17 December 2010(2010-12-17) (aged 88) Cairns North, Queensland
Nationality
Australian
Political party
Australian Country Party
Occupation
Grazier
Charles Ronald Maunsell (8 May 1922 – 17 December 2010) was an Australian politician.
Born in Cairns, Queensland, he was educated at state schools before serving as a pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force 77 Squadron from 1942 to 1947, reaching the rank of Flight Lieutenant.[1] He was initially an earthmoving contractor, becoming a sheep grazier at Longreach on a property bought with his parents. He married Joan Meakin on 17 April 1954.[1]
In 1967, he was elected to the Australian Senate as a Country Party Senator for Queensland. He held the seat until his defeat at the 1980 election, taking effect in 1981.[1][2]
One of his most notable moments was his involvement in what became known as the Gair Affair or "The Night of the Long Prawns", in April 1974. He regularly brought a batch of prawns from his home base in Townsville to share with his parliamentary colleagues in Canberra, and on that night he used this generosity as a ruse to keep DLP Senator Vince Gair entertained in his office all night, thus delaying Gair's resignation from the Senate in order to take up an appointment as Ambassador to Ireland, which had been offered to him by Gough Whitlam's Labor government as a strategy to increase Labor's numbers in the Senate. The timing was crucial, as the non-Labor forces were aware that the Queensland Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen was arranging that night to issue writs for five Queensland senators for the forthcoming half-Senate election; if Gair had resigned first, writs for six senators would have been required, improving Labor's chances. Ultimately Whitlam decided to call a double dissolution instead of the half-Senate election he had previously announced; all seats in the parliament were up for re-election, and the Gair Affair became irrelevant.[1]
Maunsell died at Cairns in 2010 (aged 88), survived by his wife Joan and three daughters.[3]
^ abcdLaing, Rosemary (2010). "MAUNSELL, Charles Ronald (1922–2010)". The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
^Carr, Adam (2008). "Australian Election Archive". Psephos, Adam Carr's Election Archive. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
^"MAUNSELL, Charles Ronald 'Ron'". The Courier-Mail. 18 December 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2023 – via Legacy.com.
Charles Ronald Maunsell (8 May 1922 – 17 December 2010) was an Australian politician. Born in Cairns, Queensland, he was educated at state schools before...
Clarence (1920–1971)". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 1 June 2023. "MAUNSELL, Charles Ronald (1922–2010)". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 1 June...
Party members entertained Gair at a small party in the office of Senator RonMaunsell, to delay him visiting the Senate President to tender his resignation...
1974 ALP Vince Gair, Gough Whitlam, Joh Bjelke-Petersen, Lionel Murphy, RonMaunsell, Magnus Cormack, Billy Snedden Morosi Affair 1974–1977 ALP Jim Cairns...
Whip Date Leader RonMaunsell 27 February 1973 Doug Anthony Glen Sheil 21 February 1980 Stan Collard 17 February 1981 Ian Sinclair Glen Sheil 21 February...
ahead of Labor. Family first preferences were enough for Nationals candidate Ron Boswell to be re-elected and win a third seat for the Coalition. Pauline's...
Milliner* George Georges* Jim Keeffe* Ron McAuliffe* Mal Colston Brian Kilmartin Ian Wood* (Lib) RonMaunsell* (CP) Neville Bonner* (Lib) Ellis Lawrie*...
candidates Jim Keeffe* Ron McAuliffe* George Georges* Mal Colston* Colleen Freeman Ken Vaughan Neville Bonner* (Lib) RonMaunsell* (NCP) Glen Sheil* (NCP)...
acting on advice from the premier of the day. NCP Queensland Senator RonMaunsell entertained Vince Gair and other senators in his office, plying him with...
cities are considered to represent technological utopianism. Resembling the Maunsell Forts, they appeared warlike to some, leading Herron to be heckled at a...
MP (Banks, NSW) Senator Reg Bishop (SA) Senator Jim Cavanagh (SA) Senator Ron McAuliffe (Qld) Senator Justin O'Byrne (Tas) Senator John Wheeldon (WA) Bill...
Quinn Andrew Reid Mary Reveley Gordon W. Richards Nicky Richards John Maunsell Richardson Fred Rimell Jack Robinson Robert Robson Richard Rowe Lucinda...
1991 Lusitania Bridge in Mérida, Spain; Peter Head (civil engineer) of Maunsell Group (now AECOM). Narrated by Roger Allam, produced by Richard Melman...
(Eddie Dwyer), Roger Sloman (Roger Horrabin), Peter Schofield (Det. Chief Insp. Maunsell), Michael Melia (Milner), Peter Dean (Greg), Paul Barber (Ned)...
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