Philip Lucock
Encyclopedia
Philip Ernest Lucock, CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 (16 January 1916 – 8 August 1996) was an English born Presbyterian minister and politician. Although he was born in England, he spent most of his life in Australia.

Early life

Born in Eltham, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

, on 16 January 1916, Philip Lucock emigrated to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 in 1923, where he was educated.

In 1937, after working in the retail trade, 21-year-old Lucock emigrated again, this time to Australia.

Pastoral career

He studied for the ministry at St Andrew's College
St Andrew's College, Sydney
St Andrew's College is a Protestant co-residential college within the University of Sydney, in the suburb of Camperdown.-History:St Andrew's College was incorporated by Act of Parliament and received Royal Assent from Queen Victoria on 12 December 1867. The St Andrew's College Act 1998 replaced the...

 in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, but suspended his studies to serve in the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

 between 1941 and 1943 during World War 2
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

In 1948 Lucock was ordained as a minister of the Presbyterian Church of Australia
Presbyterian Church of Australia
The Presbyterian Church of Australia is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia. .-Beginnings:...

. He became the minister at St Andrew's Presbyterian Church
St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Wingham
St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Wingham is the main centre of the Wingham and Upper Manning Parish in the Presbyterian Church of Australia . The other centre is St Thomas' Presbyterian Church, Krambach .-Location:...

 in Wingham, New South Wales
Wingham, New South Wales
Wingham is a town in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia in the City of Greater Taree north of Sydney. At the 2006 census, Wingham had a population of 4,812.- History :...

.

Political career

One year after he was ordained, Lucock stood as one of four candidates for the Country Party of Australia in the newly created seat of Lyne
Division of Lyne
The Division of Lyne is an Australian electoral division located in the State of New South Wales. It lies on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales and includes the Local Government Areas of Gloucester, Greater Taree, Port Macquarie-Hastings and southern Kempsey...

. He polled third behind the James Eggins
James Eggins
Eldred James "Jim" Eggins was an Australian politician and a member of the Country Party of Australia.Jim Eggins was born at Grafton, New South Wales and educated in state schools. He served in the military in 1918 and later grew bananas in the Brunswick River region, and was a seed merchant in...

, who won the seat for the Country Party, and 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 Edward Hayes.

Lucock did not stand at the 1951 poll, but on the death of Jim Eggins in January 1952 a by-election
Lyne by-election, 1952
The 1952 by-election for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Lyne was called on 22 March after the death of the incumbent Country Party of Australia member James Eggins who died in office on 28 January.-Candidates:...

 was called. Lucock and Donald Lancaster stood for the Country Party against Edward Hayes. The presence of two Country Party candidates split the vote and Hayes took three thousand votes more than either Lucock or Lancaster, but with preferences from Lancaster, Lucock easily won the seat . When he was sworn in as the member for Lyne on 22 March 1952 Philip Lucock became the first member of the House of Representatives to swear allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 who had ascended to the throne on 6 February.

Once elected Philip Lucock served in the government of Sir Robert Menzies
Robert Menzies
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....

 as Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Parliament of Australia. The presiding officer in the upper house is the President of the Senate....

. Lucock also served in this role under Prime Ministers Harold Holt
Harold Holt
Harold Edward Holt, CH was an Australian politician and the 17th Prime Minister of Australia.His term as Prime Minister was brought to an early and dramatic end in December 1967 when he disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach near Portsea, Victoria, and was presumed drowned.Holt spent 32 years...

, John Gorton
John Gorton
Sir John Grey Gorton, GCMG, AC, CH , Australian politician, was the 19th Prime Minister of Australia.-Early life:...

, William McMahon
William McMahon
Sir William "Billy" McMahon, GCMG, CH , was an Australian Liberal politician and the 20th Prime Minister of Australia...

 and Malcolm Fraser
Malcolm Fraser
John Malcolm Fraser AC, CH, GCL, PC is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia. He came to power in the 1975 election following the dismissal of the Whitlam Labor government, in which he played a key role...

.

At the 1954 election Donald Lancaster, Lucock's running partner for the 1952 by election, stood against him as the Labor Party candidate. Although he gained 11.4 percent of the vote Lancaster's presence did not stop Lucock from gaining re-election.

In 1969 the seat of Lyne
Division of Lyne
The Division of Lyne is an Australian electoral division located in the State of New South Wales. It lies on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales and includes the Local Government Areas of Gloucester, Greater Taree, Port Macquarie-Hastings and southern Kempsey...

 underwent redistribution
Redistribution (election)
Redistribution , called redistricting in the United States, is the process of changing of political borders. This is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral district boundaries, usually in response to periodic census results that cause malportionment of representation...

, with the electorate area moving southward. Although the Labor Party increased its vote by 2 thousand, this did not have any great effect on the result of the election, with Philip Lucock winning by more than ten thousand votes.

Lyne was again redistributed in 1977 with the electorate again contracting from the north. Lucock retained the seat with a margin of 11.4 percent over Labor.

Retirement

After more than 28 years in the Australian Parliament Philip Lucock retired at the 1980 election. He was succeeded by Bruce Cowan
Bruce Cowan
David Bruce Cowan, AM was an Australian politician and Minister of the Crown in the cabinets of Tom Lewis and Sir Eric Willis...

. After leaving Parliament he served as Moderator of the Presbyterian Church. He retired to Queensland, living in the Brisbane suburb of Keperra
Keperra, Queensland
Keperra is a suburb in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia which is located approximately 9 kilometres north-west of the CBD. It has a deep and rich history, with some thinking that the name was based upon the Aboriginal term for “Kipper”...

 until his death in 1996. His funeral was held in Brisbane and a memorial service was held at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Wingham, and each were attended by representatives of the Commonwealth Parliament.

External links

Election Results - Division of Lyne 1949-1980

Condolence Motions in the Australian Federal Parliament at the Death of Philip Lucock
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