John Bannon
John Bannon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 39th Premier of South Australia Elections: 1982, 1985, 1989 | |
| In office 10 November 1982 – 4 September 1992 | |
| Deputy | John Wright (1982-1985) Donald Hopgood (1985-1992) |
| Preceded by | David Tonkin |
| Succeeded by | Lynn Arnold |
| Leader of the Opposition (SA) | |
| In office 2 October 1979 – 10 November 1982 | |
| Preceded by | David Tonkin |
| Succeeded by | John Olsen |
| Member for Ross Smith | |
| In office 17 September 1977 – 10 December 1993 | |
| Preceded by | John Jennings |
| Succeeded by | Ralph Clarke |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Charles Bannon 7 May 1943 Bendigo, Victoria, Australia |
| Political party | Australian Labor Party |
John Charles Bannon AO (born 7 May 1943) was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the Labor Party to government at the 1982 election. The Bannon Labor government was re-elected at the 1985 election and the 1989 election, after which Bannon resigned as Premier and Labor leader in 1992. Bannon represented the House of Assembly seat of Ross Smith from 1977 to 1993.
Early life
Bannon was born in Bendigo, Victoria and attended Parkside Primary School and Unley High School. He completed degrees in Arts and Law at the University of Adelaide. While at university, he was co-editor of the student newspaper On Dit along with Ken Scott and Jacqui Dibden in 1964. In 1968, he was elected president of the Australian Union of Students. Following the completion of his studies, he was an advisor to various governments, including Gough Whitlam's ministry.
Political career
He was elected to Ross Smith in the South Australian House of Assembly at the 1977 election and promoted to cabinet within a year. Following the resignation of Premier Don Dunstan and Labor's loss in the 1979 election, Bannon was elected to the Labor leadership. Despite factional struggles within the party Bannon (aged 39) managed to return Labor to government in the 1982 election with a 5.9 percent swing, stressing the continuation of prudent budgetary measures that had begun under David Tonkin and emphasising the economic development of the state.
Bannon's consensual approach to government differed markedly from the Dunstan era. While then there had been a stream of social reform, Bannon's priorities were oriented elsewhere. He sold land reserved for freeways under the MATS plan, established the Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine, the submarine project, the defence industry, conversion of part of the Adelaide Railway Station into the Adelaide Convention Centre, the Hyatt and Adelaide Casino complex, and the staging of the Formula One Grand Prix.[1]
The economic situation, moribund in the early 80s, rebounded, and Bannon's government was easily re-elected at the 1985 election, achieving a 2 percent swing towards them from the Liberal opposition.
However, the economy experienced another downturn, and Bannon was stung in the 1989 election, gaining only 48.1 percent of the two-party-preferred vote and relying on the support of Labor independents to govern. Shortly thereafter, electoral legislation was passed that attempted to ensure that a party that won 50 percent of the two-party-preferred vote would gain office, through a compulsory strategic redrawing of electoral boundaries before each election.
State Bank and Resignation
Following relevations of budgetary irregularities in 1990, it was discovered that the government's State Bank had accumulated a $7 billion debt. The government borrowed $3.5 billion to protect and sustain bank accounts. Bannon stepped down from the offices of Premier and Treasurer and announced that he would not contest his seat of Ross Smith in the coming election. Lynn Arnold replaced Bannon, but Labor suffered a 9.1 percent swing against them in 1993 and were left with only 10 seats in a house of 47.
Post politics
After retiring from politics, the ABC offered a directorial position to Bannon in 1994 which he accepted. With an interest in South Australian history, he researches at Flinders University. He later studied and obtained a PhD in Australian political history at Flinders University where he now works as an Adjutant Professor. He was Master of St Mark's College from 2000 to 2007. On Australia Day 2007, he was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia.[2]
Personal life
Bannon's family suffered tragedy in 1959 when his brother was lost bushwalking in Wilpena Pound.[3] Bannon's first wife was Supreme Court Justice Robyn Layton, with whom he had a daughter, Victoria.[3] His second wife Angela is the mother of musician and television personality Dylan Lewis.[4]
References
- ^ The best I could do was not good enough: The Advertiser 27/2/2009
- ^ It's an Honour - Officer of the Order of Australia
- ^ a b The Advertiser: The best I could do was not good enough
- ^ Zwar, Adam (2001-05-27). "Dylan Lewis's Dog Day Afternoon". Sunday Herald Sun (Melbourne), Sunday Magazine. pp. Z10.
External references
- Jaensch, Dean (1986). The Flinders History of South Australia: Political History. Wakefield Press. ISBN 0-9492-6852-5.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: checksum (help) - Parkin, Andrew and Patience, Allan (1992). The Bannon Decade: The Politics of Restraint in South Australia. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86373-366-3.
- When the state's assets fell into a black hole. The Advertiser (Adelaide). 11-04-2006
- Past Elections, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Accessed 17 January 2007
- Past Premier: John Bannon. SA Parliament. Accessed 17 January 2007
