Joe Berinson

The Honourable Joe Berinson QC
Australian Minister for the Environment
In office 14 July 1975 – 11 November 1975
Prime Minister	Gough Whitlam
Preceded by	Gough Whitlam
Succeeded by	Andrew Peacock
Attorney-General of Western Australia
In office 1983–1993
Premier	Brian Burke Peter Dowding Carmen Lawrence
Member of the Australian Parliament for Perth
In office 25 October 1969 – 13 December 1975
Preceded by	Fred Chaney
Succeeded by	Ross McLean
Member of the Western Australian Parliament for North Metropolitan
In office 1989–1993 Serving with Graham Edwards Sam Piantadosi Bob Pike Reg Davies Max Evans George Cash
Member of the Western Australian Parliament for North Central Metropolitan
In office 1983–1989 Serving with Sam Piantadosi
Member of the Western Australian Parliament for North-East Metropolitan
In office 1980–1983 Serving with Lyla Elliott
Personal details
Born	Joseph Max Berinson 7 January 1932
Citizenship	Australian
Political party	Australian Labor Party
Alma mater	University of Western Australia
Profession	Pharmacist Lawyer
Religion	Jewish[1]

Joseph Max "Joe" Berinson (born 7 January 1932) is an Australian former politician who represented the Australian Labor Party (ALP) in the Australian House of Representatives and the Western Australian Legislative Council. He was Environment Minister in the Whitlam government for several months in 1975, later serving a decade as Attorney General of Western Australia.

Early life

Berinson was born to parents from Safed, Palestine. His father, Shulem, emigrated to Australia around 1913. His mother Rivka (Rebecca) née Finkelstein arrived in Australia in about 1923. Berinson had two older sisters, Goola (born 1924) and Ethel (born 1925).^[2]

Berinson worked from the 1950s as a pharmacist before entering politics.^[1]

Federal politics

Berinson was elected to the Australian House of Representatives representing the electorate of Perth at the 1969 federal election. He was Environment Minister between July and November 1975, losing his seat in the 1975 election in December 1975

Legal career

After Berinson's defeat in 1975, he was admitted as a legal practitioner in 1977.^[3]

State politics

In 1980 Berinson was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Council representing the Council electorates of North-East Metropolitan (1980–83), North Central Metropolitan (1983–89) and North Metropolitan (1989–1993).

With the election of Brian Burke as Premier of Western Australia in 1983, Berinson was appointed Attorney General. He served in this role under successive premiers Burke, Peter Dowding and Carmen Lawrence. While Attorney General, he was appointed Queen's Counsel (QC) in 1988.^[4] In 1991, he was identified as one of the five members of the government most associated with WA Inc transactions.^[5]

Retirement

Berinson retired from the ministry and from the Legislative Council in 1993. He subsequently served as President of the Jewish Community Council of Western Australia between 2001 and 2005.^[3]

Notes

1. Crisp, L.F.; Atkinson, Barbara (November 1981). "Australian Labour Party - Federal Parliamentarians - 1901 - 1981" (PDF). Australian National University. p. 5. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
2. "Ethel Bercove" (PDF). Northbridge History Project. The Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
3. "Alumni - Graduates - 1970s - Joe Berinson (1971)". University of Western Australia. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
4. "Members of the House of Representatives since 1901". Australian Parliament House. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
5. O'Brien P. The Origins and Development of WA's Executive State, in The Executive State —WA Inc & The Constitution, (Perth 1991), p. 132. The other main players were Burke, Dowding, deputy premier David Parker and industrial development minister Julian Grill.