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Member Details

Sir Harry Vincent BUDD (1900 - 1979)

Member Photo
Date of Birth: 18/02/1900
Place of Birth: Murwillumbah, New South Wales , Australia
Date of Death: 08/03/1979
Place of Death: Mosman, New South Wales, Australia
Parliamentary Service
Position Start End Period Notes
President 09 Aug 1966 05 Nov 1978 12 years 2 months 28 days
Member of the NSW Legislative Council 23 Apr 1946 05 Nov 1978 32 years 6 months 14 days A Member of the indirectly elected Council 1934 - 1978. Date of Election 14 March 1946, 21 November 1957 and 12 March 1970. Granted retention of title of 'Honourable' for life.
Political Party Activity
Country Party. Central executive 1944 - 1974.
Community Activity
Qualifications, occupations and interests
Newspaper editor. Educated at Murwillumbah public school and privately; began work on Tweed Daily, editor from 1921 until 1923; worked on Daily Telegraph, Sydney, from 1923 until 1930; managing editor of the Land from 1931 until 1971; director of The Land Newspaper Limited, Chairman of Western Newspapers Limited from 1968 until 1972, director of Country Television Services Limited, Orange from 1958 until 1976; vice-president of Medical Benefits Fund of Australia Limited from 1950; councillor Sydney Church of England Girls' Grammar School; president of Institute of Journalists from 1953 until 1955; Australia National Advisory Committee for United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation, Bangkok 1964, delegate to 4th Asian Regional Conference, author of The Desirability of Extending the Committee System; Australia Club.
Military Service
Honours Received
Knight Bachelor 1970
Membership of other Parliaments & Offices Held
Local Government Activity
Personal
Son of Arthur Eames Budd, a Member of the Legislative Assembly, and his wife Annie Knight. Married Colina McDonald White on 25 January 1930 and had issue, 2 sons and 2 daughters.
Additional Information
Text from the book: 'The Presiding Officers of the Parliament of New South Wales', Sydney, 1995 Harry Budd was on born 18 February 1900 at Murwillumbah in northern New South Wales. He married Colina McDonald on 25 January 1930 and they had two sons and two daughters. Before entering political life Harry Budd had quite a notable background in newspaper journalism. He first began reporting for the Tweed Daily, acting as editor from 1921 until 1923 when he accepted the opportunity to write for the Daily Telegraph in Sydney. It was during that period that Budd had his first professional contact with Parliament House as a reporter in the Press Gallery. From 1931 until 1971 he was the managing editor of the Land, a leading agricultural newspaper that continues to deal with rural issues and concerns. Between 1958 and 1976 he was director of Country Television Services Ltd. Budd's father Arthur Eames Budd was the State Member for Byron from 1923 until 1944. Harry Budd followed his father's example and joined the Country Party. He entered the Legislative Council in 1946 and was quickly selected to become the Country Party's leader in the upper house. He used his political prominence to champion the interests of the rural community throughout New South Wales. Budd was an out spoken advocate of decentralised commodity pricing and he favoured a system of efficiently organised industry marketing to promote rural produce. From 1966 until his retirement in 1978 Harry Budd was President of the Legislative Council. His long association with the Parliament enabled him to uphold the conventions and protocol of the Chamber. He was particularly active in promoting discussion on the administration of Australian Parliaments and over a number of years he gave several important papers at Presiding Officers and Clerks Conferences. He spoke on a diverse range of subjects from the role of the press in Parliament, to the rules of sub judice and the power to expel Members from Parliament. He died on 8 March 1979.