Colonel William A. Phillips

John Dorman Elliott (3 October 1941 – 23 September 2021) was an Australian businessman and state and federal president of the Liberal Party. He had also been president of the Carlton Football Club.^[1] He frequently provoked controversy due to his political affiliations, his brushes with the law, and his abrasive personal style.

Early life and education

Elliott was born in Melbourne on 3 October 1941. He was the son of Frank Elliott and his wife, Anita.^[2] He completed his secondary schooling at Carey Baptist Grammar School in Kew. He then attended the University of Melbourne and graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) degree and later completed a Master of Business Administration degree at the Melbourne Business School.^[3]

Career

Elliott joined BHP for two years. He then left to do an MBA, before joining global consulting firm McKinsey & Company in 1966^[2] and worked in both Australia and the United States for six years. In 1972, he acquired control of IXL, a food manufacturer listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. From there, he and his team built the company up through a string of acquisitions throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, including Australian corporate icons Elders Limited (an agricultural services concern) and Carlton & United Breweries (now part of the Foster's Group). The acquisition of Courage Breweries in the United Kingdom, followed by Carling O'Keefe Breweries in Canada- and UK-based Grand Metropolitan Breweries, made the Foster's Group the fourth-largest brewer in the world. During this time, he was also a high-profile president of the Carlton Football Club (1983–2002)^[4] and federal president of the Liberal Party.^[2] He was an effective advocate for the club on a range of issues. During his presidency, the club won two VFL (now AFL) premierships.^[5][6]

In 1985, Elliott's company, by then called Elders IXL, played an important role as a white knight in fending off Robert Holmes à Court's attempted takeover of diversified mining company BHP. Elders bought a large share in BHP, which blocked Holmes à Court's attempt to take control.^[7] As a result, Elliott joined the BHP board. He then attempted a management buyout of Elders, but this was unsuccessful and left his A$80 million fortune considerably reduced.^{[citation needed]} Subsequently, the National Crime Authority of Australia (NCA) investigated a foreign exchange transaction undertaken by Elders.^[7] Elliott was cleared of criminal charges. He accused the NCA of a vendetta inspired by the then-Labor government, motivated by his position as Liberal Party president. He later launched civil action for damages, which was ultimately unsuccessful.^{[citation needed]}

He was also a director of a number of public companies, including BHP, National Mutual, Bridge Oil and North Limited. Elliott was a member of the Liberal Party for over thirty years. He held multiple positions in the party, including president (1987–1990), party treasurer and vice president of the Victorian division.^[8][9] He was chairman of the 500 Club, which he formed in the 1980s, and was the biggest donor to the Liberal Party in Victoria.^{[citation needed]}

His various political involvements led to him being caricatured in Rubbery Figures, a satirical rubber puppet series that screened in Australia^[10] during the late 1980s. He was often depicted holding an Elders IXL beer can while belching or exclaiming "pig's arse".^[11]

In 1990, Elliott was a vocal supporter of the Multifunction Polis (MFP), a controversial concept to build in Australia a new "technology city" with a population of 100,000. At the time, the leader of the Liberal Party, Andrew Peacock, was vehemently opposed to the plan, claiming the Multifunction Polis would become an "Asian enclave".^[12][13]

Sports administration career

Carlton Football Club President

Elliott became the president of the Carlton Football Club in 1983, when he replaced Ian Rice.^[14] During Elliott's tenure as president of the Club, he oversaw a significant period of on and off field success for the club. Elliott also oversaw Carlton's two premiership victories in 1987 and 1995.^[15][16]

After the 2002 AFL season, Elliott was voted out of office as president of the Carlton Football Club, a position he had held for two decades.^[8] The club, after having finished last for the first time since 1894, was later found to have committed serious long-term breaches of the Australian Football League salary cap regulations, which resulted in a fine of $930,000, forfeited draft picks including the prized number one draft pick, and an ongoing prolonged period of poor results on the field.^[17][18] Further, in a move some thought to be ungracious given his long service to the club, his name was also removed from all signage at Carlton's home ground at Princes Park.^[19][20][21] Elliott was then replaced by Ian Collins as President of Carlton Football Club.^[22]

Later life

In January 2005, he declared himself bankrupt, to be discharged in July 2008.^[10] When he died in 2021 his net worth was less than $12,000.^[23]

On television, Elliott was a regular guest panelist on the ABC television program Q&A. In 2010, he appeared on the televised Dick Smith population debate,^[24] where his vision to harness Northern Australia's excess rainfall via pipeline to the Murray–Darling headwaters in Queensland received wide support.^{[citation needed]} In 2012, he featured on the ABC's Agony Uncles program.^[25] On radio, he regularly appeared on a program presented by his son Tom on talkback station 3AW.^[19]

Elliott was the inaugural chairman of the Committee for Melbourne and a director of the foundation of the University of Melbourne Business School. In September 2015, he was made an honorary fellow of the school.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life

He was divorced from the late Lorraine Elliott, a former Victorian state parliamentarian for the Liberal Party. They had three children.^[26] The eldest is Tom Elliott (born 1967), an investment banker and radio and television presenter.^[19] His daughter Caroline Elliott was vice-president of the Liberal Party in Victoria.^[8] He also had two children from his second marriage, which also ended in divorce. His second wife, Amanda Elliott, later became the first female chairperson in the Victorian Racing Club's 153-year history.^[27]

Known for his "eccentric, crass and often controversial style of business and politics", Elliott was also a long-term cigarette smoker and claimed to have considered running for the 2016 Australian Senate on a platform of "Smokers' Rights".^[8]

Elliott was admitted to the Epworth Hospital in Richmond, Victoria after suffering a fall in September 2021. He died on 23 September 2021, ten days before his 80th birthday.^[28][29][30]

References

External links

• John Elliott Full Biography at ICMI.com.au
• The John Elliott Report