Robert Cotton (Australian politician)
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Sir Robert Carrington Cotton KCMG AO (29 November 1915 – 25 December 2006) was an Australian politician and Senator for New South Wales in the Parliament of Australia from 1966 to 1978. During that period he held the portfolios of Minister for Civil Aviation in the Gorton and McMahon governments, and Minister for Industry and Commerce in the Fraser government.
Cotton was born in Broken Hill, New South Wales, in 1915. He was educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide and trained as an Royal Australian Air Force pilot in 1942 and 1943, but did not participate in wartime action as he was seconded to the Department of Supply. Instead Cotton established the timber industry in Oberon, New South Wales as a wartime priority.[1]
After the war Cotton became a businessman and pastoralist in Oberon. Cotton was a member of the Australian Liberal Party from its foundation in 1944. He ran unsuccessfully for the seat of Macquarie against the sitting Australian Labor Party member Ben Chifley in the 1951 federal election. In 1949 and 1950 he was President of Oberon Council. From 1957 to 1960 he was State President, Liberal Party, New South Wales. He was appointed to the Senate to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Sir William Spooner in August 1965.[2] He was Minister for Civil Aviation from 1969 to 1972 and Minister for Industry and Commerce from 1975 to 1977.[3]
Cotton retired from Parliament in 1978 He was consul-general to New York from 1978 to 1981. He was a director of the Reserve Bank of Australia in 1981 and 1982 and was the Australian Ambassador to the United States from 1982 to 1985 and from 1991 to 1994 he was Chairman of the Australian National Gallery Foundation.[4]
He died on Christmas Day 2006 in Sydney aged 91 after a long illness. He was survived by his second wife, two daughters and a son, three stepchildren, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren as well as a sister Wanda Joan Cotton 95 who lives in Pretoria South Africa.[5]
[edit] Honours
Cotton was knighted (KCMG) in 1978 and was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1993.[4] He received a Doctor of Science from the University of Sydney in 1995.[6]
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Robert Cotton, 1915-2006", The Sydney Morning Herald, January 4, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ The Australian Election Archive Index of Senate appointments 1901-2003. Psephos. Adam Carr. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ Prime Minister of Australia (29 December 2006). "Sir Robert Cotton". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ a b Papers of Sir Robert Cotton. National Library of Australia (August 1996). Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ "PM pays tribute to Sir Robert Cotton", The Australian, December 29, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ Sir Robert Cotton KCMG AO. University of Sydney (2 June 1995). Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Reginald Swartz |
Minister for Civil Aviation 1969 – 1972 |
Succeeded by Charles Jones |
| Preceded by Clyde Cameron |
Minister for Science and Consumer Affairs 1975 |
Succeeded by James Webster |
| Preceded by Lionel Bowen |
Minister for Industry and Commerce 1975 – 1977 |
Succeeded by Phillip Lynch |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by Nicholas Parkinson |
Australian Ambassador to the United States 1982 – 1985 |
Succeeded by Rawdon Dalrymple |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Cotton, Robert |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Australian politician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 29 November 1915 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Broken Hill, Australia |
| DATE OF DEATH | 25 December 2006 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Australia |
