John Cornwall (South Australian politician)

Doctor John Robert Cornwall (born 1 January 1935) was a Labor member of the South Australian Legislative Council for 14 years from 1975 to 1988. He was a senior member of the front bench for most of his political career.

Pre politics

Cornwall ran successful veterinary practices in Mount Gambier and later in Adelaide from 1961 to 1975.

Politics

Cornwall served for more than six years in the State Cabinet first as Minister for Environment and Lands in 1979, and then as Minister of Health and Community Services in two Bannon Governments from 1982 to the end of 1988.

Cornwall was known as a reforming Minister with a passion for social justice in the health and community welfare portfolios. During the 1980s Cornwall led the nation in many areas of public health and hospital administration. Dr Cornwall fostered a new approach to health care in Australia that was clearly inspired by the ‘Health for All’ agenda of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the 1970s. It championed people increasing control over and improving their health, and viewed health status as inextricably linked to social well-being and economic conditions.

In the early 1980s Cornwall tackled major challenges in the health arena including the Commonwealth-State financial arrangements under a new Medicare agreement, the structure of the State’s health care delivery system, and questions about social justice and equity in public health. Dr Cornwall tightened central government control on hospital administration, so hospital services were able to be shared across the system to better meet patient needs and reduce waiting times. While funding based on population needs, strong central control, and quality assurance are now common place in health care, they were truly radical ideas in 1980s: well ahead of their time. Not surprisingly, the reforms were met with strong resistance from parts of the medical establishment. The success of the reforms is a testament to Dr Cornwall’s political skill and tenacity.

Dr Cornwall championed the development of health and community services for disadvantaged groups, such as women’s health services, Aboriginal health services, child and adolescent mental health services, and child protection services. He developed a community-based system of health care that linked health care services to specific population or geographic areas, with funding granted on the basis of the needs of those areas. As part of these reforms a proportion of health care funds were reallocated from hospitals into areas of social disadvantage, resulting in better access to health services for people in social need.

Another of Dr Cornwall’s significant achievements, and one for which he is justifiably proud, was the clearing of environmental lead pollutants in Port Pirie between 1983 and 1987. Port Pirie is a town in mid north South Australia whose economy is based on a major lead smelter. The project is widely regarded as one of the most significant public health projects among developed countries, and it was achieved despite initial opposition from the Premier, the local Mayor, and the local media. Dr Cornwall ran a strong anti-smoking program and introduced Australia's first comprehensive legislative package to restrict tobacco advertising in cinemas, prohibit tobacco sponsorship of sporting events, and establish an independent trust to provide replacement funding for sponsorship of sport and cultural activities (Foundation South Australia). The legislation was highly significant in paving the way for reforms in other states and the Commonwealth. In 1987 Dr Cornwall introduced legisation decriminalisng possion of small quantities of marijuana. He introduced the legislation as a private members bill having secured support for the policy at the Labor Party convention. He was motivated by a strong belief that decriminalisation would break the nexus between soft and hard drugs, which cause much greater harm to indiviauls and society.

Post politics

Cornwall pursued a third career outside politics from 1989, moving to Sydney to take up senior executive roles for non-government organisations in the human and companion animal health arenas.