Peter Cleeland | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theAustralian Parliament forMcEwen | |
| In office 1 December 1984 – 24 March 1990 | |
| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Fran Bailey |
| In office 13 March 1993 – 2 March 1996 | |
| Preceded by | Fran Bailey |
| Succeeded by | Fran Bailey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1938-05-31)31 May 1938 |
| Died | 16 September 2007(2007-09-16) (aged 69) |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Party | Australian Labor Party |
| Occupation | Policeman |
Peter Robert Cleeland (31 May 1938 – 16 September 2007), Australian politician, was aLabor member of theAustralian House of Representatives, representing the electorate ofMcEwen inVictoria between 1984 and 1990, and subsequently between 1993 and 1996.
Cleeland was raised in theMelbourne suburb ofPreston, earning a trade as afitter and turner before joining theVictorian Police Force from 1961 to 1969.[1] While a police officer, he studied and graduated in law atMonash University. He worked as a solicitor for a number of years, eventually establishing his own practice. He was elected as a local councillor for the Central Ward in theShire of Diamond Valley from 1978 to 1985 and was Shire President from 1982 to 1983.[2]
In 1982 Cleeland unsuccessfully stood for election in theVictorian Legislative Assembly seat ofDoncaster. He achieved Labor Party preselection for the newly formed federal House of Representatives seat ofMcEwen, which he won in1984.[3] Cleeland won the subsequent election in1987,[4] before losing the seat toLiberal candidateFran Bailey in the1990 general election.[5] He stood once again in1993[6] and won the seat back, serving for a further 3 years before once again losing the seat toBailey in the1996 election, when theKeating Labor government was swept from power byJohn Howard.[2]
Cleeland served as Chairman of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on theNational Crime Authority between 1987 and 1990, producing during that time the much cited report "Drugs, Crime and Society". The report recommended harm minimisation rather than criminalisation as a technique for managing illicit drug use.[2][7]
Cleeland died on 16 September 2007 frommotor neurone disease.[8]
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help) p23| Parliament of Australia | ||
|---|---|---|
| New division | Member forMcEwen 1984–1990 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member forMcEwen 1993–1996 | Succeeded by |