David Leitch (politician)
Encyclopedia
David Stanley Leitch was an Australia
n politician. He was the Country Party
member for Armidale
in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
from 1973 to 1978.
Leitch was born in Leeton
; his maternal grandfather was William Killen
, a member of the Australian House of Representatives
from 1922 to 1931. Leitch was educated by correspondence from All Saints College in Bathurst
. He studied medicine at the University of Sydney
and was subsequently appointed an honorary surgeon to the Armidale and New England Hospital. In 1942 he enlisted in the AIF
; he was posted to New Guinea
, where he fought the Japan
ese at Shaggy Ridge
. After his return he returned to his medical practice.
In 1973, the Country Party
member for Armidale
, Davis Hughes
, resigned to accept the post of Agent-General in London
. Leitch was one of two Country Party candidates for the by-election, in which he narrowly defeated the Labor
candidate. He held the seat at the 1973 and 1976 elections, but he was defeated in 1978 by Labor candidate Bill McCarthy
. Leitch died in 1988 in Armidale
.
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. He was the Country Party
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
member for Armidale
Electoral district of Armidale
Armidale was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, originally created in 1894, partly replacing New England, and named after and including Armidale. In 1920, with the introduction of proportional representation, it was absorbed into Northern...
in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
New South Wales Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...
from 1973 to 1978.
Leitch was born in Leeton
Leeton, New South Wales
Leeton is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Leeton is situated approximately 550 km west of Sydney and 450 km north of Melbourne in the productive Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. Leeton is administered by Leeton Shire Council...
; his maternal grandfather was William Killen
William Killen
William Wilson Killen was an Australian politician. Born and educated in Ireland, he migrated to Australian in 1876 and became a farm worker and eventually a farmer at Corowa...
, a member of the Australian House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
from 1922 to 1931. Leitch was educated by correspondence from All Saints College in Bathurst
Bathurst, New South Wales
-CBD and suburbs:Bathurst's CBD is located on William, George, Howick, Russell, and Durham Streets. The CBD is approximately 25 hectares and surrounds two city blocks. Within this block layout is banking, government services, shopping centres, retail shops, a park* and monuments...
. He studied medicine at the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
and was subsequently appointed an honorary surgeon to the Armidale and New England Hospital. In 1942 he enlisted in the AIF
Australian Imperial Force
The Australian Imperial Force was the name given to all-volunteer Australian Army forces dispatched to fight overseas during World War I and World War II.* First Australian Imperial Force * Second Australian Imperial Force...
; he was posted to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, where he fought the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese at Shaggy Ridge
Shaggy Ridge
Shaggy Ridge is a 6.5 kilometre -long, razorback ridge in the Finisterre Range, in north eastern Papua New Guinea. Its highest point is 1,494 metres above sea level...
. After his return he returned to his medical practice.
In 1973, the Country Party
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
member for Armidale
Electoral district of Armidale
Armidale was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, originally created in 1894, partly replacing New England, and named after and including Armidale. In 1920, with the introduction of proportional representation, it was absorbed into Northern...
, Davis Hughes
Davis Hughes
Sir Davis Hughes was an Australian politician and bureaucrat.-Early life:Hughes was born in Launceston, Tasmania and was educated at Launceston High School and the University of Tasmania, although he did not graduate. He married Joan Johnson in 1940 and they had issue one son and two daughters...
, resigned to accept the post of Agent-General in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Leitch was one of two Country Party candidates for the by-election, in which he narrowly defeated the Labor
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...
candidate. He held the seat at the 1973 and 1976 elections, but he was defeated in 1978 by Labor candidate Bill McCarthy
Bill McCarthy (politician)
William John Patrick "Bill" McCarthy was an Australian politician. He was a Labor Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing Armidale from 1978 to 1981, and Northern Tablelands from 1981 to 1987....
. Leitch died in 1988 in Armidale
Armidale, New South Wales
Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale Dumaresq Shire had a population of 19,485 people according to the 2006 census. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region...
.