Ros Kelly Explained

Honorific-Prefix:The Honourable
Ros Kelly
Honorific-Suffix:AO
Office:Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Status of Women
Term Start:23 December 1993
Term End:1 March 1994
Primeminister:Paul Keating
Predecessor:Wendy Fatin
Successor:Carmen Lawrence
Office1:Minister for the Environment, Sport and Territories
Term Start1:4 April 1990
Term End1:1 March 1994
Primeminister1:Bob Hawke
Paul Keating
Predecessor1:Graham Richardson
Successor1:Graham Richardson
Office2:Minister for Tourism
Term Start2:4 April 1990
Term End2:27 December 1991
Primeminister2:Bob Hawke
Paul Keating
Predecessor2:Graham Richardson
Successor2:Alan Griffiths
Office3:Minister for the Arts
Term Start3:4 April 1990
Term End3:24 March 1993
Primeminister3:Bob Hawke
Paul Keating
Predecessor3:Graham Richardson
Successor3:Bob McMullan
Office4:Minister for Telecommunications and Aviation Support
Term Start4:6 April 1989
Term End4:4 April 1990
Primeminister4:Bob Hawke
Predecessor4:Gary Punch
Successor4:Title abolished
Office5:Minister for Defence Science and Personnel
Term Start5:18 September 1987
Term End5:6 April 1989
Primeminister5:Bob Hawke
Predecessor5:New title
Successor5:David Simmons
Constituency Mp6:Canberra
Parliament6:Australian
Predecessor6:John Haslem
Successor6:Brendan Smyth
Term Start6:18 October 1980
Term End6:30 January 1995
Birth Date:1948 1, df=yes
Nationality:Australian
Party:Labor
Birthname:Roslyn Joan Raw
Alma Mater:University of Sydney
Occupation:Teacher

Roslyn Joan Kelly AO (née Raw; born 25 January 1948) is an Australian former politician. She was a member of the Australian House of Representatives, having represented the Division of Canberra from 18 October 1980 to 30 January 1995. She was a minister in the governments of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating.

Early life and ACT politics

Kelly is the daughter of Michael and Patricia Raw.[1] She studied at the University of Sydney and received a degree in teaching in 1968 and worked as a secondary school teacher from 1969 until 1974.[2] Kelly was elected to the then advisory Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly as a member for Canberra in 1974. She was a member of the assembly until 1979.

Federal politics

Kelly was elected to the House of Representatives in 1980. In 1983, she was the first Australian Federal MP to give birth while in office.[2] In 1987, she became the first female Labor minister from the House of Representatives, when she was appointed Minister for Defence Science and Personnel.[2] She subsequently held the portfolios of Communications and Aviation Support 1988–90; Arts, Sport, Environment, Tourism and Territories 1991–93; Environment, Sport and Territories 1993–94; and Arts, Sport, the Environment, Tourism and Territories 1994–95. She also served as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on the Status of Women until 1994.[2]

She suffered considerable embarrassment as a result of the so-called 'sports rorts affair', when she revealed that funding for sporting bodies was arranged on the basis of a group discussion around a "great big whiteboard" in her office.[3] She resigned from the ministry on 28 February 1994 and from parliament 11 months later on 30 January 1995.[4] The resulting by-election on 25 March 1995 saw the loss of the Canberra electorate to the opposition Liberal Party.[4]

Personal life and honours

Kelly is married to David Morgan, the former CEO of Westpac.[5] She was formerly married to journalist Paul Kelly, whose surname she has retained.

Kelly was made an Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia in 2004 for service to the community through promoting corporate environmental responsibility and fostering dialogue between business and conservation groups, to the Australian Parliament, and to women's health.[6]

When acting as minister of Arts, Sport, the Environment, Tourism and Territories, Kelly gave support to research at the Riversleigh World Heritage Area and was honoured for this in the naming of a new species Priscileo roskellyae in 1997.[7]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Who's Who in Australia 2008; Kelly Hon (Ros) entry
  2. Web site: 29 January 2009 . Kelly, Roslyn Joan (Ros) (1948 –) . 21 September 2023 . The Australian Women's Register.
  3. News: Milliken . Robert . 1 March 1994 . Close Keating ally resigns in grants scandal . The Independent . London . 21 September 2023.
  4. Web site: 1 February 2008 . Canberra (ACT) By-Election (25 March 1995) . dead . AEC . 27 February 2010 . 24 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091224094845/http://www.aec.gov.au/Elections/supplementary_by_elections/canberra.htm .
  5. News: Hornery . Andrew . 9 March 2005 . Ros among Thorns . The Sydney Morning Herald . 21 September 2023.
  6. Web site: MacDonald . Emma . 26 January 2004 . Ros Kelly excels in life after politics . The Canberra Times.
  7. Gillespie . Anna . 1997 . Priscileo roskellyae sp. nov. (Thylacoleonidae, Marsupialia) from the Oligocene-Miocene of Riversleigh, northwestern Queensland . Memoirs of the Queensland Museum . 41 . 321–327.