1. John Kerin held a number of senior ministerial roles in both the Hawke and Keating governments, including six months as Treasurer of Australia and eight years as Minister for Primary Industries and Energy, holding the latter role for the longest period in Australian history.
John Kerin worked as a poultry farmer before later completing a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New England, Armidale, in 1967, and then a Bachelor of Economics from the Australian National University in 1977.
In between studying for his two degrees, John Kerin spent time working at the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
John Kerin remained on the backbench throughout the Whitlam government, but lost his seat in Labor's landslide defeat at the 1975 election, returning to work at the ABARE.
John Kerin was later selected as Labor's candidate for the safe seat of Werriwa at the 1978 by-election caused by the retirement of former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam, who had held the seat since 1952.
John Kerin's background made Kerin a good fit for the role, and he remained in the position for almost the entirety of Hawke's time as Prime Minister, making him by far the longest-serving minister in this portfolio in Australian history.
John Kerin was dropped from the ministry after the 1993 election and at the end of that year Kerin announced his retirement from Parliament, stating that he wished to move on to other things.
John Kerin remained active across a range of public policy issues in Australia.
John Kerin was appointed the 2008 Distinguished Life Member of the Australian Agriculture and Resource Economics Society.
In October 2010 John Kerin was appointed Chair of the Crawford Fund, a position he held until early 2017.
John Kerin said that the administrative arm of the party had become increasingly involved in policy formulation, leaving little room for meaningful participation by rank and file party members.
In 2017, John Kerin released an extensive memoir of his experiences as Primary Industries and Energy Minister between 1983 and 1991.
On 26 January 2001 John Kerin was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia.
On 1 January 2001 John Kerin was awarded the Centenary Medal.