Robert Ivan Lucas (born 7 June 1953) is an Australian former politician and a former member of the

South Australian Legislative Council The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the South Australian House of Assembly, H ...

between the 1982 election and the 2022 election, representing the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia. Lucas served as the

Treasurer of South Australia The treasurer of South Australia is the Cabinet (government), Cabinet Minister (government), minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for the financial management of South Australia, that state's budget sector. The Urban ...

between 2018 and 2022 in the

Marshall government Steven Spence Marshall (born 21 January 1968) is a former Australian politician who served as the 46th premier of South Australia between 2018 and 2022. He was a member of the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia in the ...

, and previously served in the role between 1997 and 2002 in the Olsen and

Kerin Kerin is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * John F. Kerin (1944–2006), Australian physician and professor * John Kerin (1937–2023), Australian economist and politician * Nora Kerin (1883-1970), British actress * Rob Keri ...

governments. Lucas was the Father of the Parliament until his retirement at the 2022 election.

Career

Before his entry into politics, Lucas graduated from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

with a Bachelor of Science, a

Bachelor of Economics A Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon)Bureau of Labor StatisticsHow to Become an Economist/ref> is an academic degree, awarded to students who have completed specialised undergraduate studies in economics. Variants include the "Bachelor of Econo ...

, and an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

. In office, Lucas has been a Minister for Education and Children's Services, Minister for Industry and Trade and Minister for Government Enterprises. He also served as Treasurer from the 1997 election until his party's defeat at the 2002 election. During this time (1993 to 2002), he was the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council. The appointment of Lucas, a member of the upper house Legislative Council, as Treasurer was a break in convention as previous Treasurers had been members of the lower house the House of Assembly. The precedence in appointing a member of the upper house as Treasurer was in New South Wales with the appointment of Michael Egan in 1995. From 2002 until April 2007, Lucas served as Shadow Treasurer, Shadow Minister for Industry and Trade and Police, and between 2005 and 2006 was also Shadow Minister for Economic Development and Science and Information Economy. During this time (2002 to 2007), Lucas was the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council. In 2014 Lucas returned to the Treasury portfolio albeit as Shadow Treasurer following the retirement of the previous portfolio holder and former Liberal leader

Iain Evans Iain Frederick Evans (born 18 April 1959) is a former Australian politician. He was leader of the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2006 to 2007. Early life Evans attended Heathfield Primary and subsequently He ...

. He became treasurer and Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council again on 19 March 2018 following his party winning government at the 2018 election. Two days after the election, he announced on 19 March 2018 that he would be serving his final term in parliament, with an intention to leave parliament at the 2022 election.

Personal life

Lucas's mother Yoshiko was a "

war bride War brides are women who married military personnel from other countries in times of war or during military occupations, a practice that occurred in great frequency during World War I and World War II. Allies of World War II, Allied servicemen ...

" who met his father, Bob, who was part of the

British Commonwealth Occupation Force The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian, and New Zealander military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its pe ...

in Japan.

References

External links

*
Personal website
, - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lucas, Rob Australian people of Japanese descent Politicians of Japanese descent Members of the South Australian Legislative Council Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of South Australia 1953 births Living people Treasurers of South Australia 21st-century Australian politicians University of Adelaide alumni Australian politicians of Asian descent