Council has provided the recommendation in support of changing the name of the road as part of the consultation process being undertaken by the Queensland Government.

Mayor Jenny Whitney said the move would be an appropriate recognition of a great local identity
and also a celebration of the region’s history.

“Sir Peter Delamothe was a prominent Bowen doctor and politician in the town during the 1940-
1970s,” Mayor Whitney said.

“He was elected Mayor of Bowen in 1946 and served as a doctor simultaneously. He was then
elected to the State Government seat of Bowen in 1960 which he held until 1971.

“Sir Peter Delamothe was appointed to several highly regarded political positions including Deputy Leader of the Queensland Liberal Party and was appointed Minister for Justice and Attorney General in June 1967.

“During his ministerial tenure he oversaw the establishment of the Law Reform Commission and
Legal Aid. He also introduced legislation to alleviate prison overcrowding, and amended liquor
licencing legislation to permit women in public bars.

“On a local level, in his first term as a backbencher and Member for Bowen he secured funding to build the Bowen State High School and a new hospital in Bowen.

“He also helped redeploy retrenched workers after the closure of a government mine in Collinsville in 1961.

“Sir Peter Delamothe was also heavily involved in community groups throughout the region
including roles as President of the Bowen Progress Association and the Bowen Rotary Club.

“The renaming of the Bowen Developmental Road to the Peter Delamothe Road would be an
appropriate acknowledgement of a great local doctor and politician who has contributed so much
to the Bowen and Collinsville communities and the Council wholeheartedly supports the move,”
she said.

Ends

For media enquiries, contact:
Kate Lennox, Communications Manager
Phone: 07 4945 0614, 0427 458 369 or Email: kate.lennox@whitsundayrc.qld.gov.au