Carolyn Hirsh
Encyclopedia
Carolyn Dorothy Hirsh (born 1 August 1937) is a former Australia
n politician representing Silvan Province in the Victorian Legislative Council
. Elected as a member of the Australian Labor Party
, she was forced to resign from the party in September 2004 after being booked for driving a car without a licence. This followed an incident earlier in the year when she had lost her licence after being booked by police with an alcohol reading of 0.07, while driving home from an ALP function. She sat as an independent member of the Legislative Council from then until November 2005, when she was re-admitted to the ALP, but was forced to resign a second time on 23 June 2006, after a second drink-driving incident.
, though she attended high school in the rural town of Colac
. She trained as a teacher at Geelong Teachers College and then Monash University
, where she also studied psychology. After graduating from university, she was employed as a teacher of children with disabilities, and also worked for some years in her family business. She joined the Labor Party in the late 1960s, while involved with the campaign against the Vietnam War
.
as the member for Wantirna
.
Hirsh was re-elected at the 1988 election, after which she was promoted to the position of Government Whip, but made an unsuccessful attempt to switch to the seat of Knox in 1992. After losing her seat, she returned to private practice as a psychologist. She made two unsuccessful attempts to move to federal politics, as the Labor candidate for the federal seat of La Trobe
at the 1996 election and 1998 election. She taught at the Mountain District Learning Centre, in addition to her practice, from 1996 to 1998, before giving both away in 1999 and taking on a position at the Chisholm Institute of TAFE
.
In the Labor landslide victory at the 2002 state election, Hirsh successfully won an upset victory in the Legislative Council seat of Silvan Province, which had previously been thought to be a safe Liberal
seat. In 2003, she was elected as the chair of the parliamentary Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee.
She did not contest the 2006 election.
, the Liberal member for Silvan Province (there were two members for each Province in the Legislative Council) was also caught drink-driving, and received a similar penalty.
On 17 September 2004, Hirsh was again pulled over by police while driving, and was found to be driving while disqualified. The car she was driving also did not have a current registration sticker displayed, which is illegal, and it was reported that she gave police a false name. That night, Premier Steve Bracks
publicly demanded that Hirsh quit the party, stating that "there is no room in the Labor Party for people who had so openly flouted the law". Despite pressure from the Labor Party and the media, Hirsh announced her intention to remain in Parliament as an independent. However, she continued to vote with the Labor Party, and her application in late 2005 to rejoin the Party was accepted. She rejoined on 10 November 2005, saying that the Labor Party is very much a part of "who she is".
In October 2004, Hirsh told The Age
newspaper that she had been battling depression, caused by the suicide of her eldest daughter in 2001, and said that while this was not an excuse for her behaviour, it was the reason.
On 21 June 2006, she was again found by police to have been driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC of .065, and is expected to be charged on summons for drink driving. Premier Steve Bracks
announced that Hirsh had admitted herself to a hospital for psychiatric treatment, and that he would move to expel her from the Labor Party caucus a second time. She resigned from the party on 24 June.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n politician representing Silvan Province in the Victorian Legislative Council
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...
. Elected as a member of the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
, she was forced to resign from the party in September 2004 after being booked for driving a car without a licence. This followed an incident earlier in the year when she had lost her licence after being booked by police with an alcohol reading of 0.07, while driving home from an ALP function. She sat as an independent member of the Legislative Council from then until November 2005, when she was re-admitted to the ALP, but was forced to resign a second time on 23 June 2006, after a second drink-driving incident.
Early history
Hirsh was born in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, though she attended high school in the rural town of Colac
Colac, Victoria
Colac is a small city located in the Western District of Victoria, Australia, situated approximately 150 kilometres south-west of Melbourne on the southern shore of Lake Colac and the surrounding volcanic plains, approximately 40 km inland from Bass Strait. Colac is the largest city in and...
. She trained as a teacher at Geelong Teachers College and then Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....
, where she also studied psychology. After graduating from university, she was employed as a teacher of children with disabilities, and also worked for some years in her family business. She joined the Labor Party in the late 1960s, while involved with the campaign against the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
Political career
Hirsh worked as a psychologist for the Victorian Department of Education from 1980 to 1985, when she was elected to the Victorian Legislative AssemblyVictorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
as the member for Wantirna
Electoral district of Wantirna
The Electoral district of Wantirna was an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly.-Members for Wantirna:-See also:*Parliaments of the Australian states and territories*List of members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly...
.
Hirsh was re-elected at the 1988 election, after which she was promoted to the position of Government Whip, but made an unsuccessful attempt to switch to the seat of Knox in 1992. After losing her seat, she returned to private practice as a psychologist. She made two unsuccessful attempts to move to federal politics, as the Labor candidate for the federal seat of La Trobe
Division of La Trobe
The Division of La Trobe is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. It is located in the outer eastern/south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne. It was originally located closer to the city, but redistributions moved it further south-east. It originally included the suburbs of Croydon,...
at the 1996 election and 1998 election. She taught at the Mountain District Learning Centre, in addition to her practice, from 1996 to 1998, before giving both away in 1999 and taking on a position at the Chisholm Institute of TAFE
Technical and Further Education
In Australia, training and further education or TAFE institutions provide a wide range of predominantly vocational tertiary education courses, mostly qualifying courses under the National Training System/Australian Qualifications Framework/Australian Quality Training Framework...
.
In the Labor landslide victory at the 2002 state election, Hirsh successfully won an upset victory in the Legislative Council seat of Silvan Province, which had previously been thought to be a safe Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
seat. In 2003, she was elected as the chair of the parliamentary Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee.
She did not contest the 2006 election.
Alcohol problems
In June 2004, Hirsh was driving home from a Labor function when she was breath-tested and found to have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .07, more than the legal driving limit of .05. Her licence was suspended for six months, and she was forced to resign from the Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee. In an odd coincidence, six weeks later, Andrew OlexanderAndrew Olexander
Andrew Phillip Olexander is an Australian politician. He was an independent member of the Victorian Legislative Council representing Silvan Province from November 2005 to November 2006, after being expelled from the parliamentary Liberal Party, which he had represented since 1999.His career has...
, the Liberal member for Silvan Province (there were two members for each Province in the Legislative Council) was also caught drink-driving, and received a similar penalty.
On 17 September 2004, Hirsh was again pulled over by police while driving, and was found to be driving while disqualified. The car she was driving also did not have a current registration sticker displayed, which is illegal, and it was reported that she gave police a false name. That night, Premier Steve Bracks
Steve Bracks
Stephen Philip Bracks AC is a former Australian politician and the 44th Premier of Victoria. He first won the electoral district of Williamstown in 1994 for the Australian Labor Party, and was party leader and Premier from 1999 to 2007....
publicly demanded that Hirsh quit the party, stating that "there is no room in the Labor Party for people who had so openly flouted the law". Despite pressure from the Labor Party and the media, Hirsh announced her intention to remain in Parliament as an independent. However, she continued to vote with the Labor Party, and her application in late 2005 to rejoin the Party was accepted. She rejoined on 10 November 2005, saying that the Labor Party is very much a part of "who she is".
In October 2004, Hirsh told The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
newspaper that she had been battling depression, caused by the suicide of her eldest daughter in 2001, and said that while this was not an excuse for her behaviour, it was the reason.
On 21 June 2006, she was again found by police to have been driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC of .065, and is expected to be charged on summons for drink driving. Premier Steve Bracks
Steve Bracks
Stephen Philip Bracks AC is a former Australian politician and the 44th Premier of Victoria. He first won the electoral district of Williamstown in 1994 for the Australian Labor Party, and was party leader and Premier from 1999 to 2007....
announced that Hirsh had admitted herself to a hospital for psychiatric treatment, and that he would move to expel her from the Labor Party caucus a second time. She resigned from the party on 24 June.