David John Wordsworth (born 9 June 1930) is a former Australian politician who was a

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 ...

member of the

Western Australian Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, Legislative A ...

from 1971 to 1993. He served as a minister in the government of Sir

Charles Court Sir Charles Walter Michael Court (29 September 1911 – 22 December 2007) was an Australian politician who was the premier of Western Australia from 8 April 1974 to 25 January 1982. A member of the Western Australian Liberal Party, Liberal Par ...

. Wordsworth was born in

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

, India, to Margaret Joan (née Reynolds) and

Robert Wordsworth Major-General Robert Harley Wordsworth CB, CBE (21 July 1894 – 22 November 1984) was an Australian Army and British Indian Army officer and an Australian politician. Military career Born in Collarenebri, New South Wales, Wordsworth was educ ...

. His Australian-born father was a

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

general, and settled in

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, eventually being elected to the

Australian Senate The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives. The powers, role and composition of the Senate are set out in Chap ...

. Wordsworth was educated at Launceston Grammar School and

Geelong Grammar School Geelong Grammar School is a private Anglican co-educational boarding and day school. The school's main campus is located in Corio on the northern outskirts of Geelong, Victoria, Australia, overlooking Corio Bay and Limeburners Bay. Establ ...

(the latter in Victoria), and went on to study agriculture at New Zealand's Lincoln College. He initially farmed at Hagley, Tasmania, but left for Western Australia in 1961, buying a property near Esperance.David John Wordsworth
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 22 May 2016. In 1958, he had married Marie Louise Johnston, a daughter of

Bertie Johnston Edward Bertram Johnston (11 January 1880 – 6 September 1942), known as Bertie Johnston, was the Western Australian Legislative Assembly member for Williams-Narrogin from 1911 to 1928, and a Senator from 1929 until 1942. His resignation fro ...

(a former senator). The couple had three children. Wordsworth was elected to the

Shire of Esperance The Shire of Esperance is a Local government areas of Western Australia, local government area in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, about south of the town of Kalgoorlie and about east-southeast of the state capital, Per ...

council in 1969, and at the 1971 state election was elected to the Legislative Council's South Province. After the 1977 election, he was named

Minister for Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...

in the Court government.New Transport Minister '' Electric Traction'' April 1977 page 62 Following a ministerial reshuffle in August 1978, he was instead appointed Minister for Lands and Minister for Forests, titles which he would hold until Court resigned as premier in January 1982. The Legislative Council was reformed prior to the 1989 state election, and Wordsworth transferred to the new Agricultural region. He served only a single four-year term before leaving parliament. Wordsworth retired to

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, and was a member of the

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Murdoch University Murdoch University is a public university in Perth, Western Australia, with campuses also in Singapore and Dubai. It began operations as the state's second university on 25 July 1973, and accepted its first undergraduate students in 1975. Its ...

from 1994 to 1998.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Wordsworth, David 1930 births Living people Indian emigrants to Australia Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia Lincoln University (New Zealand) alumni Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council People educated at Geelong Grammar School People educated at Launceston Church Grammar School 20th-century Australian farmers Farmers from Western Australia