Andrew Peacock

Andrew Sharp Peacock AC ( born February 13, 1939 in Melbourne, Victoria ) is a former Australian politician. He also served as foreign minister and chairman of the Liberal Party of Australia in Parliament.

Early life

Peacock was born in Melbourne, Victoria, the son of a wealthy company director. He attended Scotch College and Melbourne University in his hometown, where he received his law degree. He worked as a lawyer in Melbourne, while he had a rapid rise in the Liberal Party. In 1962 year he was president of the Young Liberals, the young liberals, and in 1963 he married Susan Renouf, the daughter of Sir John Frederick Rossiter, who headed the liberals in committee in Victoria and his wife Joan Stewart. Together they had three daughters .. In 1965 he became president of the Victorian Liberal Party.

Entry into politics

In 1966, Robert Menzies resigned, whereupon Peacock inherited it in the constituency Kooyong, which is located in the affluent eastern suburbs of Melbourne. In 1969 he became Minister for the Army and was involved in this position in the overthrow of Prime Minister John Gorton in 1971. In 1972 he was appointed by William McMahon as Minister for Territories and was responsible for the Australian colony of Papua New Guinea, where he was responsible for the preparation of an independent government.

When the Liberals went into opposition in December 1972, he managed to establish himself in the party leadership. As a moderate liberal, he was a follower of the new party leader Billy Snedden. After Sneddens election defeat in 1974, he thus was considered a successor candidate, but Malcolm Fraser took the initiative and heir Snedden in 1975 as party leader. Fraser Peacock appointed spokesman on foreign policy issues of the Liberal Party of Australia and the Fraser in December 1975 his party again led to electoral success, he was Foreign Minister at the age of 36 years.

Peacock has held this office for five years until 1980, where he was regarded as an international playboy because of its relationship to U.S. actress Shirley MacLaine (at which time his marriage was already divorced). He had a series of violent clashes with Fraser because of the recognition of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. So it was that in 1980 Peacock asked for another ministry and the Minister for Industrial relation (see: Industrial relations ) has been appointed. In April 1981, he appeared surprisingly back from his post because he Fraser constantly accused of interfering in its tasks. Shortly thereafter, Fraser called a party meeting, where he zunichtemachte the aspirations Peacocks, even to take over the party chairmanship.

In November 1982, he returned as Minister for Industry and Commerce back in the political events of the day.

Party presidency

Fraser's government ended with the loss of federal elections in March 1983 against the Australian Labor Party led by Bob Hawke, so that Peacock was then chairman of the party. In the federal elections in 1984 he was able to reduce Hawkes majority, but it was not enough to electoral success. Then Peacock tried the Vice Chief of Party John Howard to be replaced by another candidate, said he failed due to lack of support within the party, and then stepped back. He was replaced just by the hitherto Vice party chief Howard. In this he was charged with foreign policy.

After the Howard federal elections lost in 1987, was appointed Peacock as Vice party chief. Since his followers organized a conspiracy, Peacock came in 1989 the return to the party leadership. He married a second time - his new wife was Margaret St George.

Although the competing Hawkes with his government had big financial problems and there was a new record interest in federal politics, Peacock did not make it to decide the elections for his party and stepped back. He was Attorney General ( 1990-92 ) and Minister of Trade ( 1992-93) of the opposition under the new party leader John Hewson. As Hewson against Keating lost the federal elections in 1993, he again took over foreign policy tasks. He left his office after Hewson was replaced by Alexander Downer to the party leadership.

After the policy

In September 1994, Peacock decided that his time was over as a politician and resigned from the Australian Parliament. When John Howard became prime minister in 1996, he appointed Peacock to the Australian Ambassador to the United States. In 2002 he married the American diplomat Penne Percy Korth Midway and was manager of Boeing Australia. A post he occupied until 2007. Meanwhile, he is manager of MFS Limited, a financial group.

Honors

Peacock was a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1997. For his role in the independence of Papua New Guinea, he was appointed Chief Grand Companion of the Order of Logohu in 2006.

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