Rodney Cavalier

Rodney Cavalier
AO
Member for Fuller
In office
7 October 1978 – 28 August 1981
Preceded by Peter Coleman
Succeeded by District abolished
Member for Gladesville
In office
19 September 1981 – 22 February 1988
Preceded by New district
Succeeded by Ivan Petch
Minister for Energy and Minister for Finance
In office
10 February 1984 – 5 April 1984
Minister for Education
In office
5 April 1984 – 25 March 1988
Preceded by Eric Bedford
Succeeded by Terry Metherell
Personal details
Born Rodney Mark Cavalier
(1948-10-11) 11 October 1948
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Nationality Australian
Political party Australian Labor Party
Domestic partner Sally
Children Alison (born 1992), and Nicholas (born 1995)
Residence Bowral, New South Wales
Alma mater Fort Street Boys' High School;
The University of Sydney
Profession Politician; public servant; statutory officer; author
Website NSW Parliament profile

Rodney Mark Cavalier AO (born 11 October 1948) is a former Australian politician, statutory officer and author. Cavalier was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Fuller between 1978 and 1981 and then Gladesville between 1981 and 1988 for the Australian Labor Party. During his term in parliament, Cavalier was Minister for Energy, Minister for Finance, and Minister for Education in the Wran and Unsworth governments.[1]

Biography

Cavalier's father was of Italian extraction, originally surnamed Frank Cavallari, his mother of Scottish background, named Elizabeth.[2] He grew up in the Sydney suburb of Putney, attending the local public school before moving to Fort Street Boys' High School and the University of Sydney, where he studied government and became increasingly involved in left-wing politics. Cavalier worked for the Australia Council, for the Miscellaneous Workers' Union, as an aide to Whitlam minister Clyde Cameron, and was an alderman on Hunter's Hill Council.[1][2]

In 1978 he was elected member for the state seat of Fuller, which was later to be redrawn as Gladesville, representing the Australian Labor Party. He served as Minister for Education from 1984 to 1988 in the Neville Wran and Barrie Unsworth governments.[1] He was noted for his abrasive personality, reformist zeal and intolerance of sloppy work.[2] One left-wing Teachers' Federation activist described him as "the rudest, most pugnacious individual to hold office".[2] Though the President of the Federation, after he lost office, noted that Cavalier "had a genuine commitment to public education". He lost office, and his seat, in 1988, and subsequently declined an offer to return to State Parliament in the seat of Granville or by way of the Legislative Council.[2]

A Fellow of The University of Sydney, he was chairman of the Australian Language and Literacy Council (1991-1996). He was also deputy chairman of the National Council for the Centenary of Federation (1997-2001) and chairman of the Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in NSW (2002-2006): two bodies which published over 60 books on various aspects of Australian history and culture. He was a member of the Council of the National Library of Australia (1989-1998)[2] and a member of the Council of the State Library of New South Wales (2013-2015).

Cavalier is an ardent book collector and lover of cricket[2] and his appointment to the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust fulfilled a life's ambition. He was a trustee (1996-2014)[3] and chairman (2001-2014). At the completion of this, record, term the Trust made him a Life Member.[4] He is also an Honorary Life Member of the Marylebone Cricket Club.

He is currently the chairman of the C.E.W. Bean Foundation and the Southern Zone of Country Cricket New South Wales.

Cavalier has published widely on governors, the workings of cabinet, premiers, political cartoons, the uses of diaries and has also published extensively on the subject of cricket. His research and writings on the childhood and adolescence of Sir Donald Bradman have altered the Bradman historiography. He has also been the editor of the monthly newsletter of the Southern Highlands Branch of the Australian Labor Party.

In January 2004, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the community as a contributor to a range of cultural, literary and sporting organisations, to education and training, and to the New South Wales Parliament.[5] In June 2008, he was awarded a Doctor of the University (honoris causa) by the University of Technology, Sydney.[6]

He now resides in Bowral, New South Wales with his family.

Published works

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Hon. Rodney Mark Cavalier (born 1948)". Members of Parliament. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "With the ghosts of Tests past". The Sydney Morning Herald. 3 January 2009. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  3. ↑ NSW Parliamentary Papers (1 January 2006). "Rodney Mark Cavalier (1948 - )". www.parlpapers.sl.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  4. ↑ Lehman, John. "SCG Trust chief Rodney Cavalier’s emotional farewell". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  5. ↑ "Search: CAVALIER, Rodney Mark". It's an Honour. Commonwealth of Australia. 26 January 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  6. ↑ "Annual Report" (PDF). UTS Annual Report 2008. University of Technology, Sydney. 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  7. ↑ Bloomfield, Lin (1979), The world of Norman Lindsay, Macmillan, ISBN 978-0-7251-0410-8
  8. ↑ Chaples, Ernest A., 1939-; Nelson, Helen, 1940-; Turner, Ken, 1928- (1985), The Wran model : electoral politics in New South Wales, 1981 and 1984, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-554686-6
  9. ↑ Whitlam Conference of Labor Historians (4th : 1991); Whitlam, Gough; Australian Labor Party. New South Wales Branch (1992), A Century of social change, Pluto Press Australia in association with the New South Wales Branch of the Australian Labor Party, ISBN 978-0-949138-86-6
  10. ↑ Bean, Clive (1997), The politics of retribution : the 1996 Australian federal election, Allen & Unwin, ISBN 978-1-86448-386-4
  11. ↑ Coward, Mike (1998), Sir Donald Bradman A.C, Pan Macmillan, ISBN 978-0-330-36082-1
  12. ↑ Warhurst, John, 1948-; Simms, Marian; Brissenden collection (2000), Howard's agenda : the 1998 Australian election, University of Queensland Press, ISBN 978-0-7022-3163-6
  13. ↑ Warhurst, John, 1948-; Simms, Marian (2002), 2001 : the centenary election, University of Queensland Press, ISBN 978-0-7022-3303-6
  14. ↑ Simms, Marian; Warhurst, John, 1948-; Nile, Richard; Curtin University of Technology. API Network (2005), Mortgage nation : the 2004 Australian election, API Network, Australia Research Institute, Curtin University of Technology, ISBN 978-1-920845-18-6
  15. ↑ Love, Peter, 1947-; Costar, Brian J; Strangio, Paul (2005), The great Labor schism : a retrospective, Carlton North, Victoria Scribe Publications, ISBN 978-1-920769-42-0
  16. ↑ Bramston, Troy; Wran, Neville; Brereton, L. J; Loosley, Stephen, 1952- (2006), The Wran era, Federation Press, ISBN 978-1-86287-605-7
  17. ↑ Clune, David; Turner, Ken; Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in New South Wales 1856-2006. Committee (2006), The premiers of New South Wales, 1856-2005. Volume 2, Federation Press, ISBN 978-1-86287-551-7
  18. ↑ Turner, Ken; Turner, Ken, 1928-; Hogan, Michael (Michael Charles), 1937- (2006), The worldly art of politics, Federation Press, ISBN 978-1-86287-614-9
  19. ↑ Writing Party History Seminar (2007 : Sydney, N.S.W.); Clune, David; Turner, Ken, 1928-; New South Wales. Parliament; Clune, David; Writing Party History Seminar (2007: Sydney, N.S.W.) (2007), Writing party history : papers from a Seminar, held at Parliament House, Sydney, May 2006, NSW Parliament, ISBN 978-1-920788-09-4
  20. ↑ Clune, David; Turner, Ken; Clune, David; Turner, Ken, 1928- (2009), The governors of New South Wales 1788-2010, The Federation Press, ISBN 978-1-86287-743-6
  21. ↑ Simms, Marian; Wanna, John; Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (2012), Julia 2010 : the caretaker election, ANU E Press, ISBN 978-1-921862-63-2
  22. ↑ Clune, David; Smith, Rodney, 1961-, (editor.) (2012), From Carr to Keneally : Labor in office in NSW 1995-2011, Allen & Unwin, ISBN 978-1-74237-663-9
  23. ↑ Curthoys, Ann, 1945-, (editor.); Damousi, Joy, 1961-, (editor.) (2014), What did you do in the Cold War, daddy? : personal stories from a troubled time, Sydney, NSW NewSouth Publishing, ISBN 978-1-74223-391-8
  24. ↑ Tasker, Norman; Tasker, Norman, (editor.); Heads, Ian, (editor.); Benaud, John, 1944-, (writer of foreword.) (2015), Richie : the man behind the legend, Concord, NSW Stoke Hill Press, ISBN 978-0-9875641-9-1
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, April 18, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.