Robert Broughton Lansdown (9 May 1921 – 6 May 2006) was a senior Australian public servant and policymaker.
Life and career
Bob Lansdown was born on 9 May 1921 in East Maitland.
At the age of 14, he first joined the
Australian Public Service
The Australian Public Service (APS) is the federal civil service of the Commonwealth of Australia responsible for the public administration, public policy, and public services of the departments and executive and statutory agencies of the G ...
, as a post office bicycle messenger in Strathfield.
During World War II, Lansdown joined the
Second Australian Imperial Force
The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial strength of one ...
, serving in the Middle East and New Guinea.
[
Lansdown first rejoined the Australian Public Service in 1950 as a Private Secretary in the Prime Minister's Department.]
In December 1972 Lansdown was appointed Secretary
A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalu ...
of the Department of Urban and Regional Development
The Department of Urban and Regional Development was an Australian government department that existed between December 1972 and December 1975.
History
The Department was one of several new departments established by the Whitlam govern ...
and he remained head of the department when it was transitioned to .
Between July 1979 and November 1980, Lansdown served as Secretary of the Postal and Telecommunications Department. He was the inaugural head of the Department of Communications when the Postal and Communications Department was abolished.
In 1986, Lansdown retired from the public service.
Awards and honours
Lansdown was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for housing, environment and community development in 1977. In 1991 he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to communications.
In 2009, a street in the Canberra
Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
suburb of Casey was named Lansdown Crescent in Bob Lansdown's honour.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lansdown, Bob
1921 births
2006 deaths
University of Sydney alumni
Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Officers of the Order of Australia
20th-century Australian public servants
Australian Army personnel of World War II