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John Gunn (Australian politician)
Encyclopedia
John Gunn was the 29th Premier of South Australia.
Gunn was born in Bendigo, Victoria
, the second of nine children to a Scottish miner and his wife. Gunn's father died when he was young, forcing him to work as a delivery boy to support his mother and siblings while studying at night classes.
Gunn worked a variety of jobs in Melbourne
and in the Western Australia
n timber mills before returning to Melbourne to marry Haidee Smith on 8 September 1908. They then moved to Adelaide
where Gunn found work as a horse-lorry driver on the Port Road
. He soon became the President of the South Australian branch of the Federated Carters and Driver's Union and organised the 1910 Drivers' Strike, which secured reduced working hours, although he made enemies in the wealthy and influential Adelaide Establishment, who considered him a dangerous communist.
Gunn's success with the Carters and Driver's Union led to his election as President of the United Trades and Labour Council of South Australia
in 1911 and, as his star continued to rise, he was elected to Adelaide City Council in 1914, serving to 1916, when he became Federal President of the Federated Carters and Driver's Union.
"Greatly respected for his tactful courtesy and self-control", Gunn entered the South Australian House of Assembly
at the 1915 election
as an Australian Labor Party
member for the Electoral district of Adelaide
. He soon emerged as a leading anti-conscriptionist in the bitter internal Labor fight over conscription
which led to a split in the party. Resigning his seat, Gunn stood unsuccessfully for the federal House of Representatives
Division of Boothby
as an anti-conscriptionist candidate at the 1917 federal election
but returned to state parliament by regaining his Adelaide seat at the 1918 state election
.
While many Labor party members were opposed to conscription, party leadership, including premier Crawford Vaughan
, were in favour and either resigned or were expelled from the party, leaving Labor with a rump of inexperienced members of parliament following their 1918 election
loss. Gunn, aged 32, was elected leader of the Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition, a move that concerned the Establishment, who recalled the 1910 Driver's Strike and thought he should not be allowed near the reins of power. A media campaign against Gunn began in earnest.
The Labor Party lost the 1921 election
but was able to regain a number of Adelaide-based seats they had lost in 1918 and, under Gunn's leadership, defeated Henry Barwell
's Liberal Federation
at the 1924 election
following a split between the Liberal Federation
and its erstwhile ally, the Country Party
. Gunn became Premier, Treasurer and Minister for Irrigation and Minister for Repatriation at age 39.
As Premier, Gunn established the State Bank of South Australia
and developed Colonel Light Gardens
, one of Australia
's first planned suburbs. He also increased expenditure on education, including a salary rise for teachers, improved public service working conditions, built more roads and encouraged rural settlement. His reforms impressed many and even received grudging praise from the previously hostile media, who realised he had mellowed into a more moderate figure than the strike leader of 15 years prior.
Gunn still raised the ire of conservatives through his plans to redraw the Assembly electorate boundaries, introduce a proportional representation
electoral system, introduce adult franchise to the Legislative Council
and establish a state government insurance commission, all of which were defeated by the conservative controlled Legislative Council.
Having gained a reputation as a competent administrator and Premier, Gunn surprised many when he suddenly resigned from the Premiership and parliament on 9 August 1926 to accept a Melbourne-based position with the Commonwealth Development and Migration Commission on a greatly improved salary. Lionel Hill
took over the Labor leadership and Premiership. When the position ended, he accepted a federal government appointment in 1930 and moved to Canberra
. When Australian Prime Minister
Joseph Lyons
declined to renew Gunn's contract in 1935, Gunn, estranged from his wife and family and possibly in debt, suffered a nervous breakdown.
Little is known of his subsequent life and Gunn died in poverty in Waterfall, New South Wales
. So far was his fall into obscurity that the South Australian media did not become aware of their former Premier's death for some weeks.
Gunn was born in Bendigo, Victoria
Bendigo, Victoria
Bendigo is a major regional city in the state of Victoria, Australia, located very close to the geographical centre of the state and approximately north west of the state capital Melbourne. It is the second largest inland city and fourth most populous city in the state. The estimated urban...
, the second of nine children to a Scottish miner and his wife. Gunn's father died when he was young, forcing him to work as a delivery boy to support his mother and siblings while studying at night classes.
Gunn worked a variety of jobs in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and in the Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
n timber mills before returning to Melbourne to marry Haidee Smith on 8 September 1908. They then moved to Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
where Gunn found work as a horse-lorry driver on the Port Road
Port Road, Adelaide
Port Road is a major road in Adelaide, South Australia connecting the central business district with Port Adelaide. It is 12 km long and exceptionally wide, approximately 70 m. When first conceived upon the establishment of Adelaide, it was designed to be able to accommodate a standard road, a...
. He soon became the President of the South Australian branch of the Federated Carters and Driver's Union and organised the 1910 Drivers' Strike, which secured reduced working hours, although he made enemies in the wealthy and influential Adelaide Establishment, who considered him a dangerous communist.
Gunn's success with the Carters and Driver's Union led to his election as President of the United Trades and Labour Council of South Australia
United Trades and Labour Council of South Australia
The United Trades and Labour Council of South Australia, also known as SA Unions, is a representative body of trade union organisations, known as a Labour council, in the State of South Australia...
in 1911 and, as his star continued to rise, he was elected to Adelaide City Council in 1914, serving to 1916, when he became Federal President of the Federated Carters and Driver's Union.
"Greatly respected for his tactful courtesy and self-control", Gunn entered the South Australian House of Assembly
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...
at the 1915 election
South Australian state election, 1915
State elections were held in Australia on 27 March 1915. All 46 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Union government led by Premier of South Australia Archibald Peake was defeated by the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the...
as an 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...
member for the Electoral district of Adelaide
Electoral district of Adelaide
Adelaide is an electorate for the South Australian House of Assembly which includes Adelaide's central business district and suburbs in the inner north and inner north east...
. He soon emerged as a leading anti-conscriptionist in the bitter internal Labor fight over conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
which led to a split in the party. Resigning his seat, Gunn stood unsuccessfully for the federal House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
Division of Boothby
Division of Boothby
The Division of Boothby is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia. The division was created in 1903 and is named after William Boothby , the Returning Officer for the first election of Members of the House of Representatives in 1901....
as an anti-conscriptionist candidate at the 1917 federal election
Australian federal election, 1917
Federal elections were held in Australia on 5 May 1917. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 18 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election...
but returned to state parliament by regaining his Adelaide seat at the 1918 state election
South Australian state election, 1918
State elections were held in Australia on 6 April 1918. All 46 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Union government led by Premier of South Australia Archibald Peake defeated the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the...
.
While many Labor party members were opposed to conscription, party leadership, including premier Crawford Vaughan
Crawford Vaughan
Crawford Vaughan , was Premier of South Australia between 3 April 1915 and 14 July 1917.Vaughan unsuccessfully campaigned for a seat in the Australian House of Representatives in 1901, and for the Australian Senate in 1903...
, were in favour and either resigned or were expelled from the party, leaving Labor with a rump of inexperienced members of parliament following their 1918 election
South Australian state election, 1918
State elections were held in Australia on 6 April 1918. All 46 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Union government led by Premier of South Australia Archibald Peake defeated the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the...
loss. Gunn, aged 32, was elected leader of the Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition, a move that concerned the Establishment, who recalled the 1910 Driver's Strike and thought he should not be allowed near the reins of power. A media campaign against Gunn began in earnest.
The Labor Party lost the 1921 election
South Australian state election, 1921
State elections were held in Australia on 9 April 1921. All 46 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Union government led by Premier of South Australia Henry Barwell defeated the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition...
but was able to regain a number of Adelaide-based seats they had lost in 1918 and, under Gunn's leadership, defeated Henry Barwell
Henry Barwell
Sir Henry Newman Barwell KCMG was the 28th Premier of South Australia.Born in Adelaide, South Australia, Barwell was educated at St Peter's College and Adelaide University, graduating in law...
's Liberal Federation
Liberal Federation
The Liberal Federation was a liberal conservative South Australian political party from 1922 to 1932. It stemmed from the Liberal Union's Henry Barwell. Richard Layton Butler was also premier during the party's time. It was a predecessor to the Liberal and Country League....
at the 1924 election
South Australian state election, 1924
State elections were held in Australia on 5 April 1924. All 46 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Federation government led by Premier of South Australia Henry Barwell was defeated by the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the...
following a split between the Liberal Federation
Liberal Federation
The Liberal Federation was a liberal conservative South Australian political party from 1922 to 1932. It stemmed from the Liberal Union's Henry Barwell. Richard Layton Butler was also premier during the party's time. It was a predecessor to the Liberal and Country League....
and its erstwhile ally, the Country Party
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
. Gunn became Premier, Treasurer and Minister for Irrigation and Minister for Repatriation at age 39.
State Bank of South Australia
The State Bank of South Australia was a bank owned by the Government of South Australia. Its collapse in 1991 was a major political event in South Australia...
and developed Colonel Light Gardens
Colonel Light Gardens, South Australia
Colonel Light Gardens is a model garden suburb, featuring wide, tree-lined streets, rounded street corners, and lots of open space, located within the City of Mitcham in the greater City of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. The area is 1.58 km²....
, one of 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...
's first planned suburbs. He also increased expenditure on education, including a salary rise for teachers, improved public service working conditions, built more roads and encouraged rural settlement. His reforms impressed many and even received grudging praise from the previously hostile media, who realised he had mellowed into a more moderate figure than the strike leader of 15 years prior.
Gunn still raised the ire of conservatives through his plans to redraw the Assembly electorate boundaries, introduce a proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
electoral system, introduce adult franchise to the Legislative Council
South Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the House of Assembly...
and establish a state government insurance commission, all of which were defeated by the conservative controlled Legislative Council.
Having gained a reputation as a competent administrator and Premier, Gunn surprised many when he suddenly resigned from the Premiership and parliament on 9 August 1926 to accept a Melbourne-based position with the Commonwealth Development and Migration Commission on a greatly improved salary. Lionel Hill
Lionel Hill
Lionel Laughton Hill was the thirtieth Premier of South Australia.Born in Adelaide, South Australia but raised on a farm near Maitland, Hill left school aged 12 to work on the South Australian government railways, where he first became involved in the labour movement...
took over the Labor leadership and Premiership. When the position ended, he accepted a federal government appointment in 1930 and moved to Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
. When Australian Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Joseph Lyons
Joseph Lyons
Joseph Aloysius Lyons, CH was an Australian politician. He was Labor Premier of Tasmania from 1923 to 1928 and a Minister in the James Scullin government from 1929 until his resignation from the Labor Party in March 1931...
declined to renew Gunn's contract in 1935, Gunn, estranged from his wife and family and possibly in debt, suffered a nervous breakdown.
Little is known of his subsequent life and Gunn died in poverty in Waterfall, New South Wales
Waterfall, New South Wales
Waterfall is a small suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Waterfall is located 38 kilometers south of the Sydney central business district in the Sutherland Shire....
. So far was his fall into obscurity that the South Australian media did not become aware of their former Premier's death for some weeks.