Donald Alastair Cameron
Donald Cameron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister for Health | |
| In office 11 January 1956 – 22 December 1961 | |
| Prime Minister | Robert Menzies |
| Preceded by | Earle Page |
| Succeeded by | Harrie Wade |
| Member of the Australian Parliament for Oxley | |
| In office 10 December 1949 – 9 December 1961 | |
| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Bill Hayden |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 17 March 1900 Ipswich, Queensland, Australia |
| Died | 5 January 1974 (aged 73) Chermside, Queensland, Australia |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse | Rhonda Florence McLean |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Branch/service | Citizen Military Forces (1936–40) Second Australian Imperial Force (1940–45) |
| Years of service | 1936–1945 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Commands | 2/1st Field Ambulance |
| Battles/wars | Second World War |
| Awards | Officer of the Order of the British Empire Mentioned in Despatches |
Donald Alastair Cameron, OBE (17 March 1900 – 5 January 1974) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Liberal Party and served in federal parliament from 1946 to 1961, representing the Division of Oxley in Queensland. He was a doctor by profession and held ministerial office as Minister for Health in the Menzies government from 1956 to 1961. After losing his seat he served a term as High Commissioner to New Zealand (1962–1965).
Early life
[edit]Cameron was born in Ipswich, Queensland. He received his education at Ipswich Grammar School and the University of Sydney, where he graduated in arts and medicine. From 1927 to 1933 he was a medical officer at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and the Coast Hospital in Sydney. In 1933, he married Rhoda Florence McLean. They settled at Ipswich where he practised medicine until the Second World War, in which he served as a colonel in the Australian Army Medical Corps in the Mediterranean and Middle East Theatre and New Guinea. He was mentioned in despatches and made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1946.[1]
Politics
[edit]After the war, Cameron joined the newly formed Liberal Party of Australia and, at the 1949 election, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives for the new seat of Oxley, based on Ipswich. He was Minister for Health in the Menzies government from 1956 to 1961. He was also appointed minister in charge of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation in 1960 following Richard Casey's retirement. At the 1961 election he was unexpectedly defeated by the young Australian Labor Party candidate Bill Hayden.[1]
Later life
[edit]After his election defeat, Cameron worked as Commonwealth medical officer in Sydney and was Australia's High Commissioner to New Zealand from 1962 to 1965. He was then a general practitioner in the Brisbane suburb of Nundah.[2]
Death
[edit]Cameron died in the Brisbane suburb of Chermside.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Harrison, Jennifer (1993). "Cameron, Donald Alastair (1900–74)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
- ^ Harrison, Jennifer, "Donald Alastair (Don) Cameron (1900–1974)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 29 September 2023
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia
- 1900 births
- 1974 deaths
- Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Oxley
- Members of the Australian House of Representatives
- Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire
- High commissioners of Australia to New Zealand
- 20th-century Australian politicians
- Australian general practitioners
- Australian Army personnel of World War II
- People from Ipswich, Queensland
- University of Sydney alumni
- Australian military doctors
- Australian Army officers
- Ministers for health of Australia