Jim Bacon

Infobox_President
honorific-prefix = The Honourable

name = Jim Bacon
honorific-suffix =

---

order =41st Premier of Tasmania
term_start =14 September 1998
term_end =21 March 2004
deputy =Paul Lennon
predecessor =Tony Rundle
successor =Paul Lennon
birth_date =birth date|1950|5|15|mf=y
birth_place =Melbourne, Victoria
death_date =death date and age|2004|6|20|1950|5|15|mf=y
death_place =Hobart, Tasmania
constituency =Denison
party =Australian Labor Party
spouse =Honey Bacon
profession =
religion =


footnotes =|

James Alexander Bacon AC (15 May 1950 - 20 June 2004) was Premier of Tasmania from 1998 to 2004.

Early life

Bacon was born in Melbourne; his father Frank, a doctor, died when his son was twelve, leaving him to be raised by his mother Joan. He was educated at Scotch College and later at Monash University, but he did not graduate. At Monash he was a Maoist student leader. Jim initially moved to Western Australia before he became an official of the Builders Labourers Federation, which later sent him to Tasmania as an organiser. He later became leader of the trade union movement as Secretary of the Tasmanian Trades & Labor Council.

After his move to Tasmania, Jim met and married Honey Hogan, who had been a croupier and the public face of Australia's first casino: Wrest Point Casino when it opened in 1973.

Having abandoned Communism and joined the Australian Labor Party, Bacon was elected as a Member of the House of Assembly in 1996. He became leader of the Tasmanian Labor Party in 1997 and won the state election in 1998, defeating the Liberal Party government under Tony Rundle. His government was re-elected in 2002 in a landslide victory for his party.

Premier

His time in office was said to have been hugely successful, for the state economy as a whole, for his popularity with the people of the state, and also for tourism with the introduction of two more Bass Strait ferries, and beginning a ferry run between Devonport and Sydney. (However, the Sydney service has since proven unsuccessful and was discontinued in 2006.) He controversially appointed Richard Butler to the office Governor of Tasmania in 2003. One of the Bacon Government's most notable achievements was to wipe out a $1.6 billion state net debt in only six years. Other achievements included huge increases in tourist numbers, leading social policies, partnerships between state and local governments, turning Tasmanian Government entities, such as Hydro Tasmania, into profit-generating businesses (one of the election-winning strategies was to propose this as opposed to selling them), bringing two AFL clubs to play regular home and away matches in Tasmania (Hawthorn Football Club and St Kilda Football Club) and improving the general feeling of confidence in individuals and businesses within the state of Tasmania.

Last year

On Friday 13 February 2004, Bacon received the devastating diagnosis that he was suffering from inoperable lung cancer. On 23 February 2004, Bacon subsequently announced that he would take a four week leave of absence from his role of Premier so that he and Honey could explore treatment options. After news that Jim had little time left, he stood aside as Premier in March 2004, to spend with his family and friends whatever time was left to him. Paul Lennon, who had been Deputy Premier, succeeded Bacon as as Tasmania's 42nd Premier.

Bacon, a 35-year smoker, died as a result of the cancer on 20 June 2004, at Calvary Hospital in Hobart. A state funeral was held on 25 June; many state and federal politicians (from both major parties) attended, including Liberal Prime Minister John Howard, all the state Premiers, Opposition Leader Mark Latham, former Opposition Leader Simon Crean, and former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.

Bacon was posthumously awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws honoris causa from the University of Tasmania in August 2004, and his appointment as a Companion of the Order of Australia in June 2005. (The Order of Australia is not awarded posthumously, but Bacon had been nominated before his death.) The Jim Bacon Foundation was established in his honour to "provide practical support and financial assistance to cancer patients and their families by making funds available to organisations that offer cancer treatment and palliative care services".

He had two sons, Mark and Scott, from a twenty year defacto relationship with Lynette Francis. He also had a stepson, Shane. He had four sisters: Wendy, Jenny, Mary and Janet.

References

* [http://www.parliament.tas.gov.au/history/tasparl/baconj700.htm Tasmanian parliamentary profile]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20040508130819/www.parliament.tas.gov.au/ha/ISBaconJim.htm Jim Bacon's maiden speech to parliament]
* Ludeke, M. (2006) "Ten Events Shaping Tasmania's History." Hobart: Ludeke Publishing.

External links

* [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/01/1088488090036.html?oneclick=Early Associates pay tribute to Jim Bacon]
* [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/21/1090089215626.html The selling-out of Tasmania]
* [http://www.jimbaconfoundation.tas.gov.au/ The Jim Bacon Foundation]