Charles Halton (public servant)

Charles Christopher Halton CBE (4 March 1932 – 16 October 2013) was a senior Australian public servant.

Charles Halton CBE
Director-General of the Department of Civil Aviation
In office 30 September 1973 – 30 November 1973
Secretary of the Department of Transport
In office 5 November 1973 – 7 May 1982
Secretary of the Department of Defence Support
In office 7 May 1982 – 13 December 1984
Secretary of the Department of Communications
In office 1 February 1986 – 24 July 1987
Personal details
Born	Charles Christopher Halton (1932-03-04)4 March 1932 Yorkshire, Northern England
Died	16 October 2013(2013-10-16) (aged 81)
Nationality	Australian
Spouse(s)	Shirley
Children	Jane, David and Philip
Occupation	Public servant

Life and career

Charles Halton was born on 4 March 1932 in Yorkshire, Northern England.[1]

As an engineer in England in the 1950s and 60s, Halton was associated with the development of the Concorde and the guidance system of the Bristol Bloodhound.[1][2]

Gough Whitlam appointed Halton Secretary of the Department of Transport in 1973, and Halton and his family moved to Canberra from Canada where they had lived since 1969.[3][4] The Halton family stayed in Canberra, with Charles Halton appointed to further senior positions in the Australian Public Service, as Secretary of the Department of Defence Support (198284), as Chairman leading a taskforce on Youth Allowance Administration (1984–85) and as Secretary of the Department of Communications (1986–87).[2]

Awards

Charles Halton was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1983.[2]

References

1. Waterford, Jack (29 October 2013). "Mathematician figured it all out as Australia's first federal transport tsar". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014.
2. Hawke, Robert (23 July 1985). "Unknown" (Press release). Archived from the original on 11 January 2014.
3. Davidson, Gay (26 September 1973). "Canadian to head amalgam of DCA, Transport". The Canberra Times. ACT. p. 1.
4. Malone, Paul (November 2006), "Chapter 19: Taking the 'Hospital Pass' – Jane Halton, Department of Health and Ageing", Australian Department Heads Under Howard: Career Paths and Practice (Collected articles from the Canberra Times), ANU E Press and ANZSOG, ISBN 1 920942 83 1, archived from the original on 11 January 2014

References and further reading

• CA 29: Department of Civil Aviation, Central Office, National Archives of Australia, retrieved 12 January 2014
• CA 1492: Department of Transport [III], Head Office/ (from 1975) Central Office, Canberra and Melbourne, National Archives of Australia, retrieved 12 January 2014
• CA 3067: Department of Communications [I], Central Office, Canberra, National Archives of Australia, retrieved 12 January 2014
• CA 3254: Department of Defence Support, National Archives of Australia, retrieved 12 January 2014

Government offices
Preceded by Bob Lansdown	Secretary of the Department of Communications 1986 – 1987	Succeeded by Peter Wilenski as Secretary of the Department of Transport and Communications
New title Department established	Secretary of the Department of Defence Support 1982 – 1984	Department abolished
Preceded by Malcolm Macgregor Summers	Secretary of the Department of Transport 1973 – 1982	Succeeded by Rae Taylor as Secretary of the Department of Transport and Construction
		Succeeded by Collin Freeland as Secretary of the Department of Aviation
Preceded by Don Anderson	Director-General of the Department of Civil Aviation 1973	Succeeded by Himself as Secretary of the Department of Transport