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Lyons government
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Lyons government
The Lyons government was the federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister Joseph Lyons. It was made up of members of the United Australia Party in the Australian Parliament from January 1932 until the death of Joseph Lyons in 1939. Lyons negotiated a coalition with the Country Party after the 1934 Australian federal election. The Lyons government stewarded Australia's recovery from the Great Depression and established the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The background to the Lyons government saw Australia grappling with the immense challenges of the Great Depression.
Joseph Lyons began his political career as an Australian Labor Party politician and served as Premier of Tasmania. Lyons was elected to the Australian Federal Parliament in 1929 and served in Prime Minister James Scullin's Labor cabinet. Lyons became acting Treasurer in 1930 and helped negotiate the government's strategies for dealing with the Great Depression. With Scullin temporarily absent in London, Lyons and acting Prime Minister James Fenton clashed with the Labor Cabinet and Caucus over economic policy, and grappled with the differing proposals of the Premier's Plan, Lang Labor, the Commonwealth Bank and British adviser Otto Niemeyer. While Health Minister Frank Anstey supported NSW Premier Jack Lang's bid to default on debt repayments, Lyons advocated orthodox fiscal management. When Labor reinstated the more radical Ted Theodore as Treasurer in 1931, Lyons and Fenton resigned from Cabinet.
The stance of Joseph Lyons and Trade Minister James Fenton against the more radical proposals of the Labor movement to deal the Depression had attracted the support of prominent Australian conservatives, known as "the Group", whose number included future prime minister Robert Menzies. In parliament on 13 March 1931, though still a member of the ALP, Lyons supported a no confidence motion against the Scullin Labor government. He resigned from the ALP soon afterward, along with Trade Minister James Fenton and four other right-wing ALP MPs. The United Australia Party was then formed from a merger of the six Labor dissidents, the opposition Nationalist Party of Australia, and several citizens' groups. Lyons became the new party's leader, and hence Leader of the Opposition, with John Latham, the last leader of the Nationalists, as his deputy. The presence of the working-class Lyons as leader allowed the UAP to portray itself as the party of national unity, even though it was mostly an upper- and middle-class conservative party.
In November 1931, Lang Labor dissidents chose to challenge the Scullin Labor government and align with the United Australia Party Opposition to pass a 'no confidence' and the government fell.
With Australia still suffering the effects of the Great Depression, Joseph Lyons' newly formed United Australia Party won a landslide victory at 19 December 1931 Australian Federal Election, winning 34 seats in the Australian House of Representatives against 16 Country Party, 14 Australian Labor Party and 4 for Lang Labor, with a further 6 won by the South Australia 'Emergency Committee' and with 1 Independent. The United Australia Party won 15 seats in the Senate and Labor just 3. The new medium of radio was employed by the candidates, leading to the election being dubbed the 'radio election'. Although the UAP had fought the election as part of the traditional non-Labor Coalition with the Country Party, the UAP had come up only four seats short of a majority in its own right. Nonetheless, Lyons' position was strong enough that on 6 January 1932, he was sworn in at the head of a UAP minority government with confidence and supply support from the Country Party. To date, this is the last time that the Country/National Party has not had any seats in a non-Labor cabinet.
The UAP went on to win 28 seats to Labor's 18, Lang Labor's 9, and the Country Party's 14, with 5 seats won by South Australia's Liberal and Country League at 15 September 1934 Australian Federal Election. The United Australia Party won 16 seats in the Senate, and the Country Party 2. Lyons took to the air at the 1934 election campaign – becoming the first Prime Minister to fly – piloted around Australia in the "Faith of Australia" by Charles Ulm. Following this election, having suffered an eight-seat swing, Lyons was forced to take the Country Party, led by Earle Page, into his government in a full-fledged Coalition. Page became Minister for Commerce.
At 23 October 1937 Election, the Coalition was returned to office with 28 seats for the UAP, one for an 'Independent UAP' candidate and 16 for the Country Party. The Labor Party under John Curtin made gains, winning 29 seats. Labor also won 16 seats in the Senate, against just 3 for the United Australia Party.
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Lyons government
The Lyons government was the federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister Joseph Lyons. It was made up of members of the United Australia Party in the Australian Parliament from January 1932 until the death of Joseph Lyons in 1939. Lyons negotiated a coalition with the Country Party after the 1934 Australian federal election. The Lyons government stewarded Australia's recovery from the Great Depression and established the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The background to the Lyons government saw Australia grappling with the immense challenges of the Great Depression.
Joseph Lyons began his political career as an Australian Labor Party politician and served as Premier of Tasmania. Lyons was elected to the Australian Federal Parliament in 1929 and served in Prime Minister James Scullin's Labor cabinet. Lyons became acting Treasurer in 1930 and helped negotiate the government's strategies for dealing with the Great Depression. With Scullin temporarily absent in London, Lyons and acting Prime Minister James Fenton clashed with the Labor Cabinet and Caucus over economic policy, and grappled with the differing proposals of the Premier's Plan, Lang Labor, the Commonwealth Bank and British adviser Otto Niemeyer. While Health Minister Frank Anstey supported NSW Premier Jack Lang's bid to default on debt repayments, Lyons advocated orthodox fiscal management. When Labor reinstated the more radical Ted Theodore as Treasurer in 1931, Lyons and Fenton resigned from Cabinet.
The stance of Joseph Lyons and Trade Minister James Fenton against the more radical proposals of the Labor movement to deal the Depression had attracted the support of prominent Australian conservatives, known as "the Group", whose number included future prime minister Robert Menzies. In parliament on 13 March 1931, though still a member of the ALP, Lyons supported a no confidence motion against the Scullin Labor government. He resigned from the ALP soon afterward, along with Trade Minister James Fenton and four other right-wing ALP MPs. The United Australia Party was then formed from a merger of the six Labor dissidents, the opposition Nationalist Party of Australia, and several citizens' groups. Lyons became the new party's leader, and hence Leader of the Opposition, with John Latham, the last leader of the Nationalists, as his deputy. The presence of the working-class Lyons as leader allowed the UAP to portray itself as the party of national unity, even though it was mostly an upper- and middle-class conservative party.
In November 1931, Lang Labor dissidents chose to challenge the Scullin Labor government and align with the United Australia Party Opposition to pass a 'no confidence' and the government fell.
With Australia still suffering the effects of the Great Depression, Joseph Lyons' newly formed United Australia Party won a landslide victory at 19 December 1931 Australian Federal Election, winning 34 seats in the Australian House of Representatives against 16 Country Party, 14 Australian Labor Party and 4 for Lang Labor, with a further 6 won by the South Australia 'Emergency Committee' and with 1 Independent. The United Australia Party won 15 seats in the Senate and Labor just 3. The new medium of radio was employed by the candidates, leading to the election being dubbed the 'radio election'. Although the UAP had fought the election as part of the traditional non-Labor Coalition with the Country Party, the UAP had come up only four seats short of a majority in its own right. Nonetheless, Lyons' position was strong enough that on 6 January 1932, he was sworn in at the head of a UAP minority government with confidence and supply support from the Country Party. To date, this is the last time that the Country/National Party has not had any seats in a non-Labor cabinet.
The UAP went on to win 28 seats to Labor's 18, Lang Labor's 9, and the Country Party's 14, with 5 seats won by South Australia's Liberal and Country League at 15 September 1934 Australian Federal Election. The United Australia Party won 16 seats in the Senate, and the Country Party 2. Lyons took to the air at the 1934 election campaign – becoming the first Prime Minister to fly – piloted around Australia in the "Faith of Australia" by Charles Ulm. Following this election, having suffered an eight-seat swing, Lyons was forced to take the Country Party, led by Earle Page, into his government in a full-fledged Coalition. Page became Minister for Commerce.
At 23 October 1937 Election, the Coalition was returned to office with 28 seats for the UAP, one for an 'Independent UAP' candidate and 16 for the Country Party. The Labor Party under John Curtin made gains, winning 29 seats. Labor also won 16 seats in the Senate, against just 3 for the United Australia Party.
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