Grant Tambling

Grant "Tambo"  Ernest John Tambling (20 June 1943— ) is an Australian politician. Born in Wondai, near Kingaroy, Queensland - his schoolteacher parents had been evacuated from Darwin due to WWII, and returned north in 1946 - Tambling was educated at Darwin and Adelaide Boys' High Schools, then worked in insurance sales for AMP in Sydney and Darwin.

After joining the Northern Territory Country Liberal Party, Tambling was elected to the first NT Legislative Assembly in 1974, representing Fannie Bay. He held a number of executive positions before the Territory was granted self-governance. In 1980 he resigned from Territorian politics and was elected to the House of Representatives. He was Senator for the Northern Territory for the next 14 years, and was a Shadow Minister from 1990 to 1996 with responsibilities in portfolios covering Community and Disability Services, Housing, Territories and Northern Development (Parliament NT, 2002).

Tambling opposed the Euthanasia Laws Act 1997. He said the bill was ‘undemocratic and discriminatory’ and that it deprived ‘Territorians, whether they live in the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory or Norfolk Island, the rights that every other Australian enjoys … in the parliamentary process’. He, along with Bob Collins, submitted to Parliament on behalf of the Northern Territory Government that the Euthanasia Laws Act would ‘undermine the principles of self government and create impediments to the future constitutional development of the Northern Territory’ (Davey, 2017).

After leaving politics in 2001, Tambling worked for two years in private consultancy before taking up a position as Administrator of Norfolk Island from November 2003 to September 2007. He was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2011.

Davey, P. (2017). Tambling, Grant Earnest John. In The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate. https://biography.senate.gov.au/tambling-grant-ernest-john/

Parliament NT. (March 7, 2002). Biography Hon. Grant Tambling JP. FAIM [tabled paper]. https://territorystories.nt.gov.au/10070/408306/0/0

Tambling, G. [n.d]. The Hon Grant Tambling AM - Veteran Politician (retired) [LinkedIn page]. LinkedIn. Retrieved August 20, 2022, from www.linkedin.com/in/the-hon-grant-tambling-am-ab226642/?originalSubdomain=au