Succeeded by Frank Walker Occupation Businessman Spouse(s) Rae O'Neill | Nationality Australian Name Barry Cohen | |
 | ||
Preceded by William Bridges-Maxwell Born 3 April 1935 (age 89)
Griffith, New South Wales ( 1935-04-03 ) | ||
Political party Australian Labor Party | ||
Barry cohen pride in challenging authority
Barry Cohen AM (born 3 April 1935) is a former Australian Labor politician. He was a minister in the government of Bob Hawke.
Contents
- Barry cohen pride in challenging authority
- Barry cohen on cnbc aisenberg case
- Biography
- After politics
- Personal
- Honours
- References
Barry cohen on cnbc aisenberg case
Biography
Cohen was born in Griffith, New South Wales and educated at Griffith High School, Sydney Grammar School and North Sydney Technical High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts from the Australian National University. He was a businessman before entering politics.
He was the federal member for the seat of Robertson from 1969 until his retirement before the 1990 election. Following the Australian Labor Party's win under Bob Hawke at the 1983 election, he was Minister for Home Affairs and the Environment from 1983 to 1984 and then Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Environment until 1987.
After politics
Cohen has written a number of books on political anecdotes, and an autobiography:
In 2015, Cohen and three other former MPs brought a case before the High Court of Australia, purporting that reductions to their retirement allowances and limitations on the number of "domestic return trips per year" under the Members of Parliament (Life Gold Pass) Act 2002 was unconstitutional under S51(xxxi) of the Constitution of Australia. They lost the case in 2016, with the court finding that Parliament was entitled to vary the terms of allowances.
Personal
Cohen married Rae McNeill in October 1959 and they have three sons.
Although Cohen voted for the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the 1970s, he has spoken out against gay marriage, arguing that "gay marriage and conventional marriage is [not] the same thing".
Honours
Cohen was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours in 2007, for service to the Australian Parliament and to the community through a range of cultural and environmental roles and contributions to public discussion and debate.