Peter Cleeland
Encyclopedia
Peter Robert Cleeland Australia
n politician, was a Labor
member of the Australian House of Representatives
, representing the electorate of McEwen
in Victoria between 1984 and 1990, and subsequently between 1993 and 1996.
Cleeland was raised in the Melbourne
suburb of Preston
, earning a trade as a fitter and turner before joining the Victorian Police Force from 1961 to 1969. While a police officer, he studied and graduated in Law at Monash University
. He worked as a solicitor for a number of years, eventually establishing his own practice. He was elected as a local councilor for the Central Ward in the Shire of Diamond Valley
from 1978 to 1985 and was Shire President from 1982 to 1983.
In 1982 Cleeland unsuccessfully stood for election in the Victorian Legislative Assembly
seat of Doncaster
. He achieved Labor Party preselection for the newly formed federal House of Representatives seat of McEwen
, which he won in 1984. Cleeland won the subsequent election in 1987, before losing the seat to Liberal
candidate Fran Bailey
in the 1990 general election. He stood once again in 1993 and won the seat back, serving for a further 3 years before once again losing the seat to Bailey
in the 1996 election, when the Keating
Labor government was swept from power by John Howard
.
Cleeland served as Chairman of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Crime Authority between 1987 and 1990, producing during that time the much cited report "Drugs, Crime and Society". The report recommended harm minimisation rather than criminalisation as a technique for managing illicit drug use.
Cleeland died on 16 September 2007 from motor neurone disease
.
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, was a 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...
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....
, representing the electorate of McEwen
Division of McEwen
The Division of McEwen is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. It is located in the centre of the state, north of the capital city of Melbourne...
in Victoria between 1984 and 1990, and subsequently between 1993 and 1996.
Cleeland was raised in the Melbourne
Melbourne
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...
suburb of Preston
Preston, Victoria
Preston is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Darebin. At the 2006 Census, Preston had a population of 27,892.-Settlement:...
, earning a trade as a fitter and turner before joining the Victorian Police Force from 1961 to 1969. While a police officer, he studied and graduated in Law at 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....
. He worked as a solicitor for a number of years, eventually establishing his own practice. He was elected as a local councilor for the Central Ward in the Shire of Diamond Valley
Shire of Diamond Valley
The Shire of Diamond Valley was a Local Government Area located about northeast of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1964 until 1994.-History:...
from 1978 to 1985 and was Shire President from 1982 to 1983.
In 1982 Cleeland unsuccessfully stood for election in the Victorian Legislative Assembly
Victorian 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:...
seat of Doncaster
Electoral district of Doncaster
The Electoral district of Doncaster is a metropolitan electorate of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, located approximately 13 kilometres north-east of Melbourne...
. He achieved Labor Party preselection for the newly formed federal House of Representatives seat of McEwen
Division of McEwen
The Division of McEwen is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. It is located in the centre of the state, north of the capital city of Melbourne...
, which he won in 1984. Cleeland won the subsequent election in 1987, before losing the seat to 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...
candidate Fran Bailey
Fran Bailey
Frances Esther "Fran" Bailey is an Australianpolitician and Liberal member of theAustralian House of Representatives from 1990 to 1993 and again from 1996 to 2010, representing the electorate of McEwen in Victoria.-Personal life:...
in the 1990 general election. He stood once again in 1993 and won the seat back, serving for a further 3 years before once again losing the seat to Bailey
Fran Bailey
Frances Esther "Fran" Bailey is an Australianpolitician and Liberal member of theAustralian House of Representatives from 1990 to 1993 and again from 1996 to 2010, representing the electorate of McEwen in Victoria.-Personal life:...
in the 1996 election, when the Keating
Paul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
Labor government was swept from power by John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
.
Cleeland served as Chairman of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Crime Authority between 1987 and 1990, producing during that time the much cited report "Drugs, Crime and Society". The report recommended harm minimisation rather than criminalisation as a technique for managing illicit drug use.
Cleeland died on 16 September 2007 from motor neurone disease
Motor neurone disease
The motor neurone diseases are a group of neurological disorders that selectively affect motor neurones, the cells that control voluntary muscle activity including speaking, walking, breathing, swallowing and general movement of the body. They are generally progressive in nature, and can cause...
.