James Joseph Carlton (13 May 1935 – 24 December 2015) was an Australian businessman, politician, and humanitarian.

Early life

Carlton was born in Sydney and earned a Bachelor of Science from the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

Early career

Carlton’s political career began at the Sydney University Liberal Club, of which he later became president. He succeeded Sir John Carrick as General Secretary of the NSW

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

during the

McMahon McMahon or MacMahon ( or ) may refer to: Places * Division of McMahon, an electorate for the Australian House of Representatives * McMahon, Saskatchewan, a hamlet in Canada * McMahon Line, a boundary between India and China * McMahons Point, a ...

– Snedden –

Fraser Fraser may refer to: Places Antarctica * Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands Australia * Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen * Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal ...

periods.

Political career

Fraser Government (1977–83)

Carlton was elected to the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Australian Senate, Senate. Its composition and powers are set out in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. ...

during the 1977 election for the seat of Mackellar and was

Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

from May 1982 to the defeat of the Fraser Government in March 1983.

Opposition (1983–94)

Carlton served on the Defence Sub-Committee of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, and held a number of Shadow Ministry positions in Opposition, including Shadow Treasurer from 1985 to 1987 and Shadow Minister for Defence from 1989 to 1990. In

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

, he stood for the Liberal Party leadership. He lost easily to

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. His eleven-year tenure as prime min ...

. He resigned from Parliament in January 1994.

Post Politics

From 1994 to 2001, Carlton was Secretary General of the Australian Red Cross, receiving the Red Cross Movement's highest honour, the Henry Dunant Medal. As a founder of the Crossroads Group together with John Hyde and Peter Shack he was influential in establishing the free-market or 'dry' cause in the Parliamentary wing of the Australian Liberal Party. He served on the boards of the PNG Sustainable Development Program and the Australia New Zealand School of Government. Additionally he was a Professional Fellow at the Centre for Public Policy at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

, and a Senior Adviser with the Boston Consulting Group, and was a council member of the

Australian Strategic Policy Institute The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) is a defence and strategic policy think tank based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, founded by the Australian government, and funded by the Australian Department of Defence along with o ...

Honours

In January 2001, Carlton was awarded the Australian Centenary Medal; and in June that year, was appointed

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AO) for service to Australian society.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlton, Jim 1935 births 2015 deaths Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Mackellar Members of the Australian House of Representatives Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Red Cross personnel Officers of the Order of Australia University of Sydney alumni Ministers for health of Australia Australian MPs 1977–1980 Australian MPs 1980–1983 Australian MPs 1983–1984 Australian MPs 1984–1987 Australian MPs 1987–1990 Australian MPs 1990–1993 Australian MPs 1993–1996