Neil Smith Currie CBE (1926 - 1999)

Born 20 Aug 1926 in Mackay, Queensland, Australia

Husband of Geraldine Evelyn (Dexter) Currie — married Apr 1951 in Tokyo, Japan

Died 30 Jul 1999 at age 72 in Batemans Bay, New South Wales, Australia

Biography

Neil Currie CBE is Notable.

Neil Currie CBE was born in Queensland, Australia

Sir Neil Smith Currie CBE was a senior Australian public servant, diplomat and policymaker with Australia's Department of External Affairs. He was Australian Ambassador to Japan at a time when Japan was Australia's largest trading partner.

Neil Smith Currie was born on 20th August 1926 at Mackay, Queensland, Australia. He was a son of Sir George Alexander Currie. He attended the University of Western Australia.^[1]

He married Geraldine Dexter in 1951 at Tokyo, Japan. Their wedding reception was held in the Australian embassy grounds amidst a large and beautiful Japanese garden.^[1]

He held several positions as a departmental head, namely secretary of the Department of Supply between 1971 and 1974, secretary of the Department of Manufacturing Industry between 1974 and 1975, and secretary of the Department of Industry and Commerce. He was appointed the Australian Ambassador to Japan from 1982 to 1986.^[1]

In 1978 he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and created knight bachelor in 1982. Having seen business operating from the government side, after returning from Japan in 1986, he joined the board of Westpac Banking Corporation in 1987, becoming deputy chairman 1991-92. He also served terms as chairman of Howard Smith Ltd, Coal and Allied Industries Ltd, and the Australian Dairy Corporation.

Geraldine and Neil retired to the South Coast of New South Wales. He passed away, aged 72 years, on 30th July 1999 at Batemans Bay, New South Wales.^[1]

In 2000, the Australia Japan Foundation established the Sir Neil Currie Australian Studies Award Program to commemorate Currie's life and his contribution to Australian-Japanese relations. Neil Currie Street in the Canberra suburb of Casey in 2009 was named in his honour.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Wikipedia profile: Neil Currie; accessed 19 Oct 2019

See also

• Farquharson, John. Currie, Sir Neil Smith (1926–1999), Obituaries Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University; accessed 19 Oct 2019.