John Brumby
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John Mansfield Brumby (born 21 April 1953), Australian politician, is a senior minister in the government of the state of Victoria.
John Brumby was born in Melbourne and educated at Melbourne Grammar School and Melbourne University, where he graduated in commerce in 1974, and at the State College of Victoria (at the Rusden campus of what was Victoria College, Melbourne and Deakin University), where he completed a Diploma of Education in 1975. He was a teacher at Eaglehawk High School, near Bendigo in central Victoria, from 1976 to 1979. From 1979 to 1983 he was an employee of the Victorian Teachers Union. He was also active in the Australian Labor Party.
In 1983 John Brumby was elected to the Australian House of Representatives for the seat of Bendigo, which he held until his defeat in 1990. A member of the Labor Unity faction, he was a strong supporter of Prime Minister Bob Hawke and an opponent of the Socialist Left faction, which has its stronghold in the Victorian branch of the Labor Party.
John Brumby then worked as a consultant before being appointed Chief of Staff to the federal Minister for Resources and Tourism, Allan Griffiths with responsibility for the development of policy in areas such as energy, petroleum, minerals and tourism. He held this position until February 1993, when he was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council at a by-election for the seat of Doutta Galla Province in Melbourne's western suburbs.
The Victorian Labor government of Joan Kirner was defeated at the October 1992 state elections by the Liberal Party lead by Jeff Kennett. Joan Kirner later resigned as Leader and was succeeded by Jim Kennan, Jim Kennan resigned as ALP State Parliamentary leader and the Parliament in June 1993. John Brumby was subsequently elect as Labor's new State Parliamentary leader to fill the vacancy created by Jim Kennan's resignation, He resigned from the Council and was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly at a by-election for Kennan's seat of Broadmeadows.
In 1996 John Brumby, with the overwhelming support of the Melbourne Community, opposed the Kennett State Government's proposed relocation of the State Museum to Carlton Garden's site adjacent to the Royal Exhibition Building. It was at this time John Brunby first proposed that the Royal Exhibition Building and the Carlton Gardens be nominated for World Heritage Listing. The World Heritage nomination was opposed at the time by the Kennett Liberal State Government. It was not until after the 1999 State Election that John Brumby and the Bracks Labor Government fullfilled its promise and nominated and obtained World Heritage Listing for this significant Melbourne Icon.
From 1993 to 1996 John Brumby worked to restore Labor's fortunes in Victoria, the defeat of the federal Labor government in March 1996 prompted Kennett to call an early state election three weeks later, at which Labor made a net gain of two seats. This defeat was claimed to have undermined John Brumby's position as Leader. John Brumby was later replaced March 1999, offering support to his friend and colleague Steve Bracks.
Steve Bracks, having won the state election called by Kennett in September 1999,appointed John Brumby as Minister for Finance, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for State and Regional Development, forming part of the successful leadership team of senior ministers with Bracks, Deputy Premier John Thwaites and Attorney-General Rob Hulls. Fulfilling a campaign promise, Steve Bracks became Treasurer as well as Premier, assisted by John Brumby who was responsible for Victoria's finances and most of the workload of the Treasury portfolio. In May 2000 John Brumby was appointed State Treasurer.
Since 2000 John Brumby has presided over a period of increasing growth and prosperity in Victoria, and his economic management was given some of the credit, along with the personal popularity of Bracks, for Labor's landslide re-election in 2002. Victoria's budget surpluses have been fuelled in part by revenues from the federal government's goods and services tax, which Labor opposed but which has greatly improved the financial position of the states.
One of John Brumby's most successful policies was to promise that a Labor Government would maintain a surplus budget.
During 2004 John Brumby was criticised by the flagging state opposition for sharp increases in the rate of land tax in Victoria, which threatened the viability of many small businesses. Land tax rates were cut in the 2005 state budget. John Brumby was faced with a choice of having to fund road infrastructure at the expense of development of Victoria's schools, hospitals and public transport had to make a decision to impose a toll on the new Scoresby Freeway in eastern Melbourne. (Tolls were first introduced to the trans-urban [[City Link] by the Jeff Kennett Liberal Government).
John Brumby has been accredit with the success of Labor's term in office for providing sound and responsible management .
