Peter Nixon

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The Honourable
Peter Nixon
AO
Nixon in 1967
Minister for Primary Industry
In office
27 September 1979 – 11 March 1983
Prime MinisterMalcolm Fraser
Preceded byIan Sinclair
Succeeded byJohn Kerin
Minister for Shipping and Transport
In office
11 November 1975 – 8 December 1979
Prime MinisterMalcolm Fraser
Preceded byCharles Jones
Succeeded byRalph Hunt
In office
5 February 1971 – 5 December 1972
Prime MinisterJohn Gorton
William McMahon
Preceded byCharles Jones
Succeeded byRalph Hunt
Postmaster-General
In office
11 November 1975 – 22 December 1975
Prime MinisterMalcolm Fraser
Preceded byReg Bishop
Succeeded byVictor Garland
Minister for the Interior
In office
16 October 1967 – 5 February 1971
Prime MinisterHarold Holt
John McEwen
John Gorton
Preceded byDoug Anthony
Succeeded byRalph Hunt
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Gippsland
In office
9 December 1961 – 4 February 1983
Preceded byGeorge Bowden
Succeeded byPeter McGauran
Personal details
Born (1928-03-22) 22 March 1928 (age 96)
Orbost, Victoria, Australia
Political partyCountry / NCP
Spouse
Sally Dahlsen
​
(m. 1954⁠–⁠2013)​
ChildrenJoanne, Mark & Christopher
EducationWesley College, Melbourne
OccupationGrazier, company director

Peter James Nixon AO (born 22 March 1928) is an Australian former politician and businessman. He served in the House of Representatives from 1961 to 1983, representing the Division of Gippsland as a member of the National Country Party (NCP). He held ministerial office as Minister for the Interior (1967–1971), Shipping and Transport (1971–1972), Postmaster-General (1975), Transport (1975–1979), and Primary Industry (1979–1983).[1]

Nixon is the earliest elected Country MP still alive,[2] and along with Ian Sinclair he is one of the last two surviving ministers who served under Holt and McEwen, as well as in the First Gorton and First Fraser Ministry.

Early life[edit]

Nixon was born on 22 March 1928 in Orbost, Victoria.[3] He grew up on a farming property outside Orbost. During the Black Friday bushfires of 1939 he and his family had to seek shelter in the Snowy River.[4]

Nixon attended Wesley College, Melbourne. At the age of 18 he sustained a severe injury to his left hip while playing Australian rules football, requiring him to spend eight months in hospital. He passed the time by reading and playing chess.[5] Following his recovery Nixon took up farming, the fourth generation of his family to farm in Gippsland.[6] He had a 500-acre (200 ha) property named Macclesfield, where he grew seed beans and maize. He later switched to mixed farming, growing lucerne and keeping dairy cattle.[7]

Political career[edit]

Nixon was elected to parliament at the 1961 federal election, following the resignation of George Bowden, the incumbent Country Party MP in Gippsland. He had initially not been a candidate for preselection, agreeing to stand only when the presumed nominee suffered a fatal heart attack three days before nominations closed.[5]

Nixon was one of several young Country Party MP's mentored by party leader John McEwen as part of his succession strategy, along with Doug Anthony and Ian Sinclair.[8]

In 1967, Nixon was appointed Minister for the Interior in the Holt government, retaining the position in the Gorton government. He was elevated to cabinet following the 1969 election. Following a cabinet reshuffle he was instead appointed Minister for Shipping and Transport in the McMahon government in February 1971, holding the portfolio until the government's defeat at the 1972 federal election.[3]

As interior minister, Nixon held responsibility for the Australian Capital Territory and oversight of the National Capital Development Commission.[6] He was also responsible for the Northern Territory.[5] Nixon is mentioned in the song Gurindji Blues, saying "Buy your land back, Gurindji" referring to his assessment of the Wattie Creek land rights strike.[9]

In opposition from 1972 to 1975, Nixon was a prominent figure in persuading his National Party colleagues to help pass Australian Labor Party legislation opposed by the Nationals' coalition partner, the Liberal Party. Nixon was also a longtime critic of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, which he accused of being biased against the National Party.[citation needed]

During the Fraser government, Nixon was a significant figure in the renamed National Country Party (NCP), along with Anthony and Sinclair. Nicknamed the "mulga mafia", the trio were "an assertive and sometimes combative presence in the House, and a significant influence on the government's policy agenda".[8] Nixon briefly served as Postmaster-General in the first Fraser ministry following the dismissal of the Whitlam government. He subsequently returned to his prior role of Minister for Shipping and Transport, serving from 1975 to 1979. He then served as Minister for Primary Industry from 1979 until the government's defeat at the 1983 election.[3]

In 1981, as primary industry minister, Nixon faced a scandal over meat substitution, whereby beef exports to the United States had been found to contain kangaroo and horse meat.[10] The government subsequently announced a royal commission into the meat industry, which found that Nixon and his department had not responded adequately to earlier reports of misconduct within the industry.[11] In response, Nixon offered his resignation to Fraser.[12]

On the floor of parliament, Nixon was known for trading insults with opposition members and particularly his verbal stoushes with Fred Daly.[citation needed]

Later life[edit]

In 1984, Nixon was appointed chair of Southern Cross Broadcasting. During his tenure Southern Cross underwent significant expansion, acquiring Melbourne radio stations 3AW and 3AK, Perth radio stations 6PR and 6IX, Tasmanian television station TNT, and Canberra television station CTC. In 1994, Hugh Lamberton wrote in The Canberra Times that Nixon was "one of the few long-serving politicians to have established a post-parliamentary life not overburdened with a nostalgic dependence on past achievement".[13]

Outside of broadcasting, Nixon was a member of the Victorian Football League Commission from 1985 to 1991.[13] In 1996, he was chosen to chair a joint Commonwealth-State inquiry into the Tasmanian economy. The report became known as the Nixon Report: Tasmania into the 21st Century.Trustee of MCC 86–91. Freeman City of Jakarta, Athens.Chief Commissioner East Gippsland Shire 95–97[citation needed]

Nixon delivered the eulogy at Malcolm Fraser's state funeral in 2015.[14]

Personal life[edit]

In 1952 Nixon, married Jacqueline "Sally" Dahlsen, with whom he had three children.[15]

In the 1990s, Nixon suffered severe injuries in a quad bike accident while spraying blackberries on his farm, including twenty fractures to his ribs, a broken sternum and a partially collapsed lung. The accident resulted in the loss of a kidney.[4]

Honours[edit]

On 26 January 1993, Nixon was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for his service to the Australian parliament and to the community.[16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Parliamentary Handbook: Historical Information on the Australian Parliament". Archived from the original on 17 November 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
  2. ^ Malcolm Farnsworth (2020). "Living Former Members Of The House Of Representatives (1949–1972)". Australianpolitics.com.
  3. ^ a b c "Biography for NIXON, the Hon. Peter James, AO". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b West, Chris (2022). "True survivor". Gippsland Life. Vol. 50. pp. 8–11.
  5. ^ a b c "'Tough' Minister thrives on deep policy issues". The Canberra Times. 10 July 1968.
  6. ^ a b "The new 'Mayor'". The Canberra Times. 17 October 1967.
  7. ^ "New 'mayoress' a country girl at heart". The Canberra Times. 19 October 1967.
  8. ^ a b Arklay, Tracey (2021). "Ian McCahon Sinclair (1929–)". Biographical Dictionary of the House of Representatives.
  9. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "Kangaroo meat in export packs: Nixon". The Canberra Times. 22 August 1981.
  11. ^ "Meat report uproar". The Canebrra Times. 22 September 1982.
  12. ^ "Nixon puts his political future in PM's hand". The Canberra Times. 20 September 1982.
  13. ^ a b Lamberton, Hugh (10 December 1994). "Front man for new player in town". The Canberra Times.
  14. ^ "Malcolm Fraser, former prime minister, farewelled at state funeral". ABC News. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  15. ^ "Choral service for wedding". The Herald. 27 July 1954.
  16. ^ "It's an Honour: AO". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
Political offices
Preceded by Minister for the Interior
1967–1971 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister for Shipping and Transport
1971–1972 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Postmaster-General
1975 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister for Transport
1975–1979 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister for Primary Industry
1979–1983 		Succeeded by
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Gippsland
1961–1983 		Succeeded by
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