Parliamentary Offices


Father of the House
In office 20 February 1990 – 31 August 1998
Preceded by	Tom Uren
Succeeded by	Philip Ruddock
Leader of the House
In office 19 August 1980 – 7 May 1982
Leader	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Ian Viner
Succeeded by	Sir James Killen
In office 22 December 1975 – 27 September 1979
Leader	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Fred Daly
Succeeded by	Ian Viner
Manager of Opposition Business
In office 16 March 1983 – 28 April 1987
Leader	Malcolm Fraser Andrew Peacock John Howard
Preceded by	Lionel Bowen
Succeeded by	John Spender
In office 14 June 1974 – 11 November 1975
Leader	Billy Snedden Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	unknown
Succeeded by	Gordon Scholes

Cabinet Posts

Minister for Defence
In office 7 May 1982 – 11 March 1983
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Jim Killen
Succeeded by	Gordon Scholes
Minister for Communications
In office 3 November 1980 – 7 May 1982
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Tony Staley
Succeeded by	Neil Brown
Minister for Special Trade Representations
In office 19 August 1980 – 3 November 1980
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Douglas Scott
Succeeded by	office abolished
Minister for Primary Industry
In office 11 November 1975 – 27 September 1979
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Rex Patterson
Succeeded by	Peter Nixon
In office 5 February 1971 – 5 December 1972
Prime Minister	John Gorton William McMahon
Preceded by	Doug Anthony
Succeeded by	Lance Barnard
Minister for Shipping and Transport
In office 28 February 1968 – 5 February 1971
Prime Minister	John Gorton
Preceded by	Gordon Freeth
Succeeded by	Peter Nixon
Minister for Social Services
In office 22 February 1965 – 28 February 1968
Prime Minister	Sir Robert Menzies Harold Holt John McEwen John Gorton
Preceded by	Reginald Swartz
Succeeded by	Bill Wentworth

Member of the Australian Parliament for New England

In office
30 November 1963 – 31 August 1998

Preceded by

David Drummond

Succeeded by

Stuart St. Clair

Member of the Legislative Council
of New South Wales

In office
23 April 1961 – 24 October 1963

Succeeded by

Alexander Alam

Personal details

Born

Ian McCahon Sinclair

10 June 1929 (age 96)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Political party

National

Spouses

Margaret Tarrant

(m. 1956; died 1967)

Rosemary Fenton

(m. 1970)

Relations

Peter King (son-in-law)

Children

Occupation

Grazier

Ian McCahon Sinclair (born 10 June 1929) is an Australian former politician. He was a Member of Parliament for a very long time, 35 years! He also led the National Party from 1984 to 1989. For most of his career, he was either a government minister or a key opposition member. Later, he even became the Speaker of the House of Representatives in 1998.

Ian Sinclair was born in Sydney and studied law. He later became a farmer near Tamworth. He was first elected to parliament in 1963. In 1965, he became a minister in the government led by Sir Robert Menzies. Over the next six years, he held different important jobs under several Prime Ministers.

In 1971, he became the deputy leader of his party. He was a very important member of the Fraser government. He worked as the Minister for Primary Industry (1975–1979), Minister for Communications (1980–1982), and Minister for Defence (1982–1983).

In 1984, Ian Sinclair became the leader of the Nationals. He led the party in two federal elections. In 1989, Charles Blunt replaced him as leader. From 1990 until he retired in 1998, he was known as the "father of the parliament" because he was the longest-serving member. He spent his last six months in parliament as the Speaker of the House of Representatives. He is the only person from his party to have held this important role.

Early Life and Education
Political Journey
Life After Politics
Images for kids

Early Life and Education

Ian Sinclair was born in Sydney on 10 June 1929. His father was a chartered accountant and also served as a local council leader.

Ian went to Knox Grammar School. After that, he studied at the University of Sydney. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1949 and a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1952. He also served in the Citizen Air Force for a few years.

Instead of becoming a lawyer, Ian decided to become a farmer. He bought a large farm near Bendemeer and started his own farming company. He also worked as a director for a farmers' co-operative.

Ian Sinclair married Margaret Anne Tarrant in 1956. They had three children together. Sadly, Margaret passed away in 1967. He married again in 1970 to Rosemary Fenton, who had been Miss Australia in 1960. They had one son.

Political Journey

Ian Sinclair was a member of the Country Party. In 1961, he was chosen to be a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council. He left this role to run for the House of Representatives in the 1963 election. He won the seat of Division of New England and kept it for his party.

Serving as a Government Minister

Ian Sinclair (left) with John Gorton and Doug Anthony in 1971.

In 1965, Ian Sinclair became the Minister for Social Services in the government led by Sir Robert Menzies. After the 1966 election, he tried to become the deputy leader of the Country Party but was not successful.

In 1968, he became the Minister for Shipping and Transport. In 1971, when the Country Party leader retired, Doug Anthony became the new leader. Ian Sinclair then became the deputy leader of the party. He was appointed Minister for Primary Industry.

After the Whitlam Labor government, Ian Sinclair became the Minister for Primary Industry again in 1975, as part of the Fraser government. In 1977, he was appointed to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, which is a special group of advisors to the Queen.

Ian Sinclair returned to being a minister in August 1980. He first served as Minister for Special Trade Representations. After the 1980 election, he became the Minister for Communications. In May 1982, he was made Minister for Defence. He held this job until the government lost the election in 1983.

Leading the Party

Ian Sinclair speaking in Darwin, Northern Territory, in 1970

In December 1983, Doug Anthony announced he was stepping down as the leader of the National Country Party. Ian Sinclair was chosen to replace him on 17 January 1984.

As leader, Ian Sinclair sometimes had disagreements with the National Farmers' Federation. He also had conflicts with the Liberal Party. He did not want the National Party and the Liberal Party to merge. He believed the two parties had different ideas.

In 1986, Ian Sinclair suggested creating a Pacific trade bloc. This idea was to help countries in the Pacific trade more easily with each other. He also thought Australia should rethink its agreements with New Zealand.

Before the 1987 election, Ian Sinclair faced a challenge from Joh Bjelke-Petersen. This caused problems for the parties working together. After the election, the Queensland branch of his party continued to try and remove him as leader.

In May 1989, Ian Sinclair was replaced as leader by Charles Blunt. Many in his party felt it was time for a change. When Charles Blunt lost his seat in the 1990 election, Ian Sinclair tried to become leader again, but Tim Fischer won. Ian Sinclair then moved to the back bench, meaning he was no longer a party leader.

Later Years in Parliament and Speaker Role

Ian Sinclair had heart surgery in September 1991. In March 1993, he tried to challenge Tim Fischer for the party leadership again, but he was not successful.

By 1993, Ian Sinclair was the "Father of the House." This meant he was the longest-serving member of the Australian House of Representatives. He was also the last member of parliament who had served with Prime Minister Robert Menzies.

In June 1997, Prime Minister John Howard appointed Ian Sinclair as co-chairman of the Constitutional Convention. This meeting discussed if Australia should become a republic. Ian Sinclair announced he would retire from Parliament at the next federal election.

When the Speaker, Bob Halverson, suddenly resigned in March 1998, Ian Sinclair was chosen to replace him. He was the first person from the National Party to hold this important job. He served as Speaker for the last six months of his time in parliament.

As Speaker, he was in charge of keeping order in the House of Representatives. He was known for being firm and experienced. He is the only member of his party to have served as Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Ian Sinclair wanted to stay in Parliament to continue as Speaker if the government was re-elected. However, another candidate, Stuart St. Clair, had already been chosen to run for his seat. So, Ian Sinclair could not change his mind about retiring. Stuart St. Clair took over his seat in the 1998 election. When he retired, Ian Sinclair was the last member of parliament who had served in the governments of Menzies, Holt, and Gorton.

Life After Politics

In January 2001, Ian Sinclair received a high honour, being appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC).

He served as the President of AUSTCARE, an international aid organization. On 1 March 2000, Ian Sinclair became the first chairman of the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR). This is a non-profit group that gives money to help communities in regional areas. He retired from this role in 2019.

Ian Sinclair also served for many years as the Honorary President of the Scout Association of Australia, New South Wales Branch. He retired from this role in 2019 and received a special award in 2020.

Images for kids

Sinclair in 1970
Sinclair (left) with John Gorton and Doug Anthony in 1971.
Sinclair addressing an audience in Darwin, Northern Territory, in 1970

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Ian Sinclair facts for kids

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