David Smith (Australian public servant)

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Sir David Iser Smith KCVO, AO (born 9 August 1933) is a retired Australian public servant. He was the Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia between 1973 and 1990, serving Sir Paul Hasluck, Sir John Kerr, Sir Zelman Cowen, Sir Ninian Stephen and Bill Hayden.

He was educated at Princes Hill State School, Malvern Memorial Grammar School, Scotch College, the University of Melbourne, and the Australian National University, Canberra.

Most notably he was the Official Secretary to Sir John Kerr at the time of the Australian constitutional crisis of 1975. He read out the proclamation of the dissolution of parliament following the dismissal of the Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. The proclamation was read on the steps of Parliament House, with Whitlam and a large crowd attending.

In 2004 he made claims that Whitlam misled the Australian people concerning the events during the constitutional crisis, claims to which Whitlam has not yet responded.

Now in retirement, Sir David volunteers time to Australians for Constitutional Monarchy. He is a visiting scholar at the Australian National University's School of Law, and frequently gives addresses on constitutional matters. He published a book, Head of State, in 2005.

David Smith spends every second Friday afternoon as a voluntary tour guide at Old Parliament House in Canberra.

[edit] Awards and Honours

He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1986.

In 1990 he was created a Knight of the Royal Victorian Order, an award within the Queen's personal gift. Smith received the honour in recognition of his services to the Crown, both in Australia and for services rendered at Buckingham Palace. He is the last Australian to be granted a knighthood in the personal gift of the Queen of Australia (although at least one other Australian, Robert May, received a later knighthood from the Queen on the recommendation of the British government).