Former NSW MP dies suddenly in Thailand

13 hours ago 5

Former NSW MP Jeremy Kinross has died suddenly in Thailand in what authorities believe was a choking accident outside a supermarket.

Kinross, 65, was taken to hospital on the holiday island of Phuket on Saturday night but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Jeremy Kinross (left) and Stephen O’Doherty the day after their narrow victories in byelections in 1992.

Police in Phuket have not issued an official statement but said doctors believed he choked on corn kernels. This masthead could not verify that information with the doctors involved.

A passerby found Kinross alone and unconscious at the front of a supermarket near his accommodation in Cape Panwa, about 10 kilometres south of Phuket City, police said.

It was unclear how long he had been in Thailand.

Kinross served 6½ years as the Liberal Party member for Gordon in the NSW Legislative Assembly, beginning in 1992. When the electorate was abolished by redistributions in 1999, he chose not to take on Liberal MPs Barry O’Farrell or Andrew Humpherson in neighbouring electorates.

He opted for the upper house instead, but withdrew – with choice words for factional apparatchiks – when it became evident he was not going to get one of the five winnable spots on the ticket.

NSW Liberal leader Mark Speakman, who had just heard the tragic news, said on Wednesday he felt “very sorry for his passing”.

“He was a very larger-than-life character, someone who was a bon vivant at the dining table, someone who was amusing company, and I think those who know him will miss him very much,” Speakman said.

Kinross getting ready for pre-selection night in November 1988.

Kinross’ biography on an old personal website detailed how he began his professional career as a chartered accountant in the late 1970s before being admitted as a barrister in 1985. After politics, he went into consultancy, specialising in strategic relationships and change.

He described his personal style as “forthright, outgoing and dynamic (whilst nevertheless preserving tact/diplomacy) with perceived recognition of credibility, integrity, overall professionalism and good judgement.”

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