Charles Keith Jones was born at Maryville, Newcastle and educated at Tighes Hill Public School and Cook's High School.

He was apprenticed as a boilermaker at BHP in Newcastle, later working at Stewarts and Lloyd's and Ryland's before joining the State Dockyard as a boilermaker in 1943.  He was an executive officer of the Boilermakers' Society in Newcastle and a leader in the State Dockyard Union Committee.  Coming from a family with long and active political ties, Mr Jones was elected Secretary of the Newcastle Federal Electorate Council, President of the Newcastle State Electorate Council, Secretary of Zone 6 Regional Organising Committee and Secretary of the Tighe's Hill Branch of the Australian Labor Party.

In 1947 he successfully sought political office when he was
elected an alderman of Newcastle City Council East Ward.  He became  Deputy Lord Mayor in 1953, and in 1957, at the age of 39, became Newcastle's youngest Lord Mayor - the first Labor Lord Mayor.

In 1958 Mr Jones won the Newcastle seat in the House of
Representatives, and has retained it at every election to date.  With the Labor Party in Opposition in the House until December 1972, Mr Jones established himself as the Opposition's Shadow Minister on all transport matters from 1966 to 1972, and has been a member of the ALP Federal Parliamentary Executive since 1967.

When the Labor Party was elected to Government, Mr Jones was one of the first Ministers chosen by the Party Caucus.

As Minister for Civil Aviation (from December 1972 until the abolition of the Department in 1973) and Transport (from December 1972 to December 1975) his responsibilities covered civil aviation in all its aspects, from the negotiation of bilateral agreements covering air rights between Australia and overseas Governments through to "domestic" matters relating to local aviation, and, in the case of Transport, all Commonwealth-related matters concerning shipping, roads and railways. 

After the Labor Party was defeated in the December 1975 election, Mr Jones was not elected to the Party's 'shadow' Ministry in January 1976.  His backbench Parliamentary career includes Membership of the Australian Delegation to the 22nd General Assembly of the United Nations in New York in 1967, Membership of House Committee (March 1967, 1970-1972), Membership of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Aircraft Noise (1968-1970), Member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Road Safety (1972), Chairman of the ALP Transport Committee for six years, and Secretary of the ALP Immigration Committee for eight years.

Charles Keith Jones died on 7 August 2003 aged 85.

Sources

Biographical Notes: The Hon C K Jones, MP,
Minister of State for 'Transport and Civil Aviation' Canberra Newcastle, February 1973

Journals of the Senate, No 86, Monday 11 August 2003

Agency associated with person unregistered

1957-1959: Shortland County Council - Councillor
1967-1972: Federal Parliamentary Labor Party Opposition Executive -
           Member