beattie Preparing To Leap Into Federal Politics?", SMH, July 2, 2005. Retrieved on 2007-08-04. 
8. ^ "Man of the people magic", The Age, February 8, 2004. 
9. ^ Cosima Marriner. "Beattie quits and promises to disappear", The Age, 11 September 2007. 
10. ^ "Making A Difference" - listing on publisher Gleebooks' website
11. ^ Beattie an unashamed 'media tart' - AM Archive, ABC Local Radio, Thursday, 11 May, 2000

The University of Queensland (UQ) is the longest-established university in the state of Queensland, Australia, and a member of Australias Group of Eight. ... is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

External links

• Official Biography
• Beattie won his fourth term in office, at a state election held on Saturday, 9 September 2006.

v • d • e Premiers of Queensland
Herbert • Macalister • Mackenzie • Lilley • Palmer • Thorn • Douglas • McIlwraith • Griffith • Morehead • Nelson • Byrnes • Dickson • Dawson • Philp • Morgan • Kidston • Denham • Ryan • Theodore • Gillies • McCormack • Moore • Forgan Smith • F Cooper • Hanlon • Gair • Nicklin • Pizzey • Chalk • Bjelke-Petersen • Ahern • R Cooper • Goss • Borbidge • Beattie • Bligh