Lewis–Punch ministry

The Lewis–Punch ministry or Second Lewis ministry was the 69th ministry of the New South Wales Government, and was led by the 33rd Premier, the Honourable Tom Lewis MLA, of the Liberal Party in coalition with the Country Party, led by the Honourable Leon Punch MLA. It was the first of two occasions when Lewis was Premier; and the first of two occasions when Punch served as Deputy Premier.

Background

Lewis was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly in 1957 and served continuously until 1978, representing the seat of Wollondilly. When the Askin government came to power in 1965, Lewis was given relatively junior portfolios of Lands and Mines. In 1972, Tourism was added to his ministerial responsibilities when Eric Willis moved to Education. Late in 1974, Askin announced his resignation and Lewis was chosen as leader over Willis and Justice Minister John Maddison.

Punch was elected to the NSW Legislative Assembly in 1959 and served continuously until 1985, representing variously the seats of Upper Hunter (1959-1962) and then Gloucester (1962-1985. Elected Deputy Leader of the Country Party in 1973, Punch was elected as leader of his party following the retirement and resignation of the Hon. Sir Charles Cutler KBE ED MLA in December 1975.

Lewis inherited a relatively stable government that had been in power for ten years. However, the Liberal government was engaged in almost daily warfare with the Whitlam Labor federal government, most notably over the Medibank health care scheme, to which New South Wales was the last state to sign.

Tenure of ministry

This ministry covers the period from 17 December 1975, when the former Deputy Premier, Sir Charles Cutler resigned as Deputy Premier, Leader of the Country Party and as Member for Orange, until 23 January 1976,[1][2] when Lewis was deposed as Liberal leader by the Hon. Sir Eric Willis KBE CMG MLA following a spill motion on 20 January 1976, necessitating a reconfiguration of the ministry as the Willis–Punch ministry.

Composition of ministry

The composition of the ministry was announced by Premier Lewis and sworn in on 17 December 1975, and covers the period until 23 January 1976, when the Hon. Eric Willis was sworn in as Premier, replacing Lewis. Ministers are listed in order of seniority and in all cases, serve the full term of this 37‑day ministry.

Portfolio Minister Party Term commence Term end Term of office
Premier
Treasurer		 Hon. Tom Lewis, MLA   Liberal 17 December 1975 23 January 1976 37 days
Deputy Premier
Minister for Public Works
Minister for Ports		 Hon. Leon Punch, MLA   Country
Attorney General
Minister of Justice		 Hon. John Maddison, MLA   Liberal
Minister for Planning and Environment
Vice-President of the Executive Council
Representative of the Government in Legislative Council		 Hon. John Fuller, MLC   Country
Minister for Decentralisation and Development
Minister for Tourism		 Hon. Tim Bruxner, MLA  
Minister for Education Hon. Sir Eric Willis, KBE CMG MLA   Liberal
Minister for Labor and Industry
Minister for Consumer Affairs
Minister for Federal Affairs		 Hon. Frederick Hewitt, MLC  
Minister for Police
Minister for Services		 Hon. John Lloyd Waddy OBE DFC MLA  
Minister for Mines
Minister for Energy		 Hon. George Freudenstein, MLA   Country
Minister for Housing
Minister for Co-operative Societies		 Hon. Laurence McGinty, MLA   Liberal
Minister for Health Hon. Dick Healey, MLA  
Minister for Transport
Minister for Highways		 Hon. Max Ruddock, MLA  
Minister for Youth, Ethnic and Community Affairs Hon. Stephen Mauger, MLA  
Minister for Culture, Sport and Recreation Hon. Lindley Barraclough, MLA  
Minister for Agriculture
Minister for Water Resources		 Hon. Bruce Cowan, MLA   Country
Minister for Lands
Minister for Forests		 Hon. John Mason, MLA   Liberal
Minister for Local Government Hon. Col Fisher, MLA   Country
Minister for Revenue
Assistant Treasurer		 Hon. Peter Coleman, MLA   Liberal

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Former Members - Chronological List of Ministries 1856 to 2009 (requires download)". Project for the Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in NSW. Parliament of New South Wales. Archived from the original (MS Excel spreadsheet) on 15 March 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  2. ↑ Wah, Malvyne Jong; Page, Jeffrey E. (November 2007). "New South Wales Parliamentary Record 1824 – 2007" (PDF). VI. Parliament of New South Wales: 42. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
Preceded by
Lewis–Cutler ministry		 Lewis–Punch ministry
1975–1976 		Succeeded by
Willis–Punch ministry
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