Ross Lightfoot
| Ross Lightfoot | |
|---|---|
| Senator for Western Australia | |
|
In office 19 May 1997 – 30 June 2008 |
|
| Preceded by | John Panizza |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
11 August 1936 Port Lincoln, South Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Political party | Liberal Party of Australia |
| Occupation | Policeman, grazier |
Philip Ross Lightfoot (born 11 August 1936) is a former Australian politician. He was a Liberal member of the Australian Senate from 1997 to 2008, representing the state of Western Australia.
Lightfoot was born in Port Lincoln, South Australia and was educated at first the Adelaide, and then Kalgoorlie School of Mines. In the 1950s, he spent time as a weekend soldier, as a result of national service. Lightfoot joined the Liberal Party of Australia soon afterwards. He worked as a mounted policeman between 1959 and 1962. In 1972, Lightfoot became a pastoralist and grazier, a line of employment he subsequently occupied for twenty years.
His political career began in 1986, when Lightfoot won the seat of Murchison-Eyre in Western Australia's Legislative Assembly. It was here that he first caused controversy, when he wrote to United States Secretary of State George Shultz, urging the US Government to dump subsidised wheat in Australia's international wheat markets in Russia and China. He later retracted the statement.
He retired from the Legislative Assembly in 1989, but made a comeback in 1993, representing the North Metropolitan Region in the Legislative Council. While in state parliament, he also advocated for the secession of Western Australia from the rest of the country.
In 1997, Western Australian Senator John Panizza died, and Lightfoot, having been selected to fill the vacancy, moved to federal politics. He soon became a controversial figure within the party, and was rebuked by Prime Minister John Howard for telling the Senate that Aborigines in their native state were the lowest colour on the civilisation spectrum.
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