David Beattie
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| His Excellency The Honourable Sir David Stuart Beattie |
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| In office 6 November 1980 – 22 November 1985 |
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| Prime Minister | Robert Muldoon (1980 - 1984) David Lange (1984 - 1985) |
| Preceded by | Sir Keith Holyoake |
| Succeeded by | Sir Paul Reeves |
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| Born | February 29, 1924 Sydney,  Australia |
| Died | 4 February 2001 (aged 76) New Zealand |
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Profession | Judge |
Sir David Stuart Beattie, GCMG, GCVO, QSO, QC, (29 February 1924–4 February 2001) was the fourteenth Governor-General of New Zealand, from 1980 to 1985.
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[edit] Early life
Born in Sydney, Australia on February 29, 1924. He was brought up by his mother in Takapuna, Auckland. He went to Auckland's Dilworth School.
He was still young at the outbreak of World War II. He joined the army in 1941 and rose to the rank of sergeant before transferring to the Naval Volunteer Reserve as a Sub-Lieutenant.
[edit] Judge of the Supreme Court
After the war, he gained a law degree at the University of Auckland in 1948 before setting up in private practice. In 1969 Beattie was appointed as a Supreme Court judge (the old name for the High Court, not to be confused with the new final court of appeal, the Supreme Court of New Zealand), serving on the bench until 1980.
He was heavily involved in sports administration, serving as New Zealand Olympic Committee president for 11 years. He was president of the Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association in 1989 and was president of the Sports Foundation twice. His work was recognized with the award of the Olympic Order. He was also patron of the New Zealand Rugby Union, the New Zealand Boxing Association, the New Zealand Squash Rackets Association. He was a keen golfer, tennis player and fisherman.
[edit] Governor-General
Beattie was appointed Governor-General by Queen Elizabeth II on the advice of her Prime Minister Robert Muldoon in 1980.
[edit] Controversies
At the height of the Springbok tour of 1981, Beattie met a delegation from Halt All Racist Tours. Beattie promised to discuss their issues with the Prime Minister Robert Muldoon. Beattie was ridiculed by supporters of the tour, and as a result, the Prime Minister refused to speak to the Governor-General about his meeting with HART[1].
Beattie again caused controversy when he met with protesters trying to petition the Queen at the 1983 Waitangi Day celebrations, after the Prime Minister had blocked all petitions. As a result, Muldoon declared that Beattie's term would not be extended beyond the traditional five year mandate.[1].
Beattie's final controversial move was to import two Mercedes-Benz cars at the end of his term in 1985. At the time the Governor-General was exempt from paying taxes and therefore import tariffs on cars anymore either - the tax benefit to Beattie was $85,000[1].
[edit] Constitutional Crisis
Following the 1984 general election, a constitutional crisis arose. Muldoon refused to follow the instructions of the Prime Minister elect, David Lange. Beattie suggested to senior members of the National Party that he could dismiss Muldoon and appoint his deputy, Jim McLay as Prime Minister before swearing in David Lange as Prime Minister (McLay was to replace Muldoon as leader later that year). However, this proved unnecessary as a Muldoon's cabinet threatened to remove him as leader themselves [2].
He died in February 2001.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Gavin Mclean, The Governors, New Zealand Governors and Governors-General, Otago University Press, October 2006.
- ^ Television New Zealand (10 July 1994). TVNZ On Demand - Frontline - Four days in June.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Keith Holyoake |
Governor-General of New Zealand 1980–1985 |
Succeeded by Sir Paul Reeves |
{{Governors-General of New Zealand}
| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Beattie, David Stuart |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Viceroy, jurist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 29, 1924 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Sydney, Australia |
| DATE OF DEATH | 4 February 2001 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | New Zealand |
