164-561: Matthew Charlton (15 March 1866 – 8 December 1948) was an Australian politician who served as leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Leader of the Opposition from 1922 to 1928. He led the party to defeat at the 1922 and 1925 federal elections . Charlton was born in Linton, Victoria , but as a child moved to Lambton, New South Wales . He left school at a young age to work in
328-634: A referendum in 1913 which asked for greater federal powers over trade and commerce, corporations, industrial matters, trusts, monopolies, and railway disputes. All six questions were defeated, with around 51 per cent voting 'No'. At the 1913 election , the Commonwealth Liberal Party , led by Joseph Cook , defeated the Labor Party by a single seat. Labor retained control of the Australian Senate despite defeat. In 1914, Cook, frustrated by
492-454: A two-party system as very much the norm. Although Watson further strengthened Labour's position in 1906, he stepped down from the leadership the following year, to be succeeded by Andrew Fisher who formed a minority government lasting seven months from late 1908 to mid 1909. At the 1910 federal election , Fisher led Labor to victory, forming Australia's first elected federal majority government , Australia's first elected Senate majority,
656-586: A 50% decrease in military spending and declared support for a federation. He was also active in the Amalgamated Miners Union, becoming President of the Gympie branch by 1891. Another policy area that captured his attention during this term, was the employment of workers from the Pacific Islands in sugar plantations, a practice that Fisher and Labour both strongly opposed. He lost his seat in 1896 following
820-762: A War Pensions Act was passed to provide for the grant of Pensions upon the death or incapacity of Members of the Defence Force of the Commonwealth and Members of the Imperial Reserve Forces residents in Australia whose death or incapacity resulted from their employment in connection with warlike operations. In October 1915, journalist Keith Murdoch reported on the situation in Gallipoli at Fisher's request, and advised him, "Your fears have been justified". He described
984-549: A campaign in which he was charged by his opponent Jacob Stumm with being a dangerous revolutionary and an anti-Catholic, accusations that were propagated by the newspaper Gympie Times . The 1896 establishment of the Gympie Truth , a newspaper that he was to partly own, was part of his response. Intended as a medium to broadcast Labour's message, the newspaper played a vital role in Fisher's return to parliament in 1899. This time, he
1148-482: A critical role in ensuring fairness by: ensuring equal opportunity; removing unjustifiable discrimination; and achieving a more equitable distribution of wealth, income and status." Further sections of the platform stress Labor's support for equality and human rights, labour rights and democracy. In practice, the platform provides only general policy guidelines to Labor's federal, state and territory parliamentary leaderships. The policy Labor takes into an election campaign
1312-474: A different name, due to their different origins. Although the ALP officially adopted the spelling without a u , it took decades for the official spelling to achieve widespread acceptance. According to McMullin, "the way the spelling of 'Labor Party' was consolidated had more to do with the chap who ended up being in charge of printing the federal conference report than any other reason". Some sources have attributed
1476-622: A few years earlier, becoming a police constable in Liverpool . Fisher and his younger brother James arrived in Brisbane , Queensland , on 17 August 1885, after a two-month steamship journey from London. He first saw Australia during a stopover at Thursday Island , where whites were a minority and there was a large Japanese population. His biographer David Day has speculated that this initial first impression may have contributed to his later opposition to non-white immigration. Fisher's path to Australia
1640-534: A four-month period in 1904. Fisher established and demonstrated his ministerial capabilities as Minister for Trade and Customs in the Watson Ministry . The fourth Labour member in the ministry after Watson, Hughes, and Lee Batchelor , Fisher was promoted to Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in 1905. George Reid adopted a strategy of trying to reorient the party system along Labour vs non-Labour lines – prior to
1804-432: A great objective – the light on the hill – which we aim to reach by working for the betterment of mankind. ... [Labor would] bring something better to the people, better standards of living, greater happiness to the mass of the people." To a large extent, Chifley saw centralisation of the economy as the means to achieve such ambitions. With an increasingly uncertain economic outlook, after his attempt to nationalise
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#17328441168071968-555: A landslide win at the 1943 federal election , Curtin died in office just prior to the end of the war and was succeeded by Ben Chifley . Chifley Labor won the 1946 federal election and oversaw Australia's initial transition to a peacetime economy. Labor was defeated at the 1949 federal election . At the conference of the New South Wales Labor Party in June 1949, Chifley sought to define the labour movement as follows: "We have
2132-536: A member of the House of Representatives. Since October 2013, a ballot of both the Caucus and by the Labor Party's rank-and-file members determined the party leader and the deputy leader. When the Labor Party is in government, the party leader is the prime minister and the deputy leader is the deputy prime minister . If a Labor prime minister resigns or dies in office, the deputy leader acts as prime minister and party leader until
2296-498: A mining theme in honour of Fisher's occupation before entering public life. Ramsay MacDonald , Britain's first Labour Prime Minister, unveiled a memorial to Fisher in Hampstead Cemetery in 1930. A memorial garden was also dedicated to Fisher at his birthplace in the late 1970s. In 1972 he was honoured on a postage stamp bearing his portrait issued by Australia Post . In 1992, his home in Gympie ( Andrew Fisher's Cottage )
2460-596: A motion at the Federal Conference that "the name of the party be the Australian Labour Party", which was carried by 22 votes to 2. A separate motion recommending state branches adopt the name was defeated. There was no uniformity of party names until 1918 when the Federal party resolved that state branches should adopt the name "Australian Labor Party", now spelt without a u . Each state branch had previously used
2624-400: A number of Scottish miners. He began as an ordinary miner and joined the local miners' union, but after successfully sinking a new shaft at Torbanlea , he was employed as a mine manager. Prospering financially for the first time in his life, he built a timber cottage at Howard and began investing in shares. Fisher moved to the larger gold-mining town of Gympie in 1888, initially working in
2788-610: A period, and then in October 1922 bought a home on South Hill Park near Hampstead Heath . He explored the possibility of standing for the British House of Commons , but eventually opted for a permanent retirement from politics. By the time he was 60, Fisher's family and friends had begun to notice a decline in his mental faculties, which was probably a form of early-onset dementia . It was judged unsafe for him to be out alone in public, and in 1925 his assets were placed in trust. By 1928, he
2952-421: A small pay rise rather than the 10 percent that had been asked for; many workers depleted their savings and some cooperatives came close to bankruptcy. Fisher had originally been opposed to the strike, and unsuccessfully attempted to negotiate a compromise with mine-owners. He lost his job, but soon found work at a different mine. Like many miners, Fisher was a supporter of Gladstone's Liberal Party , in particular
3116-503: A squatter, a doctor, and even a mine owner, indicating that the idea that only the socialist working class formed Labor is untrue. In addition, many members from the working class supported the liberal notion of free trade between the colonies; in the first grouping of state MPs, 17 of the 35 were free-traders. In the aftermath of World War I and the Russian Revolution of 1917, support for socialism grew in trade union ranks, and at
3280-564: A state or territory president (an honorary position usually held for a one-year term), and a state or territory secretary (a full-time professional position). However, ACT Labor directly elects its president. The larger branches also have full-time assistant secretaries and organisers. In the past the ratio of conference delegates coming from the branches and affiliated unions has varied from state to state, however under recent national reforms at least 50% of delegates at all state and territory conferences must be elected by branches. In some states,
3444-579: A strategy of trying to reorient the party system along Labour vs. non-Labour lines prior to the 1906 federal election and renamed his Free Trade Party to the Anti-Socialist Party. Reid envisaged a spectrum running from socialist to anti-socialist, with the Protectionist Party in the middle. This attempt struck a chord with politicians who were steeped in the Westminster tradition and regarded
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#17328441168073608-488: A successor is elected. The deputy prime minister also acts as prime minister when the prime minister is on leave or out of the country. Members of the Ministry are also chosen by Caucus, though the leader may allocate portfolios to the ministers. Anthony Albanese is the leader of the federal Labor party, serving since 30 May 2019. The deputy leader is Richard Marles , also serving since 30 May 2019. The Australian Labor Party
3772-403: A total of twenty-two out of thirty-six seats. This gave Labour control of both upper and lower houses and enabled Fisher to form his Second Fisher Ministry , Australia's first elected federal majority government , Australia's first elected Senate majority, and the world's first Labour Party majority government. The 113 acts passed in the three years of the second Fisher government exceeded even
3936-633: A young age to work in the nearby coal mines, becoming secretary of the local branch of the Ayrshire Miners' Union at the age of 17. Fisher emigrated to Australia in 1885, where he continued his involvement with trade unionism. He settled in Gympie , Queensland, and in 1893 was elected to the Queensland Legislative Assembly as a representative of the Labor Party. Fisher lost his seat in 1896 , but returned in 1899 and later that year briefly
4100-488: Is a federal party, consisting of eight branches from each state and territory. While the National Executive is responsible for national campaign strategy, each state and territory are an autonomous branch and are responsible for campaigning in their own jurisdictions for federal, state and local elections. State and territory branches consist of both individual members and affiliated trade unions , who between them decide
4264-460: Is contained in its National Platform, which is approved by delegates to Labor's National Conference, held every three years. According to the Labor Party's website, "The Platform is the result of a rigorous and constructive process of consultation, spanning the nation and including the cooperation and input of state and territory policy committees, local branches, unions, state and territory governments, and individual Party members. The Platform provides
4428-516: Is determined by the Cabinet (if the party is in office) or the Shadow Cabinet (if it is in opposition), in consultation with key interest groups within the party, and is contained in the parliamentary Leader's policy speech delivered during the election campaign. When Labor is in office, the policies it implements are determined by the Cabinet, subject to the platform. Generally, it is accepted that while
4592-599: Is fully committed to a market economy, it says that: "Labor believes in a strong role for national government – the one institution all Australians truly own and control through our right to vote." Labor "will not allow the benefits of change to be concentrated in fewer and fewer hands, or located only in privileged communities. The benefits must be shared by all Australians and all our regions." The platform and Labor "believe that all people are created equal in their entitlement to dignity and respect, and should have an equal chance to achieve their potential." For Labor, "government has
4756-497: Is no formal requirement for unions to be represented at the national conference). The national conference decides the party's platform, elects the national executive and appoints office-bearers such as the national secretary, who also serves as national campaign director during elections. The current national secretary is Paul Erickson . The most recent national conference was the 48th conference held in December 2018. The head office of
4920-544: Is now generally seen as one of the most significant figures in the early years of his party. At the end of the First World War, France awarded him the Légion d'honneur , but he declined it; he did not like decorations of any kind and adhered to this view throughout his life. In 1911 Fisher declined the offer of honorary degrees from the universities of Oxford , Cambridge , Glasgow and Birmingham , although he did accept
5084-479: Is the oldest continuous political party in Australian history , having been established on 8 May 1901 at Parliament House, Melbourne ; the meeting place of the first Federal Parliament . The ALP is descended from the labour parties founded in the various Australian colonies by the emerging labour movement . Colonial Labour parties contested seats from 1891, and began contesting federal seats following Federation at
Matthew Charlton - Misplaced Pages Continue
5248-472: The 1901 federal election . In 1904, the ALP briefly formed the world's first labour party government and the world's first democratic socialist or social democratic government at a national level. At the 1910 federal election , Labor was the first party in Australia to win a majority in either house of the Australian parliament. In every election since 1910 Labor has either served as the governing party or
5412-456: The 1903 federal election and continued to hold the balance of power. In April 1904, however, Watson and Alfred Deakin fell out over the issue of extending the scope of industrial relations laws concerning the Conciliation and Arbitration bill to cover state public servants, the fallout causing Deakin to resign. Free Trade leader George Reid declined to take office, which saw Watson become
5576-458: The 1906 election , he renamed his Free Trade Party to the Anti-Socialist Party. Reid envisaged a spectrum running from socialist to anti-socialist, with the Protectionist Party in the middle. This attempt struck a chord with politicians who were steeped in the Westminster tradition and regarded a two-party system as very much the norm. At the 1906 election, Deakin remained prime minister even though Labour gained considerably more seats than
5740-507: The 1910 state election . In 1899, Anderson Dawson formed a minority Labour government in Queensland , the first in the world, which lasted one week while the conservatives regrouped after a split. The colonial Labour parties and the trade unions were mixed in their support for the Federation of Australia . Some Labour representatives argued against the proposed constitution, claiming that
5904-518: The 1913 election the ALP narrowly lost its House of Representatives majority to the Liberal Party, with Fisher being replaced as prime minister by Joseph Cook . After just over a year in office, Cook was forced to call a new election , the first double dissolution . Labor won back its majority in the House, and Fisher returned for a third term as prime minister. During the election campaign he famously declared that Australia would defend Britain "to
6068-447: The 1922 federal election , Charlton offered alternative policies and looked to be favourite until he was hospitalised with illness halfway through the campaign. Labor still won the most seats as a single party, but Charlton was unable to defeat a strong government coalition . Labor remained in opposition. Because of great losses during World War I , Charlton opposed military training and commitments of Australian forces. In 1924 Charlton
6232-562: The 2014 Fisher by-election by nine votes from a 7.3 percent swing, the Labor government in South Australia went from minority to majority government. Labor won landslide victories in the 2016 Northern Territory election , the 2017 Western Australian election and the 2018 Victorian state election . However, Labor lost the 2018 South Australian state election after 16 years in government. In 2022, Labor returned to government after defeating
6396-407: The 2019 election , despite having been ahead in opinion polls for the preceding two years. The party lost in 2019 some of the seats which it had won back in 2016. After the 2019 defeat, Shorten resigned from the leadership, though he remained in parliament. Anthony Albanese was elected as leader unopposed and led the party to victory in the 2022 election , and became the new prime minister. Between
6560-529: The 2022 federal election , and with political branches active in all the Australian states and territories , they currently hold government in New South Wales , South Australia , Victoria , Western Australia , and the Australian Capital Territory . As of 2024, Queensland , Tasmania and Northern Territory are the only states or territories where Labor currently forms the opposition. It
6724-615: The Chifley government launched a major immigration program. The party's opposition to non-European immigration did not change until after the retirement of Arthur Calwell as leader in 1967. Subsequently, Labor has become an advocate of multiculturalism . The Curtin and Chifley governments governed Australia through the latter half of the Second World War and initial stages of transition to peace. Labor leader John Curtin became prime minister in October 1941 when two independents crossed
Matthew Charlton - Misplaced Pages Continue
6888-511: The City of Newcastle ). He died at Lambton, New South Wales , on 8 December 1948, the place where he had grown up and lived most of his life. Charlton was buried in the general section of Sandgate Cemetery . Martha Charlton died on 8 June 1955 and is interred with him. Their sons Matthew and Percy predeceased both of them. The Division of Charlton in the Hunter Region was named in his honour, and
7052-580: The Commonwealth Liberal Party , while the more liberal Protectionists joined Labour. With a majority of seats, the CLP led by Alfred Deakin ousted Labour from office, with Fisher failing to persuade the Governor-General Lord Dudley to dissolve Parliament. At the 1910 election , Labour gained sixteen additional seats to hold a total of forty-two of the seventy-five House of Representatives' seats, and all eighteen Senate seats up for election to hold
7216-720: The Dardanelles Expedition as being "a series of disastrous underestimations" and "one of the most terrible chapters in our history" concluding: What I want to say to you now very seriously is that the continuous and ghastly bungling over the Dardanelles enterprise was to be expected from such a general staff as the British Army possesses ... the conceit and self complacency of the red feather men are equalled only by their incapacity. Fisher passed this report on to Hughes and to Defence Minister George Pearce , ultimately leading to
7380-589: The Federation of Australia . However Fisher was a firm believer in federation, supporting the union of the Australian colonies and campaigned for the 'Yes' vote in Queensland's 1899 referendum. Fisher stood for the Division of Wide Bay at the inaugural 1901 Australian federal election and won the seat, which he held continuously for the rest of his political career. At the end of 1901, Fisher married Margaret Irvine , his previous landlady's daughter. Fisher supported
7544-825: The Freedom of the City from the cities of Glasgow , Edinburgh and Bristol . Another honour Fisher did accept was appointment to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom on his visit to the UK in 1911 for the Coronation of King George V and the Imperial Conference at the same time as New Zealand Prime Minister Sir Joseph Ward and Governor Lord Islington , granting him use of " The Right Honourable ". Public reaction to his appointment
7708-761: The Manifesto of the Queensland Labour Party was read out under the well known Tree of Knowledge at Barcaldine following the Great Shearers' Strike. The State Library of Queensland now holds the manifesto; in 2008 the historic document was added to UNESCO's Memory of the World Australian Register and, in 2009, the document was added to UNESCO's Memory of the World International Register. The Balmain , New South Wales branch of
7872-946: The River Murray Waters Act 1915 , the Freight Arrangements Act 1915 , the Sugar Purchase Act 1915 , the Estate Duty Assessment and the Estate Duty acts in 1914. Wartime legislation in 1914 and 1915 included the War Precautions acts (giving the Governor-General power to make regulations for national security), a Trading with the Enemy Act , War Census acts, a Crimes Act , a Belgium Grant Act , and an Enemy Contracts Annulment Act . In December 1914,
8036-565: The Socialist Left who tend to favour a more interventionist economic policy and more socially progressive ideals, and Labor Right , the now dominant faction that tends to be more economically liberal and focus to a lesser extent on social issues. The Whitlam Labor government, marking a break with Labor's socialist tradition, pursued social democratic policies rather than democratic socialist policies. In contrast to earlier Labor leaders, Whitlam also cut tariffs by 25 percent. Whitlam led
8200-509: The South Australian Legislative Council . The first successful South Australian House of Assembly candidate was John McPherson at the 1892 East Adelaide by-election . Richard Hooper however was elected as an Independent Labor candidate at the 1891 Wallaroo by-election , while he was the first labor member of the House of Assembly he was not a member of the newly formed ULP. At the 1893 South Australian elections ,
8364-740: The White Australia policy but also argued that any Kanaka who had converted to Christianity and married should be allowed to remain in Australia. Labour improved their position at the 1903 election , gaining enough seats to be on par with the other two, a legislative time colloquially known as the "three elevens". When the Deakin government resigned in 1904, George Reid of the Free Trade Party declined to take office, resulting in Labour taking power and Chris Watson becoming Labour's first prime minister for
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#17328441168078528-430: The White Australia policy , which banned all non-European migration to Australia. This policy was motivated by fears of economic competition from low-wage overseas workers which was shared by the vast majority of Australians and all major political parties. In practice the Labor party opposed all migration, on the grounds that immigrants competed with Australian workers and drove down wages, until after World War II , when
8692-405: The caucus ) on 8 May 1901 at Parliament House, Melbourne , the meeting place of the first federal Parliament. The caucus decided to support the incumbent Protectionist Party in minority government , while the Free Trade Party formed the opposition . It was some years before there was any significant structure or organisation at a national level. Labour under Chris Watson doubled its vote at
8856-399: The de facto acting leader of the party. On 25 January, the party unanimously chose him as leader of the Labor Party in the House of Representatives, thus allowing him to become Leader of the Opposition . The overall leadership of the party remained vacant until 16 May, when Charlton won a ballot against Albert Gardiner (the party's sole senator). Gardiner was then chosen as his deputy. At
9020-519: The minority government of Protectionist leader Alfred Deakin , but in November 1908 the ALP withdrew its support and Deakin resigned as prime minister. Fisher subsequently formed a minority government of his own. It lasted only a few months, as in June 1909 Deakin returned as prime minister at the head of a new anti-socialist Liberal Party . Fisher returned as prime minister after the 1910 federal election , which saw Labor attain majority government for
9184-651: The " Liberal-Labour " candidates who had the support of the unions. In 1884, he chaired a public meeting in Crosshouse in support of the Third Reform Bill . He subsequently wrote a letter to Gladstone and received a reply thanking him for his support. The following year, Fisher was involved in another miners' strike. He was not only sacked but also blacklisted . He was left with little future in Scotland and decided to emigrate; his older brother John had already left for England
9348-504: The 100th anniversary of his prime ministership. These were David Day 's Andrew Fisher: Prime Minister of Australia (2008) and Peter Bastian's Andrew Fisher: An Underestimated Man (2009), as well as a shorter volume by Edward Humphreys, Andrew Fisher: The Forgotten Man (2008). Obituarists of Fisher generally emphasised his modesty, integrity, and dedication to the labour movement. Writing for The Australian Worker , Henry Ernest Boote praised him as "loyal to his class, courageous in
9512-501: The 1910 elections Labour gained in the more Catholic areas and the representation of Catholics increased in Labour's parliamentary ranks. The federal parliament in 1901 was contested by each state Labour Party. In total, they won 15 of the 75 seats in the House of Representatives, collectively holding the balance of power, and the Labour members now met as the Federal Parliamentary Labour Party (informally known as
9676-455: The 1921 All-Australian Trades Union Congress a resolution was passed calling for "the socialisation of industry, production, distribution and exchange". The 1922 Labor Party National Conference adopted a similarly worded socialist objective which remained official policy for many years. The resolution was immediately qualified, however, by the Blackburn amendment, which said that "socialisation"
9840-421: The 1922 election but suffered a backwards slide in 1925. He resigned as leader in early 1928, succeeded by James Scullin , and left politics later that year. Little is recorded about Charlton's early life, as he grew up in a relatively unknown mining district. It is known, however, that Charlton was born on 15 March 1866 in Linton, Victoria , a small town near Ballarat that today has less than 500 residents. He
10004-461: The 1970s a different view of Fisher began to emerge, which coincided with more of his personal papers becoming available to researchers. His more recent biographers have credited Fisher with establishing Labor as a viable party of government and demonstrating that the party's platform did not have to be sacrificed for political expediency, and argued that he deserves the primary credit for the political and electoral accomplishments of his governments. He
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#173284411680710168-727: The 2007 federal election and the 2008 Western Australian state election , Labor was in government nationally and in all eight state and territory parliaments. This was the first time any single party or any coalition had achieved this since the ACT and the NT gained self-government. Labor narrowly lost government in Western Australia at the 2008 state election and Victoria at the 2010 state election . These losses were further compounded by landslide defeats in New South Wales in 2011 , Queensland in 2012 ,
10332-472: The ALP embarked on Third Way reforms similar to those later adopted by New Labour in the United Kingdom. The Labor party is often called the party of unions due to its close ties to the labour movement in Australia , with the majority of trade unions being affiliated with the Labor party. The party is equally controlled by unions and rank-and-file party members through affiliated unions being granted 50% of delegates at each state and national conference. At
10496-463: The ALP, the national secretariat, is managed by the national secretary. It plays a dual role of administration and a national campaign strategy. It acts as a permanent secretariat to the national executive by managing and assisting in all administrative affairs of the party. As the national secretary also serves as national campaign director during elections, it is also responsible for the national campaign strategy and organisation. The elected members of
10660-413: The Arbitration Court. A land tax, aimed at breaking up big estates and give wider scope for small-scale farming, was also introduced, while coverage of the Arbitration system was extended to agricultural workers, domestics, and federal public servants. In addition, the age at which women became entitled to the old-age pension was lowered from sixty-five to sixty. The introduction of the maternity allowance
10824-713: The British Empire. Fisher campaigned on Labor's record of support for an independent Australian defence force, and pledged that Australia would "stand beside the mother country to help and defend her to the last man and the last shilling". Labor won the election with another absolute majority in both houses and Fisher formed his third government on 17 September 1914. Fisher and his party were immediately underway in organising urgent defence measures for planning and implementing Australian war effort. Fisher visited New Zealand during this time which saw Billy Hughes serve as acting prime minister for two months. Fisher and Labor continued to implement promised peacetime legislation, including
10988-437: The Colliery Employees' Federation, becoming treasurer in 1901. While occupying that position, Charlton also prepared arbitration cases. Battling for an improvement in mine workers' conditions, he attended a trade union congress in November 1902, at which he moved for nationalisation of the coal mining industry, believing it would "eliminate cut-throat competition between owners that depressed miners' wages and conditions". That idea
11152-451: The Constitution to give the Commonwealth power over labour , wages and prices, to expanding the navy and providing compulsory military training for youths, to extending pensions , to a land tax , to the construction of a transcontinental railway , to the replacement of pound sterling with Australian currency and to tariffs to protect the sugar industry. In May 1909, the more conservative Protectionists and Freetraders merged to form
11316-403: The Federal Labor Party back to office at the 1972 and 1974 federal elections, and passed a large amount of legislation. The Whitlam government lost office following the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis and dismissal by Governor-General John Kerr after the Coalition blocked supply in the Senate after a series of political scandals, and was defeated at the 1975 federal election in
11480-412: The Federal Parliamentary Party. Fisher's seat was narrowly won by the Commonwealth Liberal Party on a 0.2% margin at the 1915 Wide Bay by-election . Fisher was Australia's second High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1 January 1916 until 1 January 1921. Fisher opposed conscription which made his dealings with Billy Hughes difficult. Hughes asked Fisher for support by cable three weeks before
11644-415: The House in 1913, however Charlton threatened to resign in 1915 over a dispute in government delays in granting the committee increased powers. Fisher mollified him and in 1916 Charlton proved his loyalty to the new Labor leader Billy Hughes by voting for Hughes' conscription referendum bill, even though he was vehemently opposed to conscription and fought hard against it. However, Charlton seemed to accept
11808-681: The Hughes government's most important bills were being debated (the Industrial Peace Bill and the Conciliation and Arbitration Bill). On 12 August, a special caucus meeting elected Charlton as acting leader in the House of Representatives; the party's deputy leader was Senator Albert Gardiner . Ryan died of pneumonia on 1 August 1921 after persistent ill health. On 29 September, the party elected Charlton as deputy leader in place of Ryan. Tudor died of heart disease on 10 January 1922, and Charlton became
11972-488: The Labor party in both houses of the national Parliament meet as the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party, also known as the Caucus (see also caucus ). Besides discussing parliamentary business and tactics, the Caucus also is involved in the election of the federal parliamentary leaders. Until 2013, the parliamentary leaders were elected by the Caucus from among its members. The leader has historically been
12136-492: The Labor-controlled Senate's rejection of his legislation, recommended to the new Governor-General Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson that both houses of the parliament be dissolved and elections called. This was Australia's first double dissolution election, and the only one until the 1951 election . The First World War had broken out in the middle of the 1914 election campaign, with both sides committing Australia to
12300-574: The Labour parties founded in the 1890s in the Australian colonies prior to federation. Labor tradition ascribes the founding of Queensland Labour to a meeting of striking pastoral workers under a ghost gum tree (the Tree of Knowledge ) in Barcaldine , Queensland in 1891. The 1891 shearers' strike is credited as being one of the factors for the formation of the Australian Labor Party. On 9 September 1892
12464-490: The Liberal Party in the 2022 South Australian state election . Despite favourable polling, the party also did not return to government in the 2019 New South Wales state election or the 2019 federal election. The latter has been considered a historic upset due to Labor's consistent and significant polling lead; the result has been likened to the Coalition's loss in the 1993 federal election, with 2019 retrospectively referred to in
12628-583: The No. 1 North Phoenix mine and then in the South Great Eastern Extended. He continued his involvement in unionism, helping form the Gympie branch of the Amalgamated Miners' Association (AMA) and serving terms as secretary and president. He obtained an engine-driver's certificate in 1891, and was elected president of the related craft union . This new job allowed him to work above-ground, operating
12792-659: The Northern Territory in 2012 , Federally in 2013 and Tasmania in 2014 . Labor secured a good result in the Australian Capital Territory in 2012 and, despite losing its majority, the party retained government in South Australia in 2014 . However, most of these reversals proved only temporary with Labor returning to government in Victoria in 2014 and in Queensland in 2015 after spending only one term in opposition in both states. Furthermore, after winning
12956-560: The Protectionists. When Watson resigned in 1907, Fisher succeeded him as Labour leader, although Hughes and William Spence also stood for the position. Fisher was considered to have a better understanding of economic matters, was better at handling caucus, had better relations with the party organisation and the unions, and was more in touch with party opinion. He did not share Hughes' passion for free trade or that of Watson and Hughes for defence (and later conscription). In political terms he
13120-505: The Senate as proposed was too powerful, similar to the anti-reformist colonial upper houses and the British House of Lords . They feared that federation would further entrench the power of the conservative forces. However, the first Labour leader and Prime Minister Chris Watson was a supporter of federation. Historian Celia Hamilton, examining New South Wales, argues for the central role of Irish Catholics. Before 1890, they opposed Henry Parkes,
13284-496: The ULP was immediately elevated to balance of power status with 10 of 54 lower house seats. The liberal government of Charles Kingston was formed with the support of the ULP, ousting the conservative government of John Downer . So successful, less than a decade later at the 1905 state election , Thomas Price formed the world's first stable Labor government. John Verran led Labor to form the state's first of many majority governments at
13448-470: The administrators of and in the administration of his Majesty's Imperial Government." Although admitted as a Privy Counsellor in absentia on 6 July 1911, it wasn't until 14 February 1916 when he was High Commissioner in London that he formally took his oath of office. The federal electorate of Fisher was named after him. A Canberra suburb, Fisher , was also created in his memory, with its streets reflecting
13612-459: The advocacy of their cause, and absolutely incorruptible". In the decades after his death, a general view emerged of Fisher as a competent rather than brilliant leader. He was praised for successfully managing the conflicting personalities within his own party, but as a leader of his country was often compared unfavourably with Deakin and Hughes. In general, his prime ministership was seen as a relatively inconsequential interlude. However, beginning in
13776-543: The affirmative result of the referendum and again proved his loyalty to Hughes by defending him when he became the target of caucus criticism. Charlton attempted to deflect attacks made on Hughes to a party conference, but Hughes left the party before a decision could be made. The new Labor leader Frank Tudor was a weak leader in health and political prowess. The successor-designate was T. J. Ryan , who had resigned as premier of Queensland in 1919 to federal politics. In August 1920, both Tudor and Ryan were taken ill while two of
13940-445: The age of 10 in 1879, the only one of the siblings not to live to adulthood. Fisher's mother was the daughter of a blacksmith and worked as a domestic servant. On his father's side, he was descended from a long line of Ayrshire coalminers. According to family tradition, his paternal grandfather was persecuted for his involvement in the fledgling union movement, and on one occasion was left homeless with five young children. Although he
14104-519: The age of 66. His cumulative total of just under five years as prime minister is the second-longest by an ALP leader, surpassed only by Bob Hawke . Fisher was born on 29 August 1862 in Crosshouse , a mining village 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Kilmarnock , Scotland. He was the second of eight children born to Jane (née Garven or Garvin) and Robert Fisher; he had one older brother, four younger brothers, and two younger sisters. His younger sister died at
14268-458: The average at the time. In later life, Fisher recalled attending four schools as a boy. The exact details are uncertain, but he is known to have finished his schooling in Crosshouse and to have attended a school in nearby Dreghorn for a period. The standard of public education in Scotland was relatively high at the time, and his schoolmaster in Crosshouse had received formal training in Edinburgh;
14432-482: The banks and a strike by the Communist-dominated Miners' Federation , Chifley lost office in 1949 to Robert Menzies ' Liberal-National Coalition. Labor commenced a 23-year period in opposition. The party was primarily led during this time by H. V. Evatt and Arthur Calwell . Various ideological beliefs were factionalised under reforms to the ALP under Gough Whitlam , resulting in what is now known as
14596-517: The coal mines, initially as a hurrier . Charlton became prominent in the trade union movement, and in 1903 was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the Labor Party. He switched to federal parliament in 1910 . Charlton was an anti-conscriptionist , and remained with Labor after the party split of 1916 . He was elected party leader in early 1922, following the death of Frank Tudor . He increased Labor's vote at
14760-471: The evacuation of the Australian troops in December 1915. The report was also used by the Dardanelles Commission on which Fisher served, while High Commissioner in London . Fisher resigned as prime minister and from Parliament on 27 October 1915 after being absent from parliament without explanation for three sitting days. Three days later, Labor Caucus unanimously elected Billy Hughes leader of
14924-567: The failed campaign, with around half in casualties. The report's conclusions were regarded as insipid with no figures (political or military) heavily censured. The report of the commission and information gathered by the inquiry remain a key source of documents on the campaign. Fisher's term as High Commissioner officially ended on 22 April 1921, although it concluded with three months' paid leave and he left for Australia on 29 January. He arrived back in Melbourne with no firm plans for his future, but
15088-708: The federal and state/colony level, the Australian Labor Party predates both the British Labour Party and the New Zealand Labour Party in party formation, government, and policy implementation. Internationally, the ALP is a member of the Progressive Alliance , a network of progressive , democratic socialist and social democratic parties, having previously been a member of the Socialist International . In standard Australian English ,
15252-411: The first Labour Prime Minister of Australia , and the world's first Labour head of government at a national level ( Anderson Dawson had led a short-lived Labour government in Queensland in December 1899), though his was a minority government that lasted only four months. He was aged only 37, and is still the youngest prime minister in Australia's history. George Reid of the Free Trade Party adopted
15416-507: The first referendum, but Fisher cabled back "Am unable to sign appeal. Position forbids." He subsequently refused to publicly comment on the issue. Hughes' 1916 referendum on conscription had a No vote of around 52 per cent, while the 1917 referendum had a No vote of around 54 per cent. Fisher visited Australian troops serving in Belgium and France in 1919, and later presented Pearce with an album of battlefield photos from 1917 and 1918, showing
15580-591: The first time in its history. His second government passed wide-ranging reforms – old-age and disability pensions, enshrined new workers' rights in legislation, established the Commonwealth Bank , oversaw the continued expansion of the Royal Australian Navy , began construction on the Trans-Australian Railway , and formally established what is now the Australian Capital Territory . However, at
15744-402: The first time since 2011. This victory marked the first time in 15 years that Labor were in government in all mainland states. In 2024, Labor lost in a landslide in the 2024 Northern Territory election . losing its first mainland state or territory since the 2018 South Australian election . Labor would also lose in the 2024 Queensland state election . The policy of the Australian Labor Party
15908-412: The floating of the dollar and privatisation of state enterprises such as Qantas airways and the Commonwealth Bank . The Labor Party is commonly described as a social democratic party, and its constitution stipulates that it is a democratic socialist party. The party was created by, and has always been influenced by, the trade unions, and in practice its policy at any given time has usually been
16072-597: The floor of Parliament. Labor, led by Curtin, then led Australia through the years of the Pacific War . In December 1941, Curtin announced that "Australia looks to America, free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the United Kingdom", thus helping to establish the Australian-American alliance (later formalised as ANZUS by the Menzies Government ). Remembered as a strong war time leader and for
16236-420: The future of the Deakin minority government. With the Deakin ministry in trouble, Deakin spoke to Fisher and Watson about a possible coalition, and following a report agreed to it providing Labour had a majority in cabinet, that there was immediate legislation for old-age pensions , that New Protection was carried and that at the following election the government would promise a progressive land tax . No coalition
16400-455: The horrendous conditions experienced by the troops. The Dardanelles Commission , including Fisher, interviewed witnesses in 1916 and 1917 and issued its final report in 1919. It concluded that the expedition was poorly planned and executed and that difficulties had been underestimated, problems which were exacerbated by supply shortages and by personality clashes and procrastination at high levels. Some 480,000 Allied troops had been dedicated to
16564-452: The largest landslide of Australian federal history. Whitlam remains the only Prime Minister to have his commission terminated in that manner. Whitlam also lost the 1977 federal election and subsequently resigned as leader. Bill Hayden succeeded Whitlam as leader. At the 1980 federal election , the party achieved a big swing, though the unevenness of the swing around the nation prevented an ALP victory. In 1983, Bob Hawke became leader of
16728-520: The last man and the last shilling". However, he struggled with the demands of Australia's participation in World War I and in October 1915 resigned in favour of his deputy Billy Hughes . Fisher subsequently accepted an appointment as the High Commissioner of Australia to the United Kingdom , holding the position from 1916 to 1920. After a brief return to Australia, he retired to London, dying there at
16892-451: The length of Fisher's service as prime minister, for many years he and his government were given relatively little scholarly attention. His decision to retire to England placed him out of the public eye, while his mental deterioration and early death deprived him of the opportunity to dictate his own legacy. Writers interested in the post-Federation era did not generally view him as an attractive biographical subject, which has been attributed to
17056-487: The machinery that raised and lowered the cages in the mineshaft. During his time in Gympie, Fisher stayed in a boardinghouse in Red Hill ; it is now heritage-listed as " Andrew Fisher's Cottage ". He would eventually marry his landlady's daughter, Margaret Irvine . Within years of arriving in the town, Fisher had become "an important figure in the Gympie labour movement, straddling both its political and industrial wings". He
17220-557: The main Liberal leader, and of free trade, seeing them both as the ideals of Protestant Englishmen who represented landholding and large business interests. In the strike of 1890 the leading Catholic, Sydney's Archbishop Patrick Francis Moran was sympathetic toward unions, but Catholic newspapers were negative. After 1900, says Hamilton, Irish Catholics were drawn to the Labour Party because its stress on equality and social welfare fitted with their status as manual labourers and small farmers. In
17384-490: The main focus of the curriculum was on the three Rs . He later supplemented his limited formal education by attending night school in Kilmarnock and reading at the town library. The exact age at which Fisher left school is uncertain, but he could have been as young as nine or as old as thirteen. He is believed to have begun his working life as a coal trapper , opening and closing the trapdoors that allowed for ventilation and
17548-464: The manager of the foodstore at the local cooperative, and the family moved out of miners' row. They later lived in Kilmaurs for a period, but eventually returned to Crosshouse and leased a small farm. Fisher's father then worked as a gardener and apiarist, supplementing his income with contract work repairing the machinery at local mines. He died of lung disease in 1887, aged 53. In 1879, aged 17, Fisher
17712-495: The media as the "unloseable election". Anthony Albanese later led the party into the 2022 Australian federal election , in which the party once again won a majority government. Despite Labor's win, Labor nevertheless recorded its lowest primary vote since either 1903 or 1934 , depending on whether the Lang Labor vote is included. In 2023, Labor won the march 2023 New South Wales state election returning to government for
17876-416: The miners but he did settle the dispute, talking to miners around the state and convincing them to return to work. He resigned from state politics and in 1910 Charlton wrested the federal Division of Hunter from the sitting Frank Liddell . Hunter has remained a safe Labor seat ever since. Charlton was an immediate success with Andrew Fisher and was promoted to the temporary chairmanship of committees in
18040-430: The movement of coal. He was later placed in charge of the pit ponies , and finally took his place performing "pick-and-shovel work" at the coalface. When he was 16, he was promoted to air-pump operator, which required additional training and was seen as a relatively prestigious position. Fisher's father had black lung disease , and gave up mining around the same time as his oldest sons began working. He subsequently became
18204-614: The new federal capital to be in the Yass - Canberra area, passed the Manufacturers' Encouragement Act to provide bounties for iron and steel manufacturers who paid fair and reasonable wages, ordered three torpedo boat destroyers , and assumed local naval defence responsibility and placed the Australian Navy at the disposal of the Royal Navy in wartime. Fisher committed Labour to amending
18368-532: The official choice of Labor to influence from King O'Malley , who was born in the United States and was reputedly an advocate of English-language spelling reform ; the spelling without a u is the standard form in American English . It has been suggested that the adoption of the spelling without a u "signified one of the ALP's earliest attempts at modernisation", and served the purpose of differentiating
18532-504: The opposition. There have been 13 Labor prime ministers and 10 periods of federal Labor governments, including under Billy Hughes from 1915 to 1916, James Scullin from 1929 to 1932, John Curtin from 1941 to 1945, Ben Chifley from 1945 to 1949, Gough Whitlam from 1972 to 1975, Bob Hawke from 1983 to 1991, Paul Keating from 1991 to 1996, Kevin Rudd from 2007 to 2010 and 2013, and Julia Gillard from 2010 to 2013. Under Hawke and Keating,
18696-460: The output of the second Deakin government over a similar period. According to Labor MP and historian Denis Murphy , the second Fisher government represented "the culmination of Labor's involvement in politics", and was "a period of reform unmatched in the Commonwealth until the 1940s", under John Curtin and Ben Chifley . The Fisher government carried out many reforms in defence, finance, transport and communications, and social security, achieving
18860-432: The party after Hayden resigned to avoid a leadership spill. Bob Hawke led Labor back to office at the 1983 federal election and the party won four consecutive elections under Hawke. In December 1991 Paul Keating defeated Bob Hawke in a leadership spill. The ALP then won the 1993 federal election . It was in power for five terms over 13 years, until severely defeated by John Howard at the 1996 federal election . This
19024-420: The party also contests local government elections or endorses local candidates. In others it does not, preferring to allow its members to run as non-endorsed candidates. The process of choosing candidates is called preselection . Candidates are preselected by different methods in the various states and territories. In some they are chosen by ballots of all party members, in others by panels or committees elected by
19188-570: The party and many times lent his expertise to conflicts within the NSW branch of the Labor Party. He resigned from his positions on 29 March 1928. His successor James Scullin went on to become the Prime Minister of Australia . Following retirement from federal politics, Charlton took an interest in local government and became an alderman on the Lambton Council from 1934 to 1938 (before its merger with
19352-666: The party claims to be the oldest in Australia. However, the Scone Branch has a receipt for membership fees for the Labour Electoral League dated April 1891. This predates the Balmain claim. This can be attested in the Centenary of the ALP book. Labour as a parliamentary party dates from 1891 in New South Wales and South Australia , 1893 in Queensland, and later in the other colonies. The first election contested by Labour candidates
19516-404: The party from the Australian labour movement as a whole and distinguishing it from other British Empire labour parties. The decision to include the word "Australian" in the party's name, rather than just " Labour Party " as in the United Kingdom, has been attributed to "the greater importance of nationalism for the founders of the colonial parties". The Australian Labor Party has its origins in
19680-475: The party's policies, elect its governing bodies and choose its candidates for public office. Members join a state branch and pay a membership fee, which is graduated according to income. The majority of trade unions in Australia are affiliated to the party at a state level. Union affiliation is direct and not through the Australian Council of Trade Unions . Affiliated unions pay an affiliation fee based on
19844-447: The platform as a prerequisite for a change in policy. For example, privatisation legislation under the Hawke government occurred only after holding a special national conference to debate changing the platform. The Australian Labor Party National Executive is the party's chief administrative authority, subject only to Labor's national conference . The executive is responsible for organising
20008-437: The platform binds Labor governments, how and when it is implemented remains the prerogative of the parliamentary caucus. It is now rare for the platform to conflict with government policy, as the content of the platform is usually developed in close collaboration with the party's parliamentary leadership as well as the factions. However, where there is a direct contradiction with the platform, Labor governments have sought to change
20172-412: The policy foundation from which we can continue to work towards the election of a federal Labor government." The platform gives a general indication of the policy direction which a future Labor government would follow, but does not commit the party to specific policies. It maintains that "Labor's traditional values will remain a constant on which all Australians can rely." While making it clear that Labor
20336-499: The policy of the broader labour movement. Thus at the first federal election 1901 Labor's platform called for a White Australia policy , a citizen army and compulsory arbitration of industrial disputes. Labor has at various times supported high tariffs and low tariffs, conscription and pacifism , White Australia and multiculturalism , nationalisation and privatisation , isolationism and internationalism. From 1900 to 1940, Labor and its affiliated unions were strong defenders of
20500-516: The rapturous receptions he received at labour movement gatherings led him to contemplate a return to active politics. He was the only remaining former prime minister in the Labor Party, which had lost many experienced MPs in the 1916 party split . The party's leader Frank Tudor had had frequent bouts of ill health, and T. J. Ryan , who was widely seen as Tudor's heir apparent, died suddenly of pneumonia in August 1921. Fisher seriously considered standing in
20664-507: The relative orthodoxy of his political views and a reputation for propriety to the point of dullness. Fisher's 1981 entry in the Australian Dictionary of Biography was written by Denis Murphy , who had planned a full-length biography but died in 1984 before completing it. Clem Lloyd also began a biography in the 1990s, which was unfinished at the time of his death in 2001. The first complete biographies of Fisher did not emerge until
20828-463: The resulting by-election , but found there was no guarantee that the local party would accept him as a candidate. He was unwilling to actively campaign for preselection, and decided he would only stand if he were drafted, which did not happen. With little else to keep them in Australia, Fisher and his wife decided to return to London to be closer to their children. They rented a property in Highgate for
20992-695: The size of their membership. Union affiliation fees make up a large part of the party's income. Other sources of funds for the party include political donations and public funding . Members are generally expected to attend at least one meeting of their local branch each year, although there are differences in the rules from state to state. In practice, only a dedicated minority regularly attend meetings. Many members are only active during election campaigns. The members and unions elect delegates to state and territory conferences (usually held annually, although more frequent conferences are often held). These conferences decide policy, and elect state or territory executives,
21156-532: The state conference, in still others by a combination of these two. The state and territory Labor branches are the following: The Country Labor Party , commonly known as Country Labor , was an affiliated organisation of the Labor Party. Although not expressly defined, Country Labor operated mainly within rural New South Wales , and was mainly seen as an extension of the New South Wales branch that operates in rural electorates. Andrew Fisher Andrew Fisher (29 August 1862 – 22 October 1928)
21320-456: The state-owned Commonwealth Bank . Fisher's second government also introduced uniform postal charges throughout Australia, carried out measures to break up land monopolies, put forward proposals for closer regulation of working hours, wages and employment conditions, and amended the 1904 Conciliation and Arbitration Act to provide greater authority for the court president, and to allow for Commonwealth employees' industrial unions, registered with
21484-446: The strength of Deakinite liberalism inhibited the party's growth. The state branches formed their first majority governments in New South Wales and South Australia in 1910, Western Australia in 1911, Queensland in 1915 and Tasmania in 1925. Such success eluded equivalent labour parties in other countries for many years. Analysis of the early NSW Labor caucus reveals "a band of unhappy amateurs", made up of blue collar workers,
21648-407: The triennial national conference; carrying out the decisions of the conference; interpreting the national constitution, the national platform and decisions of the national conference; and directing federal members. The party holds a national conference every three years, which consists of delegates representing the state and territory branches (many coming from affiliated trade unions, although there
21812-503: The value of a pensioner's home was excluded from consideration when assessing the value of their property. Fisher wanted additional Commonwealth power in certain areas, such as the nationalisation of monopolies . A constitutional referendum was initiated in 1911 which aimed to increase the federal government's legislative powers over trade and commerce and over monopolies. Both questions were defeated, with around 61 per cent voting 'No'. The Fisher government made another attempt, holding
21976-466: The vast majority of their aims in just three years of government. These included extending old-age and disability pensions, introducing a maternity allowance and issuing Australia's first paper currency , forming the Royal Australian Navy , the start of construction of the Trans-Australian Railway , expanding the bench of the High Court of Australia , the founding of Canberra , and the establishment of
22140-561: The word labour is spelt with a u . However, the political party uses the spelling Labor , without a u . There was originally no standardised spelling of the party's name, with Labor and Labour both in common usage. According to Ross McMullin , who wrote an official history of the Labor Party, the title page of the proceedings of the Federal Conference used the spelling "Labor in 1902, "Labour" in 1905 and 1908, and then "Labor" from 1912 onwards. In 1908, James Catts put forward
22304-471: The world's first Labour Party majority government at a national level, and after the 1904 Chris Watson minority government the world's second Labour Party government at a national level. It was the first time a Labour Party had controlled any house of a legislature, and the first time the party controlled both houses of a bicameral legislature. The state branches were also successful, except in Victoria , where
22468-656: Was a founding member of the Gympie cooperative, and in 1891 became the secretary of the Gympie Joint Labour Committee, the local labour council . He helped establish a branch of the Workers' Political Association , the forerunner of the Labor Party, and was the inaugural branch president with George Ryland as secretary. In 1892, he represented Gympie at the Labour-in-Politics Convention in Brisbane. He
22632-446: Was a major reform, because it enabled more births to be attended by doctors, thus leading to reductions in infant mortality rates. However, the maternity allowance was only available to white women, with the legislation barring "women who are Asiatic, or are aboriginal natives of Australia, Papua or the Pacific Islands" in line with the racial exclusions in the old-age pension. Compulsory preference to trade unionists in federal employment
22796-450: Was a minister in the government of Anderson Dawson . In 1901, Fisher was elected to the new federal parliament representing the Division of Wide Bay . He was the Minister for Trade and Customs for a few months in 1904, in the short-lived government of Chris Watson . Fisher was elected deputy leader of the ALP in 1905 and replaced Watson as leader in 1907. He initially provided support to
22960-581: Was a radical, on the left-wing of his party, with a strong sense of Labour's part in British working-class history. At the 1908 Labour Federal Conference, Fisher argued for female representation in parliament: I trust that not another Federal election will take place without there being a woman endorsed as a Labour candidate for the Senate. With a majority of seats in the Labour-Protectionist government, Labour caucus by early 1908 had become restive as to
23124-472: Was a safe Labor seat from its creation in 1984 until its abolition in 2016. Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party ( ALP ), also known simply as Labor or the Labor Party , is the major centre-left political party in Australia and one of two major parties in Australian politics , along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia . The party has been in government since
23288-550: Was also dissatisfied with the old-age pension proposals. Without Labour support the Deakin government collapsed in November 1908. During the parliamentary ballots that selected Yass-Canberra as the site of the national capital, in October 1908, Fisher voted consistently for Dalgety . Fisher formed his only minority government and the First Fisher Ministry . The government passed the Seat of Government Act 1908 , providing for
23452-508: Was also introduced, while the Seaman's Compensation Act of 1911 and the Navigation Act of 1912 were enacted to improve conditions for those working at sea, together with compensatory arrangements for seamen and next of kin. Eligibility for pensions was also widened. From December 1912 onwards, naturalised residents no longer had to wait three years to be eligible for a pension. That same year,
23616-460: Was also the first woman to serve as prime minister of Australia, remained prime minister in a hung parliament following the election. Her government lasted until 2013, when Gillard lost a leadership spill, with Rudd becoming leader once again. Later that year the ALP lost the 2013 election . After this defeat, Bill Shorten became leader of the party. The party narrowly lost the 2016 election , yet gained 14 seats. It remained in opposition after
23780-445: Was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the fifth prime minister of Australia from 1908 to 1909, 1910 to 1913 and 1914 to 1915. He held office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), and was particularly notable for leading the party to its first federal election victory and first majority government at the 1910 federal election . Fisher was born in Crosshouse , Ayrshire, Scotland. He left school at
23944-411: Was born to Matthew Charlton, an English miner from Durham , and Mabel (née Foard). In 1871, the five-year-old Charlton's father moved with his family to Lambton , a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales . After primary education at Lambton Public School, Charlton began work at Lambton Colliery as a coal trapper ; a children's-only job opening trapdoors for coal carts. When too old for the job, Charlton
24108-541: Was buried at Hampstead Cemetery on 26 October 1928. On the same day, a memorial service was held at St Columba's Church, London , which was attended by representatives of King George V and Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin , as well as Arthur Henderson representing the British Labour Party . In February 1930, Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald unveiled a granite obelisk above Fisher's grave. His widow eventually moved back to Australia, dying there in 1958. Despite
24272-429: Was desirable only when was necessary to "eliminate exploitation and other anti-social features". Only once has a federal Labor government attempted to nationalise any industry ( Ben Chifley 's bank nationalisation of 1947), and that was held by the High Court to be unconstitutional. The commitment to nationalisation was dropped by Gough Whitlam , and Bob Hawke 's government carried out many free market reforms including
24436-442: Was elected secretary of the Crosshouse branch of the Ayrshire Miners' Union . He soon came into contact with Keir Hardie , a leading figure in the union and a future leader of the British Labour Party . The pair met frequently to discuss politics and would renew their acquaintance later in life. Fisher and Hardie were leaders of the 1881 Ayrshire miners' strike, which was widely seen as a failure. The ten-week strike resulted in only
24600-454: Was forced out of the leadership by Kevin Rudd . Rudd went on to defeat John Howard at the 2007 federal election with 52.7 percent of the two-party vote (Howard became the first prime minister since Stanley Melbourne Bruce to lose not just the election but his own parliamentary seat). The Rudd government ended prior to the 2010 federal election with the overthrow of Rudd as leader of the party by deputy leader Julia Gillard . Gillard, who
24764-458: Was formed, however the pressure from Labour brought about productive change by Deakin: he agreed to a royal commission into the post office, old-age pensions were to be provided from the surplus revenue fund and £250,000 set aside for ships for an Australian Navy . New Protection was declared invalid by the High Court in June, Fisher found the tariff proposals of Deakin unsatisfactory, while caucus
24928-418: Was given a job at the coal-face. At 23 he married Martha Rollings at nearby New Lambton . In 1896 plans to reduce coal workers' wages led to strike action . Charlton supported the struggle against wage reductions, but the effort failed and, along with many other miners, he moved to the goldfields near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia . After two years there, Charlton returned to Lambton and became an official in
25092-641: Was invited to a League of Nations (now United Nations ) conference in Geneva, Switzerland . At the conference Charlton strongly opposed war, and the Geneva Protocol took form. Upon his return to Australia, Charlton advocated adoption of the protocol, but the government sided with the British and refused to observe it. Charlton lost the 1925 election , largely due to his stance on industrial relations and continual militant union action which plagued his campaign. Charlton always aided in maintaining amicable relations in
25256-559: Was kicked in the head by a cow as a small child, leaving him mostly deaf in one ear. The injury may have contributed to a childhood speech impediment and his reserved nature as an adult. As a boy, Fisher and his brothers fished in Carmel Water, a tributary of the River Irvine , and enjoyed long walks across the countryside. He was athletic, helping form a local football team, and stood 178 centimetres (5 ft 10 in) as an adult, above
25420-433: Was opposed as being too radical but a compromise was drawn up urging state governments to open and run their own coal mines, while affirming the ultimate desirability of full nationalisation. Colleagues urged Charlton to stand for the state electoral district of Waratah , and on 5 December 1903 Charlton became the second member for the district in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly . His representation of that district
25584-605: Was positive, with the Brisbane Truth noting it would not change his humble nature: "To plain Andrew Fisher, who lately refused to-be decorated with empty, unearned University degrees, a Privy Councillorship has been awarded. This is an honor to which our Prime Minister is justly entitled by reason of his inclusion in the secret councils of the Imperial Conference, which secrets include the private advice, tendered by him to
25748-504: Was probably only partially literate, Fisher's father was prominent in the local community and involved with various community organisations. He was the leader of a temperance society , and in 1863 was one of ten miners who co-founded a cooperative society . He and his family were active members of the Free Church of Scotland . Fisher spent most of his childhood living in a miners' row, which had an earthen floor and no running water. He
25912-690: Was sacked from his engine-driving job in the same year, and subsequently devoted his full attention to politics. In 1891, Fisher was elected as the first president of the Gympie branch of the Labour Party . In 1893, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Queensland as Labour member for the Electoral district of Gympie and by the following year had become Labour's deputy leader in the Legislative Assembly. In his maiden speech, he pushed for
26076-493: Was short-lived, as the next year he transferred to Northumberland , replacing John Norton . Charlton became the unofficial spokesperson for the miners, speaking principally about mining matters in parliament. In 1909 a coal miners' strike struck New South Wales and Charlton was called upon by the Colliery Employees' Federation to represent it in front of a wage board. Charlton was unsuccessful in gaining better conditions for
26240-560: Was the 1891 New South Wales election , when Labour candidates (then called the Labor Electoral League of New South Wales) won 35 of 141 seats. The major parties were the Protectionist and Free Trade parties and Labour held the balance of power . It offered parliamentary support in exchange for policy concessions. The United Labor Party (ULP) of South Australia was founded in 1891, and three candidates were that year elected to
26404-473: Was the beneficiary of a scare campaign, in which conservative candidate Francis Power was consistently painted by the Gympie Truth as being a supporter of black labour and the alleged economic and social ills that accompanied it. In that year he was Secretary for Railways and Public Works in the seven-day government of Anderson Dawson , the first parliamentary Labour government in the world. The state Labour parties and their MPs were mixed in their support for
26568-488: Was the longest period the party has ever been in government at the national level. Kim Beazley led the party to the 1998 federal election , winning 51 percent of the two-party-preferred vote but falling short on seats, and the ALP lost ground at the 2001 federal election . After a brief period when Simon Crean served as ALP leader, Mark Latham led Labor to the 2004 federal election but lost further ground. Beazley replaced Latham in 2005; not long afterwards he in turn
26732-479: Was unable to sign his own name, and his children were seriously considering having him institutionalised. Fisher contracted a severe case of influenza in September 1928, and eventually died from complications of the disease on 22 October, aged 66. He is one of only three Australian prime ministers to die overseas, and he and George Reid are the only ones who both began and ended their lives outside Australia. Fisher
26896-489: Was virtually identical to that of Billy Hughes , who had arrived less than a year earlier in December 1884 – both men took assisted passage, arrived at the age of 22, and travelled from London to Brisbane. Unlike Hughes, Fisher never lost his original accent and retained a thick Scottish "brogue" for the rest of his life. After arriving in Brisbane, Fisher made his way to the Burrum River coalfields where there were already
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