Summary heading
Hon Robert (Bob) Lindsay
Career within Commonwealth
Robert (Bob) Lindsay Collins was
born on 8 February 1946. He left school at the age of 15 and worked briefly on a
cotton farm. In 1967 he moved to the Northern Territory where he found work at
the Department of Agriculture in the town of Katherine. By 1974 he was working
for the Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and St. John Ambulance.
Collins first became politically
active in the late 1970s while employed as a market gardener and wildlife officer in
the indigenous community of Maningrida in Arnhem Land. In 1977 he was asked to run for the Australian Labor Party in the seat of Arnhem, which he did, successfully gaining
a seat in the second
parliament of the Northern Territory Legislative
Assembly. He was Leader of the Opposition from 1981 to 1986 while
the Country Liberal Party held power,
switching to the newly created seat of Arafura in December 1983. At the
territorial election of 1983, his party was defeated.
He was elected to the Senate for the Northern Territory, 1987, 1990, 1993
and 1996. Collins was Minister for Shipping from 4 April 1990 to 7 May 1990;
Minister for Shipping and Aviation from 7 May 1990 to 27 December 1991;
Minister for Shipping and Aviation from 27 December 1991 to 27 May 1992;
Minister for Transport and Communications from 27 May 1992 to 23 December 1993;
Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Northern Australia from 4 April 1990
to 27 May 1992; Minister for Primary Industries and Energy fro 23 December 1993
to 11 March 1996. He resigned on 30 March 1998.
Bob Collins was awarded the Order of Australia in January
2004 for service to the community of the Northern Territory in the areas of
transport, tourism and natural resource development, and to Indigenous people
as an advocate for social justice, land and sea rights and access to improved
educational opportunities.
Sources
ABC Web Site
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories,
accessed 24 April 2009
Parliament of Australia Website
Parlinfo
http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au,
accessed 24 April 2009
It’s an Honour Website
http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au,
accessed 24 April 2009
Who’s Who 1998,
p390
Summary heading
Hon Robert (Bob) Lindsay Collins
Unregistered links
4 Sep 1997 – 30 Mar 1998 - Senate Standing Committee House
4 Sep 1997 – 3 Mar 1998 - Senate Standing Committee Privileges
20 May 1996 – 5 Dec 1996 - Senate Select Committee Victorian Casino Inquiry