63-709: Neville Kenneth Wran , AC , CNZM , QC (11 October 1926 – 20 April 2014) was an Australian politician who was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 to 1986. He was the national president of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1980 to 1986 and chairman of both the Lionel Murphy Foundation and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) from 1986 to 1991. Wran
126-787: A QC and then as a Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales , to chair commissions of inquiry into police administration and gambling. He also undertook the state's largest capital works program and refurbished many iconic places in Sydney. His government also built the modern-day Darling Harbour precinct. In 1983, Wran faced the Street Royal Commission over claims by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation ( ABC ) current affairs show Four Corners that he had tried to influence
189-664: A Queen's Counsel in 1968. His great-grandfather, the eminent High Victorian architectural sculptor, Thomas Vallance Wran (1832-1891), whose carvings can be seen on the Martin Place front of the General Post Post Office, came from Chichester. Thomas Wran – the surname is Austrian – settled initially at St Lawrence, Queensland , before he established himself in Caroline Street, Balmain, in 1872. Wran began his political career in 1970 when he became
252-402: A Labor premier came at a time when most Australian governments were held by conservative coalitions, a trend subsequently reversed in the early 1980s following the elections of Labor governments to both federal and state parliaments. During his 10 years as Premier of New South Wales, the government embarked on a program of reform and change. Priorities were public transport (with the exception of
315-561: A challenge to take the prime ministership in September 2015. Two months after coming into office, the new republican prime minister announced that the Queen had approved his request to amend the Order's letters patent and cease awards at this level. Existing titles would not be affected. The move was attacked by monarchists and praised by republicans. The amendments to the constitution of
378-589: A member of the British Empire, members of the colonies and later federated nation of Australia were able to have achievement awarded under the British Imperial Honours system . However, existing criticism of the aristocratic nature of the awards grew following a cash-for-honours corruption scandal in the UK in 1922. Moves to abolish the awards federally and the states were unsuccessful; however
441-936: A member of the upper house of the Parliament of New South Wales , the Legislative Council . Three years afterwards, he moved to the lower house, the Legislative Assembly , in the seat of Bass Hill . Support for this move had been organised by the General Secretary of the FMWU , Ray Gietzelt . He then challenged Pat Hills for the state leadership of the Labor Party (which Hills had held since 1968). In this challenge he had cross-faction support from right-wing powerbroker John Ducker and left-winger Jack Ferguson . There were two rounds to
504-733: A month after his divorce was finalised and three months after becoming Premier of New South Wales, Wran married Jill Hickson, and they had two children together. Wran and Hickson separated several times, first briefly in 2006, then in August 2011 after Hickson said she had been "frozen out" of her husband's personal affairs by his daughter Kim and his friend and business partner Albert Wong. They had reconciled by December 2011. A severe throat infection in 1980 required injections of teflon to strengthen his damaged vocal cords , resulting in his characteristic croaky voice. In his later years, Wran had dementia and from July 2012 had been under special care at
567-585: A representation of the states (with whom Whitlam's government was constantly in dispute) through the state badges within the Commonwealth Coat of Arms . The original three-level structure of the Order of Australia was modelled closely upon the Order of Canada , though the Order of Australia has been awarded rather more liberally, especially in regard to honorary awards to non-citizens. As of July 2024 only 30 non-Canadians have been appointed to
630-554: A single flower of mimosa . At the centre is a ring, representing the sea, with the word Australia below two branches of mimosa. The whole disc is topped by the Crown of St Edward . The AC badge is decorated with citrines , blue enamelled ring, and enamelled crown. The AO badge is similar, without the citrines. For the AM badge, only the crown is enamelled, and the OAM badge is plain. The AK/AD badge
693-533: A six-seat swing for what is still NSW Labor's largest proportion of seats in Parliament (69 out of 99 seats, 69.7 percent of the chamber). The Opposition Leader, Bruce McDonald , failed to be elected to the seat that he contested, marking the second time in a row that an Opposition Leader had failed to be elected to Parliament. Labor also reduced the Liberals to 14 seats, the same as its nominal junior partner,
SECTION 10
#1732794492261756-776: A unified non-Labor party. The movement began as the Progressive Party , from the 1922 split until 1925. It then used the name the Country Party until 1977, when it became the National Country Party . The party's name was changed to the National Party of Australia in 1982. As a measure of the Coalition's then-solidity in NSW, the Liberals won enough seats to theoretically govern alone during
819-434: Is a registered charity, whose stated purpose is "[t]o celebrate and promote outstanding Australian citizenship". It also supports the "community and social activities" of members and promotes and encourages the nomination of other Australians to the Order. The Order also runs a foundation that provides scholarships to tertiary students that show potential as future leaders and are involved in community activities. Branches of
882-473: Is issued with each badge of the order at the time of investiture; AK/AD and AC lapel pins feature a citrine central jewel, AO and AM lapel pins have a blue enamelled centre and OAM lapel pins are plain. The different levels of the order are awarded according to the recipients' levels of achievement: Since 1976 any Australian citizen may nominate any person for an Order of Australia award. People who are not Australian citizens may be awarded honorary membership of
945-563: Is likely to feel a bit second-rate, and the public is likely to agree. We hate to be the first to say it, but there is no doubt that the Order of Australia (OA) will be labelled as the Ocker Award. Satire and mockery also greeted the awards, being dubbed "Gough’s Gongs" and "the Order of the Wombat". The newly elected Liberal Fraser government decided to once again make recommendations for imperial awards, whilst maintaining and expanding
1008-485: Is similar to that of the AC badge, but with the difference that it contains at the centre an enamelled disc bearing an image of the coat of arms of Australia . The colours of royal blue and gold are taken from the livery colours of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms , the then national colours . The star for knights and dames is a convex golden disc decorated with citrines, with a blue royally crowned inner disc bearing an image of
1071-414: The Australian Labor Party remained opposed and generally refused to recommend awards whilst in office, with this a part of the party's platform since 1918. This was confirmed in a resolution adopted unanimously by the party conference in 1921. However, the non-Labor parties remained supportive, with the long running Menzies government making significant use of the imperial system. The Order of Australia
1134-466: The Council for the Order of Australia . Members of the government are not involved in the recommendation of appointments, other than for military and honorary awards. The King of Australia is the sovereign head of the order, and the governor-general is the principal companion and chancellor of the order. The governor-general's official secretary , Paul Singer (appointed August 2018), is secretary of
1197-529: The Liberal Party premier, Sir Eric Willis . Wran's win was not assured until it became clear that Gosford and Hurstville had fallen to Labor by only 74 and 44 votes respectively, giving Wran a one-seat majority. In 1978, the former premier resigned causing a by-election to be held for the seat of Earlwood, which had been held by the Liberal party for three decades. Labor won the by-election, beating
1260-602: The National Country Party . He won a fourth term in 1984; although he suffered an 11-seat swing, he still won a larger majority than any of the victories won by the Liberals' Sir Robert Askin in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1977, Wran supported Al Grassby , former Federal Immigration Minister, in allowing Domenico Barbaro, a Mafia figure in the Griffith region of New South Wales, back into Australia after having been earlier deported because of his criminal record. However, as journalist David Hickie explains, Wran attempted to undermine
1323-620: The United Australia Party (1931–1943), and the Democratic Party (1943–1945). During periods of conservative government, the leader of the Nationals also serves as Deputy Premier of New South Wales . When the conservatives are in opposition, the Liberal and National parties usually form a joint opposition bench. New South Wales is the only state where the Coalition has never been broken, and yet has not merged into
SECTION 20
#17327944922611386-474: The 435 people who have received the nation's top Order of Australia honours since they were first awarded in 1975, shows they disproportionately attended a handful of elite Victorian secondary schools. Scotch College alumni received the highest number of awards, with 19 former students receiving Australia's [then] highest honour". On 26 January 1980 the Order of Australia Association was created as an incorporated body with membership open to award recipients. It
1449-405: The Coalition's massive landslide at the 2011 state election . However, new Premier Barry O'Farrell kept the Nationals in his government. In 2018, the party revealed that approximately 30 members of its youth wing were being investigated for alleged links to neo-Nazism . Federal Nationals leader Michael McCormack denounced these attempts stating that: "The Nationals will not tolerate extremism or
1512-529: The June 1983 ALP Annual Conference. At a press conference after announcing his departure Wran was asked what was his greatest achievement as premier. He answered, "saving the rainforests". Wran's first marriage was in 1946 at the age of 20, to Marcia Oliver, a showgirl at the New Tivoli Theatre . Oliver had a young son, whom Wran adopted, and they had one other child together, actress Kim Wran. In 1976,
1575-490: The Liberal Candidate Alan Jones . Later that year, campaigning with the slogan "Wran's our Man", his government won a 13-seat swing, popularly known as the "Wranslide". This came on the back of 57.7 percent of the primary vote, the largest primary vote for any party in a century. The Opposition Leader on that occasion, Peter Coleman , lost his seat. In 1981, Wran won a second "Wranslide", picking up
1638-666: The Lulworth House aged care facility in Elizabeth Bay . He died there on Easter Sunday , 20 April 2014 at the age of 87. He was survived by his wife Jill and four children. A state funeral was held at the Sydney Town Hall on 1 May 2014. On 12 May 2016, the name of Neville Wran was found in the Panama Papers (which also named then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull ), due to his former directorship of
1701-631: The Mossack Fonseca-incorporated company Star Technology Systems Limited . Wran resigned from that position in 1995. A report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation notes that "There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by either Mr Turnbull or Mr Wran." Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It
1764-418: The Order of Australia and the award of 199 Honorary Medals of the Order of Australia. Notable honorary awards include: Since 1975, just over 30 per cent of recipients of an Order of Australia honour have been women. The number of nominations and awards for women is trending up, with the 2023 Australia Day Honours resulting in the highest percentage of awards for women to date (47.1 per cent, 47.9 per cent in
1827-597: The Order of Australia. This was done by with the addition of two additional award levels: Knight or Dame (AK or AD) above the level of Companion, and the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) below Members. The Civil Division was also renamed the General Division, so that awards could be given to those in the Defence Force for non-military achievement. These changes were made on 24 May 1976. The reaction to
1890-486: The Order of Canada, while 537 non-Australians have been appointed to the Order of Australia, with 46 to the Companion level. Public reaction to the new awards was mixed. Only the state Labor governments of Tasmania and South Australia agreed to submit recommendations for the new awards, with the remaining governments affirming their committent to the existing imperial honours system. Newspaper editorials similarly praised
1953-498: The Order were gazetted on 22 December 2015. Yvonne Kenny AM represented the Order at the 2023 Coronation . King Charles III , when he was Prince of Wales , was appointed a Knight of the Order of Australia (AK) on 14 March 1981. As he is not an Australian citizen, even though he was the heir to the Australian throne at the time, this would have required the award to be honorary. To overcome this issue, his appointment
Neville Wran - Misplaced Pages Continue
2016-594: The Order would be determined by the Council of the Order of Australia. Awards of the Order of Australia are sometimes made to people who are not citizens of Australia to honour extraordinary achievements. These achievements, or the people themselves, are not necessarily associated with Australia, although they often are. On 1 July 2024, the Australian Honours website listed appointments for 46 Honorary Companions, 118 Honorary Officers, 174 Honorary Members of
2079-441: The Queen to reinstate the level of knight or dame and the Queen co-signed letters patent to bring this into effect. The change was publicly announced on 25 March, and gazetted on 17 April 2014. Up to four knights or dames could be appointed each year, by the Queen of Australia on the advice of the prime minister after consultation with the chairman of the Order of Australia Council. Five awards of knight and dame were then made, to
2142-573: The Warringah Transport Corridor which was cancelled despite a recommendation by Justice Michael Kirby that it be built), the environment, consumer protection and job creation. He also achieved significant electoral institutional reform such as a democratic Legislative Council, four-year terms, public funding and disclosure laws and a pecuniary interests register for members of parliament. He called on Edwin Lusher , firstly while
2205-511: The association are in all the states and territories of Australia as well as the UK and the USA. Total inductees as of July 2024 . The order of wearing Australian and other approved honours is determined by the government. The award is parodied in the play Amigos , where the central character is determined to be awarded the AC, and uses persuasion, bribery and blackmail in his (ultimately successful) attempts to get himself nominated for
2268-502: The award to Prince Philip in a ReachTEL poll. The Australian Labor Party continued to oppose knighthoods and damehoods. Leader of the opposition Bill Shorten stated in March 2014 that the party would again discontinue the level if it were to win the next Australian federal election. The knighthood decision was a significant factor that caused Liberal party members to question Abbott's leadership, with Malcolm Turnbull succeeding in
2331-547: The award. During the 1996 season of the popular television programme Home and Away , the character Pippa Ross was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for her years of service as a foster carer. National Party of Australia %E2%80%93 NSW The National Party of Australia – N.S.W. , commonly known as " The Nationals " or the NSW Nationals , is a political party in New South Wales which forms
2394-411: The awards as an example of Australia's greater independence, whilst also noting that the awards would likely appear second-rate. The Australian stated that There is no longer a British Empire; everyone knows that. But somehow the phrase "imperial honours" still carries a ring of regal authenticity that somehow transcends nationalism. For the time being a recipient ... of the Order of Australia
2457-719: The bill passed the NSW Parliament . This was the first time in NSW history a conscience vote was both introduced and passed by the NSW Parliament. Wran resigned both the premiership and his seat in Parliament on 4 July 1986, after continuously holding office longer than any other premier in the history of New South Wales until that time (10 years and 81 days). Bob Carr has since broken that record. ( Henry Parkes served longer than both Wran and Carr in total, serving for 11 years and 278 days over five terms between 1872 and 1891.) The by-election for Wran's seat of Bass Hill
2520-519: The changes to the awards were similarly split along party lines. Following the 1983 federal election , Labor Prime Minister Bob Hawke recommitted to the end of recommendations for imperial awards. No knighthoods were awarded during his first term in office and he advised the abolition of the knight/dame level after being re-elected in 1986. During the time the division was active from 1976 to 1983, twelve knights and two dames were created. On 19 March 2014, monarchist prime minister Tony Abbott advised
2583-463: The coat of arms of Australia. The ribbon of the order is royal blue with a central stripe of mimosa blossoms. Awards in the military division are edged with 1.5 mm golden bands. AKs, male ACs and AOs wear their badges on a necklet and male AMs and OAMs wear them on a ribbon on the left chest. Women usually wear their badges on a bow on the left shoulder, although they may wear the same insignia as males if so desired. A gold lapel pin for daily wear
Neville Wran - Misplaced Pages Continue
2646-463: The exception of awards recommended by the soon to be independent government of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea ); however this did not affect the constitutional right of state governments to recommend imperial awards. According to the governor general's then-secretary Sir David Smith , Whitlam was furious when he first saw Devlin's design for the insignia of the order, due to the inclusion of
2709-489: The general division). Advocacy groups such as Honour a Woman and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency have called for greater effort to be made to reach equal representation of men and women in the order. In December 2010, The Age reported a study of the educational backgrounds of all people who had received Knight/Dame and Companion level awards at that time. It reported: "An analysis of
2772-632: The governments of each respective state and territory, and three ex officio members (the chief of the Defence Force , the vice-president of the Federal Executive Council and a public servant responsible for honours policy). The Council chair as of August 2024 is Shelley Reys. The Council makes recommendations to the governor-general. Awards are announced on Australia Day and on the King's Birthday public holiday in June, on
2835-586: The governor-general to remove an individual from the order, who may cancel an award. Announcements of all awards, cancellations and resignations appear in the Commonwealth Gazette . Nomination forms are confidential and not covered by the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) . The reasoning behind a nomination being successful or unsuccessful—and even the attendees of the meetings where such nominations are discussed—remains confidential. As
2898-483: The influence of organised crime, particularly in the area of illegal casinos. Wran was also very popular, at one stage rating over 80 per cent approval in opinion polls. He was often talked about as a national political leader and rated highly in national polls as an alternative Labor Leader to Bill Hayden . He featured in Hayden's 1980 federal election campaign, along with Bob Hawke . Wran's first half of his tenure as
2961-499: The leadership vote which resulted in a tie between Hills and Wran in the second ballot. However, under Labor Party rules of the time, in the event of a tie in the second ballot, the candidate who won the most votes in the first ballot would be the winner. Since Wran had won one vote more than Hills in the first ballot, Wran was therefore declared the new leader. In May 1976, six months after Gough Whitlam 's federal Labor government's dismissal, Wran led Labor to victory, narrowly defeating
3024-508: The magistracy over the 1977 committal of Kevin Humphreys , who had been charged with misappropriation of funds. He was completely exonerated, and sued the ABC for defamation. His Corrective Services Minister, Rex Jackson , was jailed in 1987 for accepting bribes for the early release of prisoners. In 1984, Neville Wran introduced a private members bill to decriminalise adult gay male sex, and
3087-417: The occasion of a special announcement by the governor-general (usually honorary awards), and on the appointment of a new governor-general. The governor-general presents the order's insignia to new appointees. Appointments to the order may be made posthumously as long as a person was nominated for an award whilst they were still alive. Awardees may subsequently resign from the order, and the Council may advise
3150-674: The order at all levels. Nomination forms are submitted to the Director, Honours Secretariat, a position within the Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia , at Government House, Canberra , which are then forwarded to the Council for the Order of Australia . The council consists of 19 members: seven selected by the prime minister (described as "community representatives"), eight appointed by
3213-448: The order. The order is divided into a general and a military division. The five levels of appointment to the order in descending order of seniority are: Honorary awards at all levels may be made to non-citizens. These awards are made additional to the quotas. The order's insignia was designed by Stuart Devlin . The badge of the Order of Australia is a convex disc (gold for AKs, ADs and ACs, gilt for AOs, AMs and OAMs) representing
SECTION 50
#17327944922613276-457: The outgoing governor-general , Quentin Bryce ; her successor, Peter Cosgrove ; a recent chief of the Defence Force , Angus Houston ; a recent governor of New South Wales , Marie Bashir ; and Prince Philip . This last award was widely met with ridicule and dismay by many in the Australian media. The award was also heavily criticised in the community, with 72% disapproving and 12% in favour of
3339-696: The party stating that: "I have no problems calling this out, this is something I'm very strong on, I do not accept racism". On 10 September 2020, the Nationals NSW declared that they would no longer support the legislation of the NSW Liberal Party, and would effectively move to the crossbenches in Parliament. This was caused due to a new amendments to planning regulation which looked to class more forested area as koala habitat, restricting land clearing in such areas and increasing compliance for landowners, to which they disagreed with. In response,
3402-464: The politics of hate. People found to engage with such radicalism are not welcome in our party. We are a grassroots party proudly championing what matters most to our regional and rural communities – always has been, always will be". Several suspected neo-Nazis were expelled from the party and its youth wing. John Barilaro , the leader of the NSW Nationals, also denounced racism and fascism within
3465-681: The prime minister alone, rather than by the Council of the Order of Australia, as is the case with all lower levels of the order. In accordance with the statutes of 2014, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , was created a Knight of the Order by letters patent signed by the Queen on 7 January 2015, on Abbott's advice. Prince Philip's knighthood was announced as part of the Australia Day Honours on 26 January 2015 and his appointment attracted criticism of what Abbott described as his "captain's call". Abbott responded by announcing that future recommendations for appointments as Knights and Dames of
3528-520: The state branch of the federal Nationals and has traditionally represented graziers, farmers, and rural voters generally. The party has generally been the junior partner in a centre-right Coalition with the NSW branch of the Liberal Party of Australia . Since 1927, the Nationals have been in Coalition with the Liberals and their predecessors, the Nationalist Party of Australia (1927–1931),
3591-566: The testimony of other involved officers and former licensing magistrate James Swanson, stated on camera their belief that Saffron ordered the crime, which was swiftly and systematically covered up by corrupt police and government figures. It was alleged by the program that the motive was control of the valuable harbourside land next to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and with unobstructed views of the Sydney Opera House. It
3654-585: Was born in the Sydney suburb of Paddington , the eighth and last child of Joseph Wran and his wife Lillian (née Langley). He was educated at Nicholson Street Public School, Balmain , Fort Street Boys High and the University of Sydney , where he was a member of the Liberal Club , and from which he gained a Bachelor of Laws in 1948. He was admitted as a solicitor in 1951, called to the Bar in 1957, and became
3717-447: Was created by an amendment to the constitution of the Order of Australia by special letters patent signed by the Queen, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser . In March 2014 the knight and dame levels, which had been abolished in 1986 by Prime Minister Bob Hawke , were reintroduced to the Order of Australia by Tony Abbott . At the same time, Abbott announced that future appointments at this level would be recommended by
3780-408: Was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II , Queen of Australia , on the advice of then prime minister Gough Whitlam . Before the establishment of the order, Australians could receive British honours , which continued to be issued in parallel until 1992. Appointments to the order are made by the governor-general , "with the approval of The Sovereign", according to recommendations made by
3843-498: Was established on 14 February 1975 by letters patent of Queen Elizabeth II , acting as Queen of Australia , and on the advice of the newly elected Labor prime minister , Gough Whitlam . The original order had three levels: Companion (AC), Officer (AO) and Member (AM) as well as two divisions: Civil Division and Military Division. Whitlam had previously announced in 1972 (on his third day in office) that his government would no longer nominate persons for British Imperial honours (with
SECTION 60
#17327944922613906-663: Was narrowly won by Michael Owen for the Liberal Party–a harbinger of his party's heavy defeat at the state election two years later. In March 2021, ABC Television broadcast an investigative documentary series, "The Ghost Train Fire" as a second series of the Exposed program which directly implicated Saffron in an arson plot at "Luna Park Sydney" in 1979, resulting in the deaths of seven people, six of them children.[3] Former senior police officers Steve Bullock and Paul Egge, supported by
3969-442: Was the intention of Saffron and associate Jack Rooklyn, a poker-machine promoter, to gain control of and redevelop the Luna Park site. NSW premiers Robert Askin and Neville Wran have been named as corrupt close associates of Saffron, along with the police commissioner Norman "Bill" Allan, the High Court justice Lionel Murphy and lawyer Morgan Ryan, among others. Wran is remembered by the phrase "Balmain boys don't cry" in his speech at
#260739