Malcolm fraser born
Malcolm Fraser
Prime Minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983
For other people named Malcolm Fraser, see Malcolm Fraser (disambiguation).
John Malcolm FraserAC CH GCL PC (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, and is the fourth longest-serving prime minister in Australian history.
Fraser was raised on his father's sheep stations, and after studying at Magdalen College, Oxford, returned to Australia to take over the family property in the Western District of Victoria. After an initial defeat in 1954, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives at the 1955 federal election, as a member of parliament (MP) for the division of Wannon. He was 25 at the time, making him one of the youngest people ever elected to parliament. He is the latest Prime Minister to date who represented a rural constituency. When Harold Holt became prime minister in 1966, Fraser was appointed Minister for the Army. After Holt's disappearance and replacement by John Gorton, Fraser became Minister for Education and Science (1968–1969) and then Minister for Defence (1969–1971). In 1971, Fraser resigned from cabinet and denounced Gorton as "unfit to hold the great office of prime minister"; this precipitated the replacement of Gorton with William McMahon. He subsequently returned to his old education and science portfolio.
After the Liberal-National Coalition was defeated at the 1972 election, Fraser unsuccessfully stood for the Liberal leadership, losing to Billy Snedden. When the party lost the 1974 election, he began to move against Snedden, eventually mounting a successful challenge in March 1975. As Leader of the Opposition, Fraser used the Coalition's control of the Australian Senate to block supply to the Whitlam government, precipitating the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis. This culminated with Go As leader of the opposition Fraser blocked Whitlam's budget, forcing Governor-General Sir John Kerr to dismiss Whitlam as prime minister. The country was shocked. Protest strikes and violent demonstrations followed. In what became one of the most famous of Australian political speeches, from the steps of Parliament House in 1975, Whitlam said Fraser would "go down in Australian history from Remembrance Day 1975 as Kerr's cur". But the Australian public wanted a steady hand after the rapid pace of Whitlam's reforms, and voted in Fraser's team in the largest win of any Australian federal election at that time. In office, Fraser faced a post-war economic slowdown marred by stagflation, and the emergence of the so-called baby boomers who had more in common with Whitlam's progressive views on issues such as abortion, and who did not favour cuts to the public service. Fraser focussed on trying to cut both government expenditure and taxation. Away from the economic front, he increased the number of immigrants entering Australia, accepted Vietnamese refugees into the country - many of them arriving by boat - and promoted the concept of multiculturalism. It was this last policy that years later, he maintained, was his government's finest legacy because of the way it helped build a cohesive community. Refugee champion Since the 1960s, governments had started to dismantle Australia's notorious White Australia Policy, which discriminated against non-European immigrants. Whitlam introduced legislation that allowed all migrants, regardless of origin, to be granted citizenship after three years of permanent residence. However, the number and percentage of migrants from non-European countries didn't increase until after Fraser came to office. From 1975 to 1982, some 200,000 migrants arrived from Asia, including nearly 56,000 Vietnamese refugees. Treatment of refugees was one of a number of John Malcolm FraserAC, CH, GCL, PC (21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician. He served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia from 11 November 1975 through 11 November 1983. He was also leader of the Liberal Party from 1975 to 1983. Before being prime minister, Fraser was a member of the Australian Parliament from 1955 through 1983. He served as Minister of Defence from 1966 to 1968 and again from 1969 to 1971 and Minister for Education and Science from 1968 to 1969 and again from 1971 to 1972. Fraser was born in Toorak, Victoria. He studied at Magdalen College, Oxford. He married Tamie Beggs in 1956. As leader of the Liberal Party, he became Prime Minister in November, 1975 when Governor-General, Sir John Kerr, dismissed Gough Whitlam. At this point he was only temporary Prime Minister. He won the election held in December, 1975. He won two more elections in 1977 and 1980 before losing to Bob Hawke in 1983. Fraser married Tamara (Tamie) Beggs in 1956 and the couple have remained married ever since. His government stopped some of the changes made by the Whitlam government. They also reduced government spending to stop money becoming less valuable. He also supported efforts to abolish racism in South Africa, the boycott of the Moscow Olympics and more immigration from Asian countries. He has criticised the prime ministership of John Howard who had been his Treasurer from 1977 to 1983. On 20 March 2015, his office announced that Fraser had died in the early hours of the morning, noting that he had suffered a brief illness in Melbourne, Victoria, aged 84. Farmer, politician, Prime Minister of Australia, human rights conscience, counselor, friend. Born May 21 1930, in Melbourne, died March 20, 2015, age 84. Malcolm Fraser was a towering figure – in height, intellect, and passion. Six feet four, with large hands and broad shoulders, Fraser had the frame of one of Australia’s famed athletes, but along with that considerable height went a considerable intelligence. Raised on the family ranch at Nareen Station, western Victoria, Fraser returned to the life of a grazier, raising Merino sheep and Simmental cattle, after his career in politics was over. He often told a story of his life as a young boy on the farm, during a severe Australian drought, when he worked through the night to save the ewes. Fraser’s life as a farmer dealing with weather and loss was undoubtedly the context of his most rueful saying: “life was not meant to be easy.” While never forgetting his rural roots, Fraser expanded his horizons by attending Magdalen College, University of Oxford, graduating in 1952 with a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, but also establishing a lifelong friendship with his classmate John Turner. When he returned to Australia, Fraser supported the Liberal-Country party and soon won a seat - at age 25 - in parliament where he sat for the next 28 years. Becoming leader of the Liberal Party in 1975, he became prime minister that year and served in Australia’s highest office until 1983. The many obituaries for Malcolm Fraser naturally concentrated on his time as prime minister, in which he expanded immigration from Asia and promoted a humane policy of admitting refugees. Australians commented on his death that he was “a giant and visionary.” But I got to know Malcolm Fraser well, not in his glory years as prime minister but rather in the post-retirement phase of his career. He was a founding member of the InterAction Council of former world leaders, and became chair of that organization for many years. Malc Obituary: Malcolm Fraser
Malcolm Fraser
Early life
[change | change source]Prime Minister (1975-1983)
[change | change source]Death
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