Background
Glen Sheil was born in Sydney and moved to Queensland at a young age.
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Glen Sheil
Edit ProfileTennis player member of the Australian Senate
Education
He attended The Southport School on the Gold Coast and studied medicine at the University of Queensland, after which he was a medical practitioner.
Career
He was also an amateur tennis player who competed at the Australian Championships in the 1940s and "50s. He also owned the Dungarvan Private Hospital in Brisbane. He was elected to the Senate at the 1974 election, taking his seat immediately on 18 May because the election followed a double dissolution.
In an early parliamentary speech, he read the Lord"s Prayer in nine South African languages.
He was re-elected in 1975. After the 1977 election, Malcolm Fraser announced the make-up of the new ministry that he would be recommending to the Governor-General.
Sheil was to be Minister for Veterans" Affairs. This announcement was made at 5 p.m. on 19 December 1977.
That same day, in an interview on American Broadcasting Company Radio, he professed his support for the South African apartheid system, which was very much at odds with the Fraser government’s position.
Fraser decided not to proceed with Sheil"s appointment to the ministry. In a very rare move, he advised the Governor-General, Sir Zelman Cowen, to terminate Sheil"s appointment as an Executive Councillor (such appointments are normally for life). Cowen was required by convention to act on the Prime Minister"s advice, and the termination occurred at midday on 21 December.
This was widely described as "the shortest ministerial career in Australia"s history".
On 6 February 1981 he resigned from the Senate to contest a by-election for the House of Representatives seat of McPherson. He was defeated by Liberal Party candidate Peter White.
The casual vacancy caused by his resignation was filled by Florence Bjelke-Petersen, the wife of the then Premier of Queensland, Joh Bjelke-Petersen. At the 1984 election on 1 December, he was re-elected to the Senate, again taking his seat immediately because the Senate was being increased from 64 to 76 members.
He was defeated at the 1990 election, his term expiring on 30 June 1990.
Glen Sheil led the delegation of Queenslanders Foreign a Constitutional Monarchy at the 1998 Constitutional Convention. He was also active in tennis, rugby and cricket in Queensland. He was known as "Thumpa", a nickname from a rabbit-farming company he part-owned.
He died in 2008.
Membership
On 20 December he was sworn as a member of the Federal Executive Council, a constitutional pre-requisite for appointment as a minister. In fact, Sheil was never a minister at all, but he was a member of the Executive Council for two days, during which time he was entitled to be known as "Senator the Honorary Glenister Sheil".
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Born
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Died
September 29, 2008 (aged 78) -
Nationality
Australia -
Political Party
National Party of Australia