Sir Oliver Howard Beale KBE (10 December 1898 – 17 October 1983) was an Australian politician and diplomat.

He held ministerial office in the Menzies Government as Minister for Information (1949–1950), Transport (1949–1950), Supply (1950–1958), and Defence Production (1956–1958).

[1] He defeated 22 other candidates in the Liberal preselection ballot for the Division of Parramatta in February 1946, stating that the "preservation of individual freedom was the most important single objective of his party".

[5] He recommended that Australia "produce weapons-grade enriched plutonium and work towards the production of their own atomic bomb".

Anticipating an expansion in nuclear power generation and other uses of atomic energy, he stated that he believed that it was "necessary that we should expand our knowledge of the problems of radiation as fully and as quickly as possible".

[9] Beale resigned from the House of Representatives on 10 February 1958 to take up an appointment as Australian Ambassador to the United States.

He remained in the role until 1964 and dealt with a number of issues, including the status of the ANZUS Treaty with regard to the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation, the Indonesian annexation of Dutch New Guinea, and the American intervention in South Vietnam.

He held a number of board roles, including as chairman of the Clausen Trading & Investment Co. Pty Ltd and vice-president of the Occidental Minerals Corporation of Australia.