Frederick Warren Pitt (born 14 March 1948) is an Australian politician. He was a Labor member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 1989 to 1995 and 1998 to 2009.
Born in Cairns, Pitt was a school teacher before entering politics. He underwent national service and was an army reservist from 1969 to 1975 and was active in the local community, being recognised as Mulgrave Shire Citizen of the Year in 1983.
Pitt was elected to state parliament as the member for Mulgrave at the 1989 state election defeating sitting National Party MP Max Menzel. Pitt was himself defeated two terms later at the 1995 state election by the Naomi Wilson of the National Party. Wilson in turn was defeated at the 1998 state election by Charles Rappolt of One Nation. When Rappolt resigned in late 1998, Pitt won the resulting by-election, providing Labor Premier Peter Beattie with a majority in his own right (previously Beattie's government had to rely on the support of independent MP Peter Wellington).
Fortuitously, Pitt served all his time in parliament as a member of the majority party. Consequently, he served in a number of government roles. In the government of Wayne Goss, Pitt served as Deputy Government Whip from March to October 1992, Government Whip from October 1992 to February 1995, and Minister for Business, Industry and Regional Development from February to July 1995.
In the government of Peter Beattie, Pitt served as Chair of the Scrutiny of Legislation Committee from May 2001 to January 2004 until he became Minister for Communities and Disability Services in February 2004. He retained the portfolio for years to come, and to his responsibilities were added: Seniors in April 2004, Youth in September 2006, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships in January 2007. That gave Pitt the unusually long title of "Minister for Communities, Disability Services, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Seniors and Youth", which he retained until Beattie's retirement in September 2007.
In the government of Anna Bligh, Pitt served as Minister for Main Roads and Local Government from September 2007 until his retirement in February 2009.
Upon his retirement, Pitt's son Curtis was preselected as the Labor candidate in the district of Mulgrave. Curtis Pitt successfully retained the seat for the Labor Party at the 2009 state election
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Judy Spence |
Minister for Disability Services and Seniors 2004 – 2007 |
Succeeded by Lindy Nelson-Carr |
| New title | Minister for Communities 2004 – 2007 |
|
| Preceded by Jim Elder |
Minister for Business, Industry and Regional Development 1995 |
Succeeded by Ken Hayward |
| Parliament of Queensland | ||
| Preceded by Max Menzel |
Member for Mulgrave 1989 – 1998 |
Succeeded by Charles Rappolt |
| Preceded by Charles Rappolt |
Member for Mulgrave 2001 – 2009 |
Succeeded by Curtis Pitt |
Famous quotes containing the words warren and/or pitt:
“It is difficult to believe that even idiots ever succumbed to such transparent contradictions, to such gaudy processions of mere counter-words, to so vast and obvious a nonsensicality ... sentence after sentence that has no apparent meaning at all—stuff quite as bad as the worst bosh of Warren Gamaliel Harding.”
—H.L. (Henry Lewis)
“The little I know of it has not served to raise my opinion of what is vulgarly called the “Monied Interest;” I mean, that blood-sucker, that muckworm, that calls itself “the friend of government.””
—William, Earl Of Pitt (1708–1778)