Denver Beanland

Australian politician

Denver Beanland

Denver Beanland, 2019

Manager of Opposition Business in Queensland
In office
30 July 1998 – 17 February 2001
Leader| Rob Borbidge
Preceded by| Terry Mackenroth
Succeeded by| Kev Lingard
Attorney-General of Queensland
and Minister for Justice
In office
26 February 1996 – 26 June 1998
Premier| Rob Borbidge
Preceded by| Matt Foley
Succeeded by| Matt Foley
Deputy Leader of the
Queensland Liberal Party
In office
31 July 1995 – 23 June 1998
Leader| Joan Sheldon
Preceded by| Santo Santoro
Succeeded by| Bob Quinn
In office
19 December 1989 – 13 May 1990
Leader| Angus Innes
Preceded by| Peter Beard
Succeeded by| David Watson
Shadow Attorney-General
Shadow Minister for Justice
In office
2 November 1992 – 19 February 1996
Leader| Rob Borbidge
Preceded by| Tony FitzGerald
Succeeded by| Matt Foley
Leader of the Queensland Liberal Party
In office
13 May 1990 – 11 November 1991
Deputy| David Watson
Preceded by| Angus Innes
Succeeded by| Joan Sheldon
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly
for Indooroopilly
Toowong (1986–1992)
In office
1 November 1986 – 17 February 2001
Preceded by| Earle Bailey
Succeeded by| Ronan Lee
Personal details
Born|

Denver Edward Beanland

(1945-01-26) 26 January 1945 (age 80)
Kilcoy, Queensland, Australia
Political party| Liberal Party
Alma mater| University of Queensland
Occupation| Bank officer

Denver Edward Beanland AM (born 26 January 1945) is a former politician in Queensland, Australia. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and leader of the Queensland Liberal Party.

## Early life

[edit]

Denver Edward Beanland was born on 26 January 1945 at St Margaret's Private Hospital, Kilcoy, Queensland, the only son of Norman Edward Beanland and his wife Gwendoline (née Runge). The family lived a dairy farm called Avondale (originally owned by Beanland's grandfather Herbert Beanland) located at Mary Smokes Creek, between Kilcoy and Woodford.[1]

Beanland attended the Kalangara State School at Stoney Creek, four miles from his home. He continued his secondary education at Caboolture State High School.[1]

## Local politics

[edit]

Beanland was elected as an Alderman of the Brisbane City Council in 1976 and served on that Council, including a period as Deputy Lord Mayor of Brisbane until 1986.

## State politics

[edit]

In 1986, Beanland was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, in 1986, as the member for Toowong. He represented Toowong until 1992, at which time it was renamed Indooroopilly.[2]

Beanland was leader of the Liberal Party in the Queensland Parliament from May 1990 until November 1991, when he was ousted by Joan Sheldon.[3] Although he did not return to the Liberal leadership, he became deputy leader in 1995.

Denver Beanland served as Attorney-General in the Borbidge government from February 1996 to 20 June 1998.[2] He also served as Opposition Spokesperson, prior to 1996, for a number of portfolios including Justice, Transport and Land Management.[4]

In 1997 a vote of no-confidence was passed against him as Attorney-General over his role in the Carruthers and Connolly-Ryan Inquiries. In an unprecedented decision he refused to resign in the wake of the no-confidence vote, citing his lack of personal responsibility for the scandal.[5]

He was supported by Premier Rob Borbidge who says he decides who is in his Cabinet not Parliament.

He lost his seat of Indooroopilly at the 2001 state election.[6]

## Later life

[edit]

After leaving politics, Beanland studied at the University of Queensland, completing a Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy in history in 2007. The topic of his PhD thesis was former Queensland Premier Thomas McIlwraith.[7]

Denver Beanland has been the President of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland since 2020 after having previously been its President from 2007 to 2009.[8] In 2019 he was elected a Fellow of the Society.[9]

In 2015 Beanland was appointed by the Abbott government to chair the National Archives Advisory Council.[10][11]

On 7 June 2020, Beanland was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to the people and Parliament of Queensland, and to archival and historical organisations.[12]

## Publications

[edit]

* -- (1993). The Family of Thomas and Lydia Emma Kinton Beanland. Boolarong. ISBN 978-0-86439-155-1.
* -- (2007). "PhD thesis". Queensland Caesar: Sir Thomas McIlwraith (PDF). School of History, Philosophy, Religion, and Classics, University of Queensland.
* -- (2009). A Court Apart: The District Court of Queensland. Supreme Court of Queensland Library. ISBN 978-0-9803220-4-0.
* -- (2013). The Queensland Caesar, Sir Thomas McIlwraith. Brisbane Boolarong Press. ISBN 978-1-922109-55-2.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Denver Edward Beanland". The Family of Thomas and Lydia Emma Kinton Beanland. Denver Beanland. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
2. ^ a b "Despite snaring the seat of Indooroopilly by a mere 200 votes after preferences were allocated, Denver Beanland's political future is still up in the air". South West News. Brisbane, Australia. 24 June 1998. p. 0.
3. ^ "Denver Edward Beanland". The Family of Thomas and Lydia Emma Kinton Beanland. Denver Beanland. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
4. ^ "Liberals Line-Up". South West News. Brisbane, Australia. 8 July 1998. p. 3.
5. ^ "Denver Beanland Interview", Qld Speaks, 01:30:45,
6. ^ "Indooroopilly tenure over for Beanland". South West News. Brisbane, Australia. 7 March 2001. p. 4.
7. ^ "Denver Beanland". Queensland speaks. The Centre for the Government of Queensland, University of Queensland. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
8. ^ "Management and Leadership". Royal Historical Society of Queensland. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
9. ^ "Dr Denver Beanland AM, Advisory Council Chair". National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
10. ^ "Denver Beanland to chair the National Archives Advisory Council". citynews.com.au. Canberra City News. 30 July 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
11. ^ "Dr Denver Beanland (Chair)". National Archives of Australia. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
12. ^ "Australian Honours Search Facility". Australian Honours Search Facility. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 19 August 2022.

Parliament of Queensland

Preceded by

Earle Bailey

|  Member for Toowong
1986-1992  | Abolished
New seat |  Member for Indooroopilly
1992-2001  | Succeeded by

Ronan Lee

Political offices
Preceded by

Angus Innes

|  Parliamentary Leader of the Liberal Party in Queensland
1990–1991  | Succeeded by

Joan Sheldon

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* United States

People|

* Trove