Gerry Wood
Encyclopedia
Gerard Vincent "Gerry" Wood is an Australia
n politician. A former mayor of the Northern Territory
shire of Litchfield, he has been an independent member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
since 2001, representing the electorate of Nelson
.
Wood worked in Daly River
and Bathurst Island
as a young man, working in a number of careers, including running a tourist operation and working as the town clerk of Nguiu. In 1984, he relocated to Howard Springs
, between Darwin
and Palmerston
. While at Howard Springs, he worked as a vegetable and poultry farmer, and became involved with local government, subsequently spending five years as the President of the Litchfield Shire Council
. It was in this position that he emerged as a key figure in the fight against the damming of the Elizabeth River, with which he has been credited as having saved. This gave him a significant profile in his area when he decided to contest the seat of Nelson at the 2001 election
.
Nelson had a long history of independent candidates, as independent Noel Padgham-Purich
had held the seat for most of its history, and Country Liberal Party
sitting member Chris Lugg
had only narrowly won the seat from new independent candidate Dave Tollner
at the 1997 election. In the leadup to the election, Wood was tipped to have a strong chance of ousting Lugg, and subsequently won 42% of the vote, which was enough to elect him with the help of Australian Labor Party
preferences. In the immediate aftermath, there was a real possibility of a hung parliament
, which would have likely left Wood with the balance of power
in the Assembly. However, Labor managed to seize majority control with Mathew Bonson's narrow win in the electorate of Millner
, which severely limited Wood's potential influence in the Assembly. Once the new Assembly began sitting, new ALP Chief Minister Clare Martin
offered Wood the position of Deputy Speaker under fellow independent Loraine Braham
, and Wood soon accepted.
As an MP, Wood has served on a number of committees, including public accounts, environment and sustainable development, substance abuse and estimates. While he has not maintained as high a profile as Braham, he received some attention from the national media in November 2004, when he discovered the theft of a 10-tonne steel railway bridge in his electorate after hearing a report from a constituent. The same month, in response to a severe shortage of fruit pickers in the Territory, Wood wandered around the Mindil Beach Markets, a popular tourist attraction, dressed as a mango tree. Not all of the publicity Wood has received has been for his political efforts; in 2004, Wood won the over-45s division of the Litchfield Gift foot race.
Wood faced his second electoral test at the 2005 election
. He campaigned largely on maintaining an independent voice in the Assembly and on social issues such as the state of the Royal Darwin Hospital
. Despite a controversial redistribution which moved the Robertson Barracks
into his electorate, Wood held his seat with a swing in his favour, polling nearly double the vote of his nearest rival. Wood had hoped to retain the position of Deputy Speaker after the election, but was replaced with Labor backbencher Len Kiely
. He has retained his seat in the 2008 election.
Gerry comes from a Horticultural background having studied Horticultural Science at Burnley (University of Melbourne) prior to coming to the Northern Territory in 1970.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n politician. A former mayor of the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
shire of Litchfield, he has been an independent member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory is the unicameral parliament of the Northern Territory in Australia. It sits in Parliament House, located on State Square, close to the centre of the city of Darwin.-History:...
since 2001, representing the electorate of Nelson
Electoral division of Nelson (Northern Territory)
Nelson is an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in Australia's Northern Territory. It was first created in 1990, and was named after Harold Nelson, the first member for the federal Northern Territory electorate...
.
Wood worked in Daly River
Daly River, Northern Territory
Daly River is the name of a river and a town in the Northern Territory of Australia. At the 2006 census, Daly River had a population of 468.- History :...
and Bathurst Island
Bathurst Island
A member of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Bathurst Island is one of the Queen Elizabeth Islands in Nunavut Territory, Canada. The area of the island is estimated at , making it the 54th largest island in the world and Canada's 13th largest island. It is uninhabited.The island is low-lying with...
as a young man, working in a number of careers, including running a tourist operation and working as the town clerk of Nguiu. In 1984, he relocated to Howard Springs
Howard Springs, Northern Territory
Howard Springs is an outer rural area of Darwin. It is 29km SE of the Darwin CBD. Its Local Government Area is the Litchfield Municipality. The suburb is mostly a rural area, but has been experiencing strong growth in population and development. Settlement of the suburb began in 1864. In 1939,...
, between Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
and Palmerston
Palmerston, Northern Territory
Palmerston is a planned satellite city of Darwin, the capital and largest city in Australia's Northern Territory. Palmerston is situated near Darwin Harbour and has an urban population of 23,614 on the 2006 Census night and making it the second largest city in the territory...
. While at Howard Springs, he worked as a vegetable and poultry farmer, and became involved with local government, subsequently spending five years as the President of the Litchfield Shire Council
Shire of Litchfield
The Litchfield Municipality is a Local Government Area located in the Northern Territory of Australia on the eastern and southeastern outskirts of the Darwin-Palmerston urban area...
. It was in this position that he emerged as a key figure in the fight against the damming of the Elizabeth River, with which he has been credited as having saved. This gave him a significant profile in his area when he decided to contest the seat of Nelson at the 2001 election
Northern Territory legislative election, 2001
A general election was held in the Northern Territory, Australia, on 18 August 2001. The centre-left Australian Labor Party , led by Clare Martin, won a surprising victory over the then-majority Country Liberal Party . Before this, the CLP had held 18 out the 25 seats in theNorthern Territory...
.
Nelson had a long history of independent candidates, as independent Noel Padgham-Purich
Noel Padgham-Purich
Cecilia Noel Padgham-Purich is a former Australian politician. She was a member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1977 to 1997, representing Tiwi until 1983, Koolpinyah until 1990 and Nelson thereafter. First elected as a member of the Country Liberal Party, she was a minister...
had held the seat for most of its history, and Country Liberal Party
Country Liberal Party
The Northern Territory Country Liberal Party is a Northern Territory political party affiliated with both the National and Liberal parties...
sitting member Chris Lugg
Chris Lugg
Christopher Dennis "Chris" Lugg is a former Australian politician. He was the Country Liberal Party member for Nelson in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1997 to 2001. He succeeded long-serving independent Noel Padgham-Purich, who had supported another independent, David Tollner;...
had only narrowly won the seat from new independent candidate Dave Tollner
Dave Tollner
David William Tollner is an Australian politician, currently representing the Fong Lim in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly for the Country Liberal Party since the 2008 election...
at the 1997 election. In the leadup to the election, Wood was tipped to have a strong chance of ousting Lugg, and subsequently won 42% of the vote, which was enough to elect him with the help of Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
preferences. In the immediate aftermath, there was a real possibility of a hung parliament
Hung parliament
In a two-party parliamentary system of government, a hung parliament occurs when neither major political party has an absolute majority of seats in the parliament . It is also less commonly known as a balanced parliament or a legislature under no overall control...
, which would have likely left Wood with the balance of power
Balance of power (parliament)
In parliamentary politics, the term balance of power sometimes describes the pragmatic mechanism exercised by a minor political party or other grouping whose guaranteed support may enable an otherwise minority government to obtain and hold office...
in the Assembly. However, Labor managed to seize majority control with Mathew Bonson's narrow win in the electorate of Millner
Electoral division of Millner
Millner was an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in Australia's Northern Territory. One of the Legislative Assembly's original electorates, it was first contested at the first election in 1974. It was named after James Millner, a Doctor and early Australian explorer of the Northern...
, which severely limited Wood's potential influence in the Assembly. Once the new Assembly began sitting, new ALP Chief Minister Clare Martin
Clare Martin
Clare Majella Martin is a former Australian politician. She is the current CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service . A former journalist, she was elected to the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly in a shock by-election win in 1995...
offered Wood the position of Deputy Speaker under fellow independent Loraine Braham
Loraine Braham
Loraine Margaret Braham is an Australian politician. She was a member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1994 to 2008, representing the electorate of Braitling...
, and Wood soon accepted.
As an MP, Wood has served on a number of committees, including public accounts, environment and sustainable development, substance abuse and estimates. While he has not maintained as high a profile as Braham, he received some attention from the national media in November 2004, when he discovered the theft of a 10-tonne steel railway bridge in his electorate after hearing a report from a constituent. The same month, in response to a severe shortage of fruit pickers in the Territory, Wood wandered around the Mindil Beach Markets, a popular tourist attraction, dressed as a mango tree. Not all of the publicity Wood has received has been for his political efforts; in 2004, Wood won the over-45s division of the Litchfield Gift foot race.
Wood faced his second electoral test at the 2005 election
Northern Territory legislative election, 2005
A general election was held in the Northern Territory, Australia, on 18 June 2005. The centre-left Australian Labor Party, led by Chief Minister Clare Martin, won a second term with a landslide victory, winning six of the ten seats held by the opposition Country Liberal Party in the 25-member...
. He campaigned largely on maintaining an independent voice in the Assembly and on social issues such as the state of the Royal Darwin Hospital
Royal Darwin Hospital
Royal Darwin Hospital is a 345-bed teaching hospital located in the northern suburbs of Darwin, Northern Territory.-History:The first hospital of the settlement of Palmerston was built in 1874. The hospital was built on Packard Street overlooking Doctors Gully under the authority of Dr James...
. Despite a controversial redistribution which moved the Robertson Barracks
Robertson Barracks
For the Robertson Barracks, Norfolk, England see RAF Swanton MorleyRobertson Barracks is a major Australian Army base located in the outer Darwin, Northern Territory suburb of Holtze in the Municipality of Litchfield. The barracks was built during the 1990s. The Barracks are home to the 1st Brigade...
into his electorate, Wood held his seat with a swing in his favour, polling nearly double the vote of his nearest rival. Wood had hoped to retain the position of Deputy Speaker after the election, but was replaced with Labor backbencher Len Kiely
Len Kiely
Leonard Francis "Len" Kiely is a former Australian politician. He was the Labor member for Sanderson in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2008....
. He has retained his seat in the 2008 election.
Gerry comes from a Horticultural background having studied Horticultural Science at Burnley (University of Melbourne) prior to coming to the Northern Territory in 1970.