Edward Brooker
Encyclopedia
William Edward Brooker was an Australian Labor Party
politician. He became the Premier of Tasmania on 19 December 1947 while Robert Cosgrove
was facing corruption charges. He died on the 18 June 1948, shortly after returning the Premiership
to Cosgrove on the 24 February 1948.
, a suburb of London
, and was educated at Enfield Grammar School
. He began working as a clerk for the Asiatic Petroleum Company
, and later managed his father's business.
Brooker was a member of the Territorial Force
, the volunteer component of the British Army
, and a precursor to the Territorial Army. During World War I
he served with the Royal Army Medical Corps
in Gallipoli
, Thessaloniki
and Palestine
.
Leaving the army as a sergeant in 1919, Brooker married Lydia Wilson in London, and in 1921 was tempted by the offer of free passage to Australia
. Brooker, his wife and their baby arrived in Melbourne on 31 August 1921, and moved to Tasmania
where he worked as a farm labourer, then as a pipe-fitter at the Cadbury's Chocolate Factory
in Claremont
.
, Brooker was a member of the Australian branch of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, and joined the Australian Labor Party
, unsuccessfully running for the electorate of Franklin
in the Tasmanian House of Assembly
. Inspired by Major C. H. Douglas
' Social Credit
movement, Brooker ran for Franklin again in 1934, becoming an MHA on 9 June 1934. In the House of Assembly, he served as Government Whip
(1936–1939) until joining the cabinet
of Robert Cosgrove
as Minister for Transport (1939–42), Chief Secretary (1939–43) and Minister for Tourism (1942–43). In November 1943, he was made Minister for Land and Works, and in 1946, the portfolio of Post-War Reconstruction.
In December 1947, the Premier Robert Cosgrove
was indicted
on charges of bribery and corruption. Cosgrove stood down as Premier during his trial, and Brooker was sworn in as his replacement on 19 December 1947. The trial was concluded by February the next year, and the charges against Cosgrove were dropped. Brooker stood down after only two months as Premier, and Cosgrove was reinstated, appointing Brooker as Treasurer and Minister for Transport. Four months after resigning the Premiership, Brooker died at his home in Montrose
after suffering a pulmonary oedema on 18 June 1948.
in his honour.
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...
politician. He became the Premier of Tasmania on 19 December 1947 while Robert Cosgrove
Robert Cosgrove
Sir Robert Cosgrove KCMG was an Australian politician, trade unionist, and twice Premier of Tasmania from 18 December 1939 to 18 December 1947 and 25 February 1948 to 26 August 1958....
was facing corruption charges. He died on the 18 June 1948, shortly after returning the Premiership
Premiers of Tasmania
The Premier of Tasmania is the head of the executive government in the Australian state of Tasmania. By convention, the party or political grouping which has majority support in the House of Assembly will nominate its leader to be Premier. The nominated politician is then invited by the Governor of...
to Cosgrove on the 24 February 1948.
Early life and military service
Brooker was born in HendonHendon
Hendon is a London suburb situated northwest of Charing Cross.-History:Hendon was historically a civil parish in the county of Middlesex. The manor is described in Domesday , but the name, 'Hendun' meaning 'at the highest hill', is earlier...
, a suburb of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and was educated at Enfield Grammar School
Enfield Grammar School
Enfield Grammar School is a boys' comprehensive school in Enfield Town in the London Borough of Enfield in north London.-History:Enfield Grammar School was founded on the 25th. May 1558...
. He began working as a clerk for the Asiatic Petroleum Company
Asiatic Petroleum Company
Asiatic Petroleum Company was a joint venture between the Shell and Royal Dutch oil companies founded in 1903. It operated in Asia in the early twentieth century. The corporate headquarters were on The Bund in Shanghai, China. The division tested the limits of corporate liability in the Lennard's...
, and later managed his father's business.
Brooker was a member of the Territorial Force
Territorial Force
The Territorial Force was the volunteer reserve component of the British Army from 1908 to 1920, when it became the Territorial Army.-Origins:...
, the volunteer component of the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, and a precursor to the Territorial Army. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he served with the Royal Army Medical Corps
Royal Army Medical Corps
The Royal Army Medical Corps is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all British Army personnel and their families in war and in peace...
in Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
, Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Leaving the army as a sergeant in 1919, Brooker married Lydia Wilson in London, and in 1921 was tempted by the offer of free passage to Australia
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...
. Brooker, his wife and their baby arrived in Melbourne on 31 August 1921, and moved to Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
where he worked as a farm labourer, then as a pipe-fitter at the Cadbury's Chocolate Factory
Cadbury's Chocolate Factory, Tasmania
Cadbury's Chocolate Factory is a working chocolate factory belonging to the Australian division of international confectionery company Cadbury Schweppes, and is located in Claremont, Tasmania, Australia....
in Claremont
Claremont, Tasmania
Claremont is a suburb of the City of Glenorchy, part of the greater Hobart area, Tasmania, Australia. It is named after Claremont House, which was built in the 1830s by local settler Henry Bilton, who named it after one of the royal homes of England. Claremont was the home of an Army training...
.
Political career
As a fitterMachinist
A machinist is a person who uses machine tools to make or modify parts, primarily metal parts, a process known as machining. This is accomplished by using machine tools to cut away excess material much as a woodcarver cuts away excess wood to produce his work. In addition to metal, the parts may...
, Brooker was a member of the Australian branch of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, and joined 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...
, unsuccessfully running for the electorate of Franklin
Division of Franklin (state)
The Electoral Division of Franklin is one of the five electorates in the Tasmanian House of Assembly. The division is named after Sir John Franklin, the arctic explorer who was Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land 1837-43...
in the Tasmanian House of Assembly
Tasmanian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House...
. Inspired by Major 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:...
' 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"...
movement, Brooker ran for Franklin again in 1934, becoming an MHA on 9 June 1934. In the House of Assembly, he served as Government Whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
(1936–1939) until joining the cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
of Robert Cosgrove
Robert Cosgrove
Sir Robert Cosgrove KCMG was an Australian politician, trade unionist, and twice Premier of Tasmania from 18 December 1939 to 18 December 1947 and 25 February 1948 to 26 August 1958....
as Minister for Transport (1939–42), Chief Secretary (1939–43) and Minister for Tourism (1942–43). In November 1943, he was made Minister for Land and Works, and in 1946, the portfolio of Post-War Reconstruction.
In December 1947, the Premier Robert Cosgrove
Robert Cosgrove
Sir Robert Cosgrove KCMG was an Australian politician, trade unionist, and twice Premier of Tasmania from 18 December 1939 to 18 December 1947 and 25 February 1948 to 26 August 1958....
was indicted
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
on charges of bribery and corruption. Cosgrove stood down as Premier during his trial, and Brooker was sworn in as his replacement on 19 December 1947. The trial was concluded by February the next year, and the charges against Cosgrove were dropped. Brooker stood down after only two months as Premier, and Cosgrove was reinstated, appointing Brooker as Treasurer and Minister for Transport. Four months after resigning the Premiership, Brooker died at his home in Montrose
Montrose, Tasmania
Montrose, is a suburb in the northern suburbs of Hobart, capital of Tasmania, Australia. The suburb is situated in close promity with Rosetta. Montrose is the suburb directly north of Glenorchy and lies within the local government area of City of Glenorchy...
after suffering a pulmonary oedema on 18 June 1948.
Legacy
The Hobart highway known as the Northern Outlet, the idea of which was conceived by Brooker as transport minister, was renamed the Brooker HighwayBrooker Highway
The Brooker Highway is a highway in the State of Tasmania, Australia. Also known as the Northern Outlet, the highway is the major arterial route through Hobart's northern suburbs and is Hobart's major road connection to the cities and towns of Northern Tasmania...
in his honour.