Robert Askin

Sir Robert William Askin, GCMG (April 4 1907 - September 9 1981) was Premier of New South Wales from 1965 to 1975. He was born Robin William Askin, but he always disliked his first name and he changed it by deed poll in 1971. Before being knighted in 1972, he was generally known as "Bob Askin".

Early years

Born in Sydney in 1907 [http://naa12.naa.gov.au/scripts/ItemDetail.asp?M=0&B=5665439] (not 1908, as used to be alleged in reference works), Askin grew up in Glebe, a working-class inner-city suburb of Sydney. He was an academically unremarkable student (although a keen footballer and card player), and left high school in 1921; that was the end of his formal education. At the Rural Bank, where he began his working life, he earned the nickname "Slippery Sam", reputedly because he spent much of his time running an illegal SP bookmaking operation. He joined the Australian Army during World War II and served in New Guinea and Borneo.

Political career

With a solid working-class background and trade union affiliations, Askin might have been expected to gravitate to the Australian Labor Party; but instead, he joined the conservative Liberal Party of Australia in 1947 after a chance encounter with an army colleague . Rapidly rising through the party ranks, he soon became president of the Liberals' Manly branch. He was the state member for the seat of Collaroy from 1949 until the seat was abolished by a redistribution in 1973, whereupon he became member for Pittwater until his retirement in 1975.cite web
title =Sir Robert (Robin William) Askin (1907 - 1981)
work =Members of Parliament
publisher =Parliament of New South Wales
url =http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/members.nsf/1fb6ebed995667c2ca256ea100825164/c368e12b9118be24ca256c800018902f!OpenDocument
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Askin was elected leader of the NSW Liberal Party in 1959, succeeding Philip Henry "Pat" Morton. His Press Secretary during some of that time was the future tantric master, Barry Long [http://www.barrylong.org/bio.shtml] . Although Askin lost the state election of 1962 to incumbent Premier Robert Heffron, he won the next election against Heffron's successor Jack Renshaw. He became Premier of NSW on 1 May 1965, ending the 24-year rule of the Australian Labor Party.

The election was notable as being one of Australia's first "presidential-style" campaigns, with Askin the person promoted far more heavily than the Liberal Party ever was. He received vigorous support from the newspapers and TV station owned by conservative media magnate Sir Frank Packer and the Liberals' campaign reportedly outspent the ALP by a ratio of at least 2:1. At the next election (also with Renshaw leading Labor) in 1968, Askin achieved a still bigger majority. He was re-elected in 1971 and, narrowly, in 1973; on both of those occasions the ALP Opposition was led by Pat Hills.

Essentially a political pragmatist, Askin was noted for his "phenomenal" ability to remember faces, an "uncanny" feel for public opinion, a mastery of political tactics, and a persistently combative relationship with the media. His tenure in government was marked by strong opposition to an increase in Commonwealth powers (it did not matter to him whether these were wielded by Liberal or by ALP governments), a tough stance on "law and order" issues, "laissez-faire" economic policies, and aggressive support for industrial and commercial development.

Askin oversaw a rapid escalation of building development in inner-city Sydney and the central business district, which followed in the wake of his controversial 1967 abolition of Sydney City Council and a redistribution of municipal electoral boundaries that was aimed at reducing the power of the rival Australian Labor Party. Among his most controversial schemes were a massive freeway system that was planned to be driven through the hearts of historic inner-city suburbs including Glebe and Newtown, and an equally ambitious scheme of so-called "slum clearance" that would have brought about the wholescale destruction of the historic areas of Woolloomooloo and The Rocks. Under Askin's administration, new developments in central Sydney rose to their highest levels ever.

In 1966 Askin was involved two famous controversies. During his campaign he had cynically exploited public unease about the rising cost of the Sydney Opera House, then still under construction, and as soon as he took government his Public Works Minister Davis Hughes began to assert control over the project and demand that costs be reined in. This brought him into direct conflict with architect Joern Utzon; and in February 1966, after a bitter standoff and the suspension of progress payments by Hughes, Utzon resigned, sparking a major public outcry.

The other famous incident occurred in October 1966 during the state visit by U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson. As Johnson's motorcade drove through Sydney, several anti-Vietnam War protesters, notably Graeme Dunstan, threw themselves in front of the car carrying Askin and Johnson, and when his driver asked for instructions, Askin bluntly told him: "Run over the bastards!". The event was widely reported and the ABC's current affairs program "This Day Tonight" created a storm of controversy when it sent up Askin's boorish behaviour in a satirical song.

Askin's Premiership was also marked by a significant increase in the activities of organised crime groups in NSW. Askin was known to be extremely fond of betting on horse racing, was often seen at the track, and was reputed to have been a "runner" for illegal SP bookmaking operations in his youth, in the Rural Bank and in the Army.

Since his death there have been persistent unproven allegations that Askin, allegedly assisted by then Police Commissioner Norman Allan, oversaw the creation of a lucrative network of corruption and bribery that involved politicians, public servants and police and the nascent Sydney organised crime syndicates. One of the most controversial claims is that that Askin regularly received payoffs from illegal gambling syndicates -- journalist David Hickie claimed that Askin received AUD$100,000 per year in bribes (equivalent to perhaps ten times that figure today) from a gaming syndicate run by notorious Sydney gaming identity Perc Galea.

There have also been claims that his administration actively protected leading crime identities such as the notorious Sydney gangster Lenny McPherson, that Askin 'sold' knighthoods to leading businessmen including (Sir) Paul Strasser of Parkes Development and (Sir) Peter Abeles of Ansett Airlines and Thomas Nationwide Transport for between $20,000 and $60,000 each, and that he also gave out knighthoods as rewards to trusted allies, including Police Commissioner Allan.

The son of the late crime boss Abe Saffron, Alan Saffron, claims in his book "Gentle Satan: Abe Saffron, My Father" that his father had a corrupt relationship and friendship with both Askin and Police Commissioner Allan. These dealings included alleged payments to Askin and Allan of between AU$5,000 and $10,000 per week each, and horse races that were fixed in Askin's favour 'as a courtesy'. It also alleges that Saffron eventually became the "bagman" for most Sydney organised crime activities, collecting and passing on bribes to Askin, Allan and others. [ [http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/dad-paid-off-askin-and-lent-packer-money/2008/07/27/1217097059696.html] Saffron's son: Dad paid off Askin and lent Packer money, Kate McClymont, "Sydney Morning Herald", July 28, 2008] Meanwhile in the second edition of "The Politics of Heroin" by Alfred W. McCoy, in a chapter summarising the Nugan Hand Bank it is mentioned that Askin and Saffron regularly had dinner together at the Bourbon and Beefsteak Bar and Restaurant, owned by American expatriate Maurice Bernard Houghton. [ [http://www.apfn.net/messageboard/6-27-03/discussion.cgi.23.html] pages 461-472 of Politics of Heroin, 2nd edition]

Towards the end of his career, with rumours of corruption on the increase, Askin became embroiled in another major political controversy. In 1971, while working on a computerisation program, police computer expert Phillip Arantz discovered that the NSW police service had been systematically under-reporting crime statistics for years. The obvious implication of this finding was that police were trying to conceal corruption, which allegedly extended up to the Commissioner himself, and the widespread police involvement in organised crime.

Arantz took his allegations to senior police, who dismissed them out of hand. Eventually Arantz, now recognised as one of Australia's pioneer "whistle-blowers", realised that Allan was at least aware of the scheme, if not directly involved in it, and that he wanted to suppress Arantz's revelations.

The frustrated Arantz eventually leaked his information to the press, so an enraged Allan began a vicious campaign to destroy Arantz's credibility. As a result, Arantz was suspended, forced to undergo a psychiatric assessment and dishonourably discharged from the force; it took him years to clear his name. In the meantime both Allan and Askin had retired, avoiding the taint from the scandal, and by the time Arantz's claims were finally vindicated, Askin and Allan were long since dead.

Throughout his time as Premier, he was capably assisted by Charles Cutler as Deputy Premier and Leader of the Country Party. Cutler served as Acting Premier at times when Askin was suffering from illness. Askin retired from politics in January 1975. By this stage he was a sick man, having suffered two heart attacks in 1969 and 1973. His health declined still further after 1975, and he died of pneumonia on 9 September 1981. He left an estate valued at just under AU$2 million - a very substantial sum for the time - most of it invested in shares.

Allegations of corruption

When questioned about his wealth, Askin always attributed it to the salary from his high public office, his frugal lifestyle, good investments and canny punting. After his death the Australian Taxation Office audited his estate, and although it made no finding of criminality, it determined that a substantial part of it came from undisclosed income from sources other than shares or gambling.

With Askin's death, investigative journalists were now freed from the threat of legal action under Australia's punitive defamation and libel laws - unlike the United States, Australia has no constitutional guarantee of Freedom of Speech - and stories about his reputed corruption hit the press almost immediately.

On the very day of Askin's funeral, Sydney journalists David Hickie and David Marr caused a sensation with the first of a series of articles detailing allegations of Askin's corrupt activities that appeared in the "National Times" under the headline "Askin : Friend to organised crime". These claims were examined in greater detail in Hickie's subsequent book "The Prince And The Premier".

Although close Askin associates - notably his former private secretary - have consistently denied that he was corrupt, and little hard evidence has ever surfaced, the rumours were widely seen as being confirmed when, after the death of Askin's wife Mollie in 1984, it was revealed that she had left an estate valued at almost AU$4 million - most of which the animal-loving Askins had bequeathed to the RSPCA.

Honours

Askin was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) on his own recommendation in 1972 [ [http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/honours/honour_roll/search.cfm?aus_award_id=1082616&search_type=advanced&showInd=true It’s an Honour: KCMG 1972] ] ; he was elevated to Knight Grand Cross (GCMG) in 1975 [ [http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/honours/honour_roll/search.cfm?aus_award_id=1073799&search_type=advanced&showInd=true It’s an Honour: GCMG 1975] ] , becoming only the second NSW Premier (after Sir Henry Parkes) to be granted these two honoursFact|date=May 2008.

Askin's retirement from politics was greeted on This Day Tonight by the cast of The Aunty Jack Show, with a reworded version of "Farewell, Aunty Jack":

:Farewell Robin A,:We think you've had your day:Though you're four foot three:You don't do much for me:You're short, round and fat:A pudden in a hat,:There's a scream as you plummet away. [Peach, Bill. This Day Tonight: How Australian Current Affairs TV Came to Age. ABC; 1992, Sydney. p. 196. ISBN 0207151539]

Notes

References

*cite book
last =Hickie
first =David
authorlink =
coauthors =
title =The Prince and The Premier
publisher =Angus & Robertson
year =1985
location =Sydney
pages =536
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0207151539

*"'Goot, Murray", "Sir Robert Askin" (draft entry for "The Australian Dictionary of Biography", Vol. 17, Melbourne University Press (forthcoming)), http://www.pol.mq.edu.au/publications/Askin.htm

Persondata
NAME=Askin, Robert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Askin, Robin William (birth name)
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Australian politician and Premier of New South Wales
DATE OF BIRTH= 4 April 1907
PLACE OF BIRTH=Sydney
DATE OF DEATH= 9 September 1981
PLACE OF DEATH=Sydney