The Ahern Ministry was a ministry of the Australian Government of Queensland and was led by National Party Premier Mike Ahern and Deputy Premier Bill Gunn. It succeeded the Bjelke-Petersen Ministry on 1 December 1987 following Joh Bjelke-Petersen's resignation as Premier and from Parliament, and was in turn succeeded by the Cooper Ministry on 25 September 1989, led by Russell Cooper.
As the National Party was not in coalition at the time, all listed members are from that party.
Two-man ministry
editDue to the speed of the unusual events leading to the demise of the previous ministry, the initial Ahern Ministry consisted simply of Ahern and Gunn sharing all of the portfolios until a full Cabinet could be appointed and details of all other administrative arrangements could be finalised. It was sworn in by Governor Walter Campbell on 1 December 1987. The appointments of all previous ministers were terminated.[1]
| Office | Minister |
|---|---|
|
Premier |
Mike Ahern, BAgrSc |
|
Deputy Premier |
Bill Gunn |
Full ministry
editA full ministry was sworn in on 9 December 1987. The Ministry largely reflected the membership and order of the Bjelke-Petersen Ministry prior to 25 November 1987, but Russ Hinze, Don Lane, Lin Powell (who had been elected Speaker on 2 December) and Yvonne Chapman were not re-appointed. Five new ministers were appointed to fill the vacancies.[2]
On 19 January 1989, Ahern reshuffled the ministry, removing Leisha Harvey and appointing Craig Sherrin to replace her.[3]
In August 1989, Russell Cooper nominated to replace Ahern at a party-room meeting, with Paul Clauson as his deputy. The bid failed, and both ministers and Bob Katter resigned on 29 August. On 31 August, a reshuffle took place and three new ministers were appointed.[4] This final version of the ministry lasted until a second attempt by Cooper to gain the leadership was successful on 25 September.
| Office | Minister |
|---|---|
|
Premier |
Mike Ahern, BAgrSc |
|
Deputy Premier |
Bill Gunn |
|
Minister for Transport (until 19 January 1989) |
Ivan Gibbs |
| Minister for Land Management | Bill Glasson |
|
Minister for Finance |
Brian Austin |
| Minister for Employment, Training and Industrial Affairs | Vince Lester |
|
Minister for Mines and Energy |
Martin Tenni |
| Minister for Primary Industries | Neville Harper |
|
Minister for the Environment and Conservation |
Geoff Muntz |
|
Minister for Family Services, Welfare and Housing |
Peter McKechnie |
|
Minister for Northern Development (until 19 January 1989) |
Bob Katter |
| Minister for Water Resources and Maritime Services | Don Neal |
|
Attorney-General |
Paul Clauson |
|
Minister for Industry, Small Business and Technology |
Rob Borbidge |
|
Minister for Local Government |
Jim Randell |
|
Minister for Corrective Services (until 19 January 1989) |
Russell Cooper |
| Minister for Health | Leisha Harvey, BA, Dip.Teach. (until 19 January 1989) |
| Minister for Education, Youth and Sport | Brian Littleproud |
| Minister for Family Services | Craig Sherrin, BSc, Dip.Ed., MEdSt (from 19 January 1989) |
References
edit- ^ Ahern, M. J., Premier (2 December 1987). "Ministerial Statement: Changes in Ministry" (PDF). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of Queensland: Legislative Assembly. pp. 4802–4804.
- ^ Ahern, M. J., Premier (8 March 1988). "Ministerial Statement: Changes in Ministry, Leader of the House, Government Whip" (PDF). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of Queensland: Legislative Assembly. pp. 4844–4845.
- ^ Ahern, M. J., Premier (7 March 1989). "Ministerial Statement: Changes in Ministry". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of Queensland: Legislative Assembly. pp. 3347–3348.
- ^ Ahern, M. J., Premier (5 September 1989). "Ministerial Statement: Changes in Ministry". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of Queensland: Legislative Assembly. pp. 297–298.
- Hughes, Colin A. (2002). A handbook of Australian government and politics, 1985-1999. Federation Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN 1-86287-434-4.