Douglas Credit Party
Encyclopedia
The Douglas Credit Party was an Australia
n political party based around the social credit
theory of monetary reform
, first set out by C. H. Douglas
. It gained its strongest result in Queensland
in 1935, when it gained 7.02% of first preferences. The party's strongest federal result was at the 1934 election
on 4.69 percent of the national lower house vote. Neither saw the party win any seats. Some regard the party as a predecessor of the modern Australian League of Rights
.
The Australian followers of Social Credit were ambivalent about direct political action. Some entered into the political party fray; others sought to influence the existing political parties - especially the Australian Labor Party
(ALP). At the height of the economic Depression in the 1930s, advocates of Social Credit theory were successful in gaining majority conference support within the ALP for financial reform along the lines of that proposed by Social Credit theory. However, this policy was never put into practice by subsequent Labor governments. Others felt the existing form of democracy - with its emphasis on parties of the "left and right" to be inimical to genuine representation of the people. It was felt by some Social Crediters that all parliamentarians should have a first loyalty to their constituents and not a greater loyalty to a particular party organisation.
During the 1960s, there were several attempts in Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales to revive the political fortunes of Social Credit. In South Australia, the "Liberty League" contested a few seats in federal elections but failed to gain many votes. At the 1961 federal election, three candidates - Messrs W G K Ward, A A Lee and Whiteman unsuccessfully stood for the Senate in New South Wales (they polled about 15,000 primary votes across the State). Some support was shown in a few New South Wales federal electorates - notably the Labor-held seats of East Sydney and a few strong Labor seats in the Hunter Valley.
At the 1961 federal election, several candidates contested the poll under the banner of the Australian National Party. The party was short-lived and some of its members joined the ranks of a revived Social Credit Movement of Australia (Queensland), which contested nine seats at the 1963 Queensland State election with only meagre results. Strongest support was in the Maryborough area of central Queensland.
A Social Credit Secretariat in Queensland continues to promote Social Credit via the internet.
A single Social Credit candidate stood in the 1969 federal election in the Sydney seat of Banks, but gained only minor support. Another attempt was made in the early 1970s in NSW to contest a seat in the Senate, but again the votes gained were minimal.
For some decades (until the late 1960s), the late Mrs J Elvin operated, on a voluntary basis, a Social Credit bookroom in George Street, Sydney. A small monthly newsletter was also produced and circulated via this centre in downtown Sydney.
The on-going influence of Social Credit ideas was also revealed in the heyday of the One Nation Party
in the late 1990s, with that party's promotion of a National Credit Authority.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n political party based around the social credit
Social Credit
Social Credit is an economic philosophy developed by C. H. Douglas , a British engineer, who wrote a book by that name in 1924. Social Credit is described by Douglas as "the policy of a philosophy"; he called his philosophy "practical Christianity"...
theory of monetary reform
Monetary reform
Monetary reform describes any movement or theory that proposes a different system of supplying money and financing the economy from the current system.Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:...
, first set out by C. H. Douglas
C. H. Douglas
Major C. H. Douglas MIMechE, MIEE, , was a British engineer and pioneer of the Social Credit economic reform movement.-Education and engineering career:...
. It gained its strongest result in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
in 1935, when it gained 7.02% of first preferences. The party's strongest federal result was at the 1934 election
Australian federal election, 1934
Federal elections were held in Australia on 15 September 1934. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 18 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent United Australia Party led by Prime Minister of Australia Joseph Lyons with coalition partner the Country Party led...
on 4.69 percent of the national lower house vote. Neither saw the party win any seats. Some regard the party as a predecessor of the modern Australian League of Rights
Australian League of Rights
The Australian League of Rights is a long-lived far right and anti-semitic political organisation in Australia founded by Eric Butler with its basis in the economic theory of Social Credit expounded by C. H. Douglas. It describes itself as upholding the virtues of freedom...
.
The Australian followers of Social Credit were ambivalent about direct political action. Some entered into the political party fray; others sought to influence the existing political parties - especially the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
(ALP). At the height of the economic Depression in the 1930s, advocates of Social Credit theory were successful in gaining majority conference support within the ALP for financial reform along the lines of that proposed by Social Credit theory. However, this policy was never put into practice by subsequent Labor governments. Others felt the existing form of democracy - with its emphasis on parties of the "left and right" to be inimical to genuine representation of the people. It was felt by some Social Crediters that all parliamentarians should have a first loyalty to their constituents and not a greater loyalty to a particular party organisation.
During the 1960s, there were several attempts in Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales to revive the political fortunes of Social Credit. In South Australia, the "Liberty League" contested a few seats in federal elections but failed to gain many votes. At the 1961 federal election, three candidates - Messrs W G K Ward, A A Lee and Whiteman unsuccessfully stood for the Senate in New South Wales (they polled about 15,000 primary votes across the State). Some support was shown in a few New South Wales federal electorates - notably the Labor-held seats of East Sydney and a few strong Labor seats in the Hunter Valley.
At the 1961 federal election, several candidates contested the poll under the banner of the Australian National Party. The party was short-lived and some of its members joined the ranks of a revived Social Credit Movement of Australia (Queensland), which contested nine seats at the 1963 Queensland State election with only meagre results. Strongest support was in the Maryborough area of central Queensland.
A Social Credit Secretariat in Queensland continues to promote Social Credit via the internet.
A single Social Credit candidate stood in the 1969 federal election in the Sydney seat of Banks, but gained only minor support. Another attempt was made in the early 1970s in NSW to contest a seat in the Senate, but again the votes gained were minimal.
For some decades (until the late 1960s), the late Mrs J Elvin operated, on a voluntary basis, a Social Credit bookroom in George Street, Sydney. A small monthly newsletter was also produced and circulated via this centre in downtown Sydney.
The on-going influence of Social Credit ideas was also revealed in the heyday of the One Nation Party
One Nation Party
One Nation is a far-right and nationalist political party in Australia. It gained 22% of the vote translating to 11 of 89 seats in Queensland's unicameral legislative assembly at the 1998 state election and made major inroads into the vote of the existing parties...
in the late 1990s, with that party's promotion of a National Credit Authority.