Don Wing

Donald George Wing was born in Ulverstone, Tasmania, on 27 April 1938. He grew up with ties to a family farm on the North-West Coast. He earned a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Tasmania and practised as a barrister before and alongside his early civic roles. From the 1960s he was active in community organisations in Launceston, including Meals on Wheels and the Lions Club, and later supported tram restoration and local street beautification.

Wing served as an alderman of Launceston City Council and as mayor of Launceston from 1983 to 1987. He was first elected to the Tasmanian Legislative Council for Launceston on 22 May 1982, succeeding Ray Shipp, and held the seat through boundary and name changes (including a period when the division was called Paterson) until 7 May 2011, when Rosemary Armitage succeeded him.

Although he had been president of the Tasmanian branch of the Liberal Party, he sat as an independent in the Legislative Council, consistent with the Liberal Party's practice of backing conservative independents rather than endorsing party candidates for that chamber. He said he preferred independence to the competitive culture of lower-house party politics. He was President of the Legislative Council from 2002 to 2008, succeeding Ray Bailey and preceding Sue Smith. He relinquished the presidency before his final term ended so he could debate more freely, and announced he would not contest the 2011 election.

His public work extended to many northern Tasmanian organisations. In the Queen's Birthday Honours he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for service to the community.

Wing kept close links to northern Tasmania and to his family's North-West Coast farming background. He often described community service, rather than party advancement, as the centre of his public life. Detailed information about his immediate family was not widely published in obituaries available at the time of writing.

Wing died in Launceston, Tasmania, on 1 October 2026, aged 88. The death was announced publicly on 2 October 2026. Premier Jeremy Rockliff, speaking for the Tasmanian Government, described him as a dedicated community leader and a true gentleman, and offered sympathy to his family, friends and former colleagues. Independent MLC Rosemary Armitage, who succeeded him in Launceston, said his commitment to public service and care for the community left a lasting mark on the region.

Wing is remembered as a long-serving independent voice for Launceston and northern Tasmania, as mayor and as President of the Legislative Council, and as a volunteer who backed local cultural and service organisations for decades. Colleagues praised his independence, courtesy and steady leadership. His parliamentary career and Order of Australia honour stand as markers of that service.