John Faulkner

Faulkner was born in Leeton, New South Wales on 12 April 1954, attended Pennant Hills High School, and was educated at Macquarie University, Sydney, where he graduated in Arts and Education (BA, DipEd). Before entering politics he worked as a Special Education teacher in government schools from 1977 to 1979. In 1980 he was employed as a Research officer to the New South Wales Minister for Sport and Recreation, Ken Booth. Gaining prominence within the ALP, he was made Assistant General Secretary of the NSW party in 1980, serving for nine years and became a member of the ALP National Executive in 1989.

A leading member of the Socialist Left faction of the ALP, Faulkner was appointed to the Senate in 1989 to succeed the former left-wing minister Arthur Gietzelt, who had resigned mid-term. In the Keating Labor government, Faulkner was Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Minister for Defence Science and Personnel 1993–94, and Minister for the Environment, Sport and Territories, with a seat in the Cabinet, 1994–96.

After the defeat of the Keating government in 1996, Faulkner became Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, and was a member of the Opposition Shadow Ministry 1996–2004. He was at various times Shadow Minister for Social Security, Public Administration and Home Affairs. He was a key Labor strategist in the 1998, 2001 and 2004 federal elections, and was a particularly close advisor to Mark Latham during the 2004 election. In the wake of Labor's defeat in that election, he resigned his positions.{{cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/Election-2004/No-bluff-Faulkner-just-resigns/2004/10/12/1097406574141.html|title=No bluff, Faulkner just resigns|date=12 October 2004|work=The Sydney Morning Herald}} Faulkner became the first Labor Senate leader who did not become Government Senate leader since Don Willesee. In October 2006 John Faulkner was elected as the National President of the Australian Labor Party until February 2008 and chaired the Labor's National Conference in 2007.

File:Faulkner CDF 21-11-09.JPG and former Chief of the Defence Force Peter Cosgrove in 2009.]]

File:John Faulkner Robert Gates.jpg Robert Gates (right).]]

In the First Rudd Ministry, Faulkner served as the Vice-President of the Executive Council, Special Minister of State and Cabinet Secretary. In his role he introduced new rules for ministerial conduct and fundraising aimed at reducing the influence of lobbyists on government decisions. He also introduced new guidelines reducing the overt political control of government funded advertising.{{cite news|url=http://www.crikey.com.au/Politics/20081111-Selling-democracy.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120724040728/http://www.crikey.com.au/Politics/20081111-Selling-democracy.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 July 2012|title=Liberals play spot the hypocrite on political accountability|work=Crikey|date=11 November 2008}}

On 9 June 2009, Faulkner was sworn in the Minister for Defence, replacing Joel Fitzgibbon, who had stepped down on 4 June.{{cite news|url=http://inside.org.au/the-inheritor/|work=Inside Story|date=1 September 2009|title=The Inheritor}}{{cite news|url=http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1025472/New-faces-sworn-into-Rudd-ministry|title=New faces sworn into Rudd ministry|work=SBS World News|date=9 June 2009}} He retained this portfolio in the First Gillard government until the 2010 federal election following an earlier announcement that he would step down as Defence Minister and return to the backbench.{{cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/national/defence-minister-john-faulker-to-return-to-backbench-20100707-zznx.html|title=Faulkner to step down|work=The Age|date=7 July 2010}}

In 2014 Faulkner began a process of reforms that sought to stamp out perceived corruption and factional infighting within the New South Wales branch of the Australian Labor Party. Faulkner proposed to include rank{{endash}}and{{endash}}file members in decisions such as the selection of candidates for Senate and Legislative Council vacancies and party tickets, and a vote in the direct election of the New South Wales parliamentary leaders.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-08/john-faulkner-flags-rule-changes-to-curb-labor-corruption/5375666|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140501121531/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-08/john-faulkner-flags-rule-changes-to-curb-labor-corruption/5375666|archive-date=1 May 2014|date=8 April 2014|title=John Faulkner flags rule changes to Senate selection process to stamp out corruption in Labor Party|author-link=Latika Bourke|last=Bourke|first= Latika|publisher=ABC News|location=Australia|access-date=3 August 2014}} However, Faulkner's reform proposals were mostly rejected at NSW Labor's 2014 conference.{{cite news|url=http://inside.org.au/the-winter-of-senator-faulkners-discontent/|title=The winter of Senator Faulkner's discontent|author=Evans, Brett|work=Inside Story|date=29 July 2014|access-date=3 August 2014|issn=1837-0497}} The direct election of party leader gained support with effect from after the 2015 election.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-26/nsw-labor-to-adopt-new-voting-system/5626112|title=NSW Labor to allow rank and file members to vote on next state leader|last=Gerathy|first=Sarah|publisher=ABC News|location=Australia|date=26 July 2014|access-date=3 August 2014}}

Faulkner announced on 30 April 2014 that he would not seek re-election and would be retiring at the end of his term on 30 June 2017.{{cite news|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/labor-stalwart-senator-john-faulkner-to-retire/story-fn59niix-1226900934381|title=Labor Stalwart John Faulkner to retire|work=The Australian|date=30 April 2014|access-date=3 August 2014|author=Owens, Jared}} On 11 December 2014, however, he announced that he would be resigning from the Senate in late January or early February 2015,[http://www.senatorjohnfaulkner.com.au/file.php?file=/news/VZEXXOBZUH/index.html John Faulkner: Statement on Retirement, 11 December 2014] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150206095453/http://www.senatorjohnfaulkner.com.au/file.php?file=%2Fnews%2FVZEXXOBZUH%2Findex.html |date= 6 February 2015 }}. Retrieved 30 January 2014 creating a casual vacancy.Emma Griffiths, ABC News, 11 December 2014. [http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-12-11/john-faulkner-brings-forward-his-retirement-from-parliament/5959844 "John Faulkner: Veteran Labor senator stepping aside for 'new generation', brings retirement forward to January"]. Retrieved 13 January 2015 Faulkner resigned on 6 February 2015.[https://twitter.com/AuSenate/status/563577272041361408 @AuSenate]: "Senator John Faulkner has resigned his place in the Senate after more than 25 years as a Senator for NSW", 4:57pm – 6 February 2015.

Faulkner has since been a member of the board of the Global Panel Foundation – Australasia – an NGO that works global in crisis areas.

Faulkner was formerly married to fellow Labor politician Sandra Nori and they have two children.{{cite web|url=http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE1939b.htm|title=Nori, Sandra (1953 – )|work=Australian Women's Archives Project|publisher=National Foundation for Australian Women & University of Melbourne|access-date=31 January 2010}}

• {{Cite book|author1=Costar, Brian|author2=Lees, Meg|author-link2=Meg Lees|author3=Coonan, Helen|author-link3=Helen Coonan|author4=Faulkner, John|author5=Evans, Harry|author-link5=Harry Evans (Australian Senate clerk)|title=Deadlock or Democracy? The Future of the Senate|publisher=UNSW Press|year=2000|location=Sydney|pages=[https://archive.org/details/deadlockordemocr0000unse/page/57 57 pages]|no-pp=y|url=https://archive.org/details/deadlockordemocr0000unse/page/57|isbn=0-86840-570-1}}
• {{Cite book|author1=Faulkner, John|author2=Macintyre, Stuart|author-link2=Stuart Macintyre|title=True believers: the story of the federal parliamentary Labor Party|publisher=Allen & Unwin|year=2001|location=Crows Nest|pages=328 pages|no-pp=y|isbn=1-86508-609-6 }}
• {{Cite book|author=Faulkner, John|title=Parliamentary privilege: precedents, procedure and practice in the Australian Senate 1966–2005|publisher=Senate Committee of Privileges|year=2005|location=Canberra| pages=201 pages|no-pp=y|isbn=0-642-71601-3 }}

• Second Keating Ministry
• First Rudd Ministry
• First Gillard Ministry

{{Reflist}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070324173634/http://www.alp.org.au/people/nsw/faulkner_john.php John Faulkner – Senator for New South Wales] – ALP profile
• [https://theyvoteforyou.org.au/people/senate/nsw/john_faulkner Summary of parliamentary voting for Senator John Faulkner on TheyVoteForYou.org.au]

{{s-start}}

{{S-par| au}}

{{s-bef|before=Ron Boswell}}

{{s-ttl|title=Father of the Australian Senate|years=2014–2015}}

{{s-aft|after=Ian Macdonald}}

|-

{{s-off}}

{{s-bef|before=Ben Humphreys}}

{{s-ttl|title=Minister for Veterans' Affairs|years=1993–1994}}

{{s-aft|after=Con Sciacca}}

|-

{{s-bef|before=Gordon Bilney}}

{{s-ttl|title=Minister for Defence Science and Personnel|years=1993–1994}}

{{s-aft|after=Gary Punch}}

|-

{{s-bef|before=Graham Richardson}}

{{s-ttl|title=Minister for the Environment|years=1994–1996}}

{{s-aft|after=Robert Hill}}

|-

{{s-bef|before=Gary Nairn}}

{{s-ttl|title=Special Minister of State|years=2007–2009}}

{{s-aft|after=Joe Ludwig}}

|-

{{s-bef|before=Nick Minchin}}

{{s-ttl|title=Vice-President of the Executive Council|years=2007–2010}}

{{s-aft|after=Robert McClelland}}

|-

{{s-bef|before=Joel Fitzgibbon}}

{{s-ttl|title=Minister for Defence|years=2009–2010}}

{{s-aft|after=Stephen Smith}}

|-

{{s-ppo}}

{{s-bef|before=Gareth Evans}}

{{s-ttl|title=Leader of the Labor Party in the Senate|years=1996–2004}}

{{s-aft|after=Chris Evans}}

{{s-bef|before=Warren Mundine}}

{{s-ttl|title=National President of the Labor Party|years=2007–2008}}

{{s-aft|after=Mike Rann}}

{{s-end}}

{{First Rudd Cabinet}}

{{Gillard Ministry}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faulkner, John}}

Category:1954 births

Category:Living people

Category:People from Leeton, New South Wales

Category:Macquarie University alumni

Category:Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia

Category:Australian republicans

Category:Australian schoolteachers

Category:Labor Left politicians

Category:Members of the Australian Senate for New South Wales

Category:Members of the Cabinet of Australia

Category:Delegates to the Australian Constitutional Convention 1998

Category:20th-century Australian politicians

Category:Ministers for defence of Australia

Category:Sports ministers of Australia

Category:21st-century Australian politicians