Honours abound in King’s Birthday roll call of service
More than 900 Australians are being praised after receiving honors in the King’s Birthday list for services praised for shaping the country.
Former Tasmanian premier Will Hodgman, gender equality campaigner Natasha Stott Despoja and philanthropist Janet Calvert-Jones are among those appointed to the Order of Australia (AC), the country’s highest civilian honour.
In total, 34 Australians received honorary awards through the military department, 149 receiving commendable citations and 63 notable commendations; Additionally, 702 people were recognized in the general section.
Troops will fire a 21-gun salute in Sydney and Melbourne for the King’s Birthday bank holiday on Monday, with a blank howitzer shell fired every 10 seconds until all 21 guns are exhausted.
The late doctor and former Victorian Liberal MP Katie Allen, credited with changing the way pediatric food allergy is treated after authoring more than 400 publications in leading medical journals, has been appointed an Officer of the Order. He died in December at the age of 59 after contracting a rare form of cancer.
Rove McManus is among those who have been inducted into the Order, as the comedian, whose company produces the longtime prime time news talk show The Project, is known for his service to media, entertainment and the community.
Pat Turner, a long-time Aboriginal rights advocate, was also given the same honor for her distinguished service to the Indigenous community.
Ms Turner has dedicated her life to Closing the Gap through a number of roles, most recently a decade-long stint leading the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.
Veteran winter sports manager Michael Kennedy has been appointed a Member of the Order after leading Snow Australia for 23 years.
He left that post following Australia’s record-breaking Winter Olympics performance in Milan Cortina.
Mr Kennedy was awarded for his significant services to the development and advancement of snow sports in Australia and international sports management.
Former NSW premier Morris Iemma has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his services to the public through parliament and community sports.
Mr Iemma was the 40th Premier of NSW and led the state between 2005 and 2008.
Helen Conway, former boss of the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, has been appointed an Officer of the Order for her services to business and legal governance, youth social welfare, gender equality and the not-for-profit sector.
Overall, 949 people from all departments received gongs.
Overall, 471 out of 702 were male recipients; This means a five percent increase in gender balance compared to the previous year.
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
