John Harman (Australian politician)

The Honourable John Harman AM
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia
In office 22 March 1983 – 8 February 1986
Preceded by	Ian Thompson
Succeeded by	Mike Barnett
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia
In office 23 March 1968 – 8 February 1986
Preceded by	Bob Marshall
Succeeded by	Peter Dowding
Constituency	Maylands
Personal details
Born	22 March 1932 Bassendean, Western Australia, Australia
Died	27 February 1998 (aged 65) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Political party	Labor
Religion	Roman Catholic

John Joseph Harman AM (22 March 1932 – 27 February 1998) was an Australian politician who was a Labor Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1968 to 1986, representing the seat of Maylands. He served as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly from 1983 to 1986.

Harman was born in Perth, and educated at various Catholic schools. After leaving school, he worked for a period as a clerk with the state government's Department of Lands Surveys, and then as a field officer with the Department of Native Welfare. A member of the Civil Service Association executive and a member of the Labor Party from 1960,^[1] Harman entered politics at the 1968 state election, defeating the sitting Liberal member Bob Marshall.^[2] After the 1971 election, which saw the election of a Labor government led by John Tonkin, he was appointed chief government whip. Following a cabinet reshuffle in May 1973, Harman was made Minister for Labour, Minister for Immigration, Minister for Price Control, and Minister for Consumer Protection, although he served only until Labor's defeat at the 1974 election. Harman remained a member of the Labor shadow ministry until 1981, serving under three leaders of the opposition (John Tonkin, Colin Jamieson, and Ron Davies). He was elected to the speakership after Labor's victory at the 1983 election, serving until his retirement from politics at the 1986 election. Harman subsequently served as state chairman of the Australian Bicentennial Authority,^[1] and in 1989 was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his work.^[3]

References

1. John Joseph Harman – Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
2. Black, David; Prescott, Valerie (1997). Election statistics : Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, 1890-1996. Perth, [W.A.]: Western Australian Parliamentary History Project and Western Australian Electoral Commission. ISBN 0730984095.
3. HARMAN, John Joseph – It's An Honour. Retrieved 14 May 2016.