Eric Harrison | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party | |
| In office 21 February 1945 – 26 September 1956 | |
| Leader | Robert Menzies |
| Preceded by | Party established |
| Succeeded by | Harold Holt |
| Leader of the House | |
| In office 11 May 1951 – 26 September 1956 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Harold Holt |
| Deputy Leader of the United Australia Party | |
| In office 14 April 1944 – 21 February 1945 | |
| Leader | Robert Menzies |
| Preceded by | Billy Hughes |
| Succeeded by | party abolished |
| High Commissioner to the United Kingdom | |
| In office 23 April 1950 – 30 March 1951 | |
| Preceded by | Jack Beasley |
| Succeeded by | Thomas White |
| In office 25 October 1956 – 25 October 1964 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas White |
| Succeeded by | Alick Downer |
| Member of the Australian Parliament for Wentworth | |
| In office 19 December 1931 – 17 October 1956 | |
| Preceded by | Walter Marks |
| Succeeded by | Les Bury |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 September 1892 Surry Hills, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 26 September 1974 (aged 82) Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia |
| Political party | UAP (1931–45) Liberal (from 1945) |
| Spouses | Mary McCall (m. 1920–1941)Linda Yardley (m. 1944) |
| Children | 3, including Shirley Walters |
Sir Eric John Harrison, KCMG, KCVO (7 September 1892 – 26 September 1974) was an Australian politician and diplomat. He was the inaugural deputy leader of the Liberal Party (1945–1956), and a government minister under four prime ministers. He was later High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1956 to 1964.
Harrison was born in Sydney and left school at the age of 13. He served with the Australian Army during World War I, and after the war's end became the manager of a textile factory. Harrison was elected to the House of Representatives in 1931, representing the United Australia Party (UAP). He served briefly as Minister for Interior in 1934, under Joseph Lyons, and returned to the ministry in 1938. Over the next three years he held positions in the governments of Lyons, Earle Page, Robert Menzies, and Arthur Fadden.
In 1944, Harrison replaced Billy Hughes as deputy leader of the UAP. When the new Liberal Party was formed the following year, he was elected to the same position. In Menzies' second government, Harrison held various defence-related portfolios. He was also made the inaugural Leader of the House in 1951. Harrison left politics in 1956 to become High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. He retired in 1964, and suffered from Parkinson's disease in later years. His daughter, Shirley Walters, followed him into politics, becoming the first woman to represent Tasmania in the Senate.