Clem Jones

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Clem Jones AO was the ALP Lord Mayor of the city of Brisbane, Australia from 1961 to 1975. Born in Ipswich, 16th January 1918.

During Jones' 14 years in office as the head of the Brisbane City Council, assisted by the Town Clerk J. C. Slaughter, Brisbane underwent considerable changes.

In 1961, Brisbane was a city with no town planning, many unpaved streets, limited water supply, and few areas with sewers - relying instead on outhouses or septic tanks. Through the 1960s, Jones successfully led the council to develop a town plan, seal roads, improve drainage, and connect sewers to most of the city. The city council, under his stewardship, purchased city properties to build underground car parks, which were then topped with public parks and gardens. In the suburbs, land was acquired for open space and parkland. Work started on the development of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mount Coot-tha. Controversially, Jones also closed the city's large tram and trolley-bus network, replacing them with buses.

In Brisbane Jones is known as the "man who sewered Brisbane".

A long time member of the Australian Labor Party Jones was involved in the opposition to the attempted federal takeover of the Queensland State Branch of the Party in the early 1980s, being one of several senior members of the Queensland branch to challenge the takeover in the law courts. Briefly expelled for his involvement, he was later reinstated to the party and given life membership in recognition of his achievements in Brisbane.

He was also elected as a delegate in 1998 to the Australian Constitutional Convention as the head of the Clem Jones Constitutional Republic Team. He favoured a Republican model in which the head of state was directly elected, rather than being chosen by Parliament.