Neville Wran

Neville Kenneth Wran, AC, CNZM, QC (born 11 October 1926) was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 until 1986. He was National President of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1980 to 1986 and Chairman of both the Lionel Murphy Foundation and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) from 1986 to 1991.

Early years

Wran was born in the Sydney suburb of Paddington and educated at Nicholson Street Public School, Balmain, Fort St Boys' High and the University of Sydney,^[1] where, ironically enough, he was a member of the Liberal Club,^[2] and from which he gained a Bachelor of Laws in 1948. He was admitted as a solicitor in 1951, called to the Bar in 1957, and became a Queen's Counsel in 1968.

Political career

He began his political career in 1970 when he became a member of the upper house of the Parliament of New South Wales, the Legislative Council. Three years afterwards, he moved to the lower house, the Legislative Assembly, in the seat of Bass Hill. Support for this move had been organised by the General Secretary of the FMWU, Ray Gietzelt.^[3] He then challenged Pat Hills for the state leadership of the ALP (which Hills had held since 1968). In this challenge he had cross-faction support from right-wing powerbroker John Ducker and left-winger Jack Ferguson. There were two rounds to the leadership vote which resulted in a tie between Hills and Wran in the second ballot. However it was ruled that in the event of a tie in the second ballot, the candidate who won the most votes in the first ballot would be the winner. Since Wran had won one vote more than Hills in the first ballot, Wran was therefore declared the new leader.

In May 1976, six months after Gough Whitlam's federal ALP government's dismissal, Wran led Labor to victory, narrowly defeating the Liberal Party's Premier Sir Eric Willis. Wran's win was not assured until it became clear that Gosford and Hurstville had fallen to Labor by only 74 and 44 votes respectively, giving Wran a one-seat majority. In 1978, campaigning with the slogan 'Wran's our Man', his government won a 13-seat swing on the back of the largest primary vote for any party in a century, popularly known as the 'Wranslide.' The Opposition Leader on that occasion, Peter Coleman, lost his seat. In 1981, Wran won a second 'Wranslide', picking up six seats for what is still Labor's largest proportion of seats in Parliament. Opposition Leader Bruce McDonald failed to be elected to the seat that he contested, marking the second time in a row that an Opposition Leader had failed to be elected to Parliament. Labor also reduced the Liberals to 14 seats, the same as its nominal junior partner, the National Country Party. He won a fourth term in 1984; although he suffered an 11-seat swing, he still won a larger majority than any of the victories won by the Liberals' Sir Robert Askin in the 1960s and 1970s.

Wran was also very popular, at one stage rating over 80 per cent approval in opinion polls. He was often talked about as a national political leader and rated highly in national polls as an alternative Labor Leader to Bill Hayden. He featured in Hayden's 1980 Federal election campaign, along with Bob Hawke.

Wran's childhood home in the Sydney suburb of Balmain

Wran was a Labor premier at a time when most Australian governments were held by conservative coalitions. During Wran's 10 years as Premier of New South Wales, the government embarked on a program of reform and change. Priorities were public transport (with the exception of the Warringah Transport Corridor which was cancelled despite a recommendation by Justice Michael Kirby that it be built), the environment, consumer protection and job creation. He also achieved significant electoral institutional reform such as a democratic Legislative Council, four year terms, public funding and disclosure laws and a pecuniary interests register for members of parliament. He called on Edwin Lusher, first whilst a QC and then as a Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, to chair commissions of inquiry into police administration and gambling.^[4] He also undertook the state's largest capital works program and refurbished many iconic places in Sydney. His government also built the modern-day Darling Harbour precinct.

Wran resigned both the premiership and his seat in Parliament on 4 July 1986, after continuously holding office longer than any other Premier in the history of NSW until that time. Bob Carr has since broken that record. Henry Parkes served longer than Wran in total, serving five terms between 1872 and 1891. The by-election for Wran's seat of Bass Hill was narrowly won by Michael Owen for the Liberal Party.

Controversy

In 1977, Wran supported Al Grassby, former Federal Immigration Minister, in allowing Domenico Barbaro, a Mafia figure in the Griffith region of New South Wales, back into Australia after having been earlier deported because of his criminal record.^[5] However, as journalist David Hickie explains, Wran attempted to undermine the influence of organised crime, particularly in the area of illegal casinos.^[6]

Further, in 1983, Wran faced the Street Royal Commission over claims by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) current affairs show Four Corners that he had tried to influence the magistracy over the 1977 committal of Kevin Humphreys, who had been charged with misappropriation of funds. His Corrective Services Minister, Rex Jackson, was jailed in 1987 for accepting bribes for the early release of prisoners.

Honours

• In June 1987 he was appointed an Officer in the Order of the Golden Ark (Netherlands) "for his contribution to the environment".^[7]

• In October 1987 he was appointed a Grand Officer (2nd Class) of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by the President of Italy, Francesco Cossiga.^[7]
• He was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia on 26 January 1988 "For service to government and politics and to the New South Wales Parliament".^[8]

• On 6 May 1995 Sydney University awarded Wran the degree of Doctor of Laws (honoris causa).^[7]

• On 31 December 2009, the New Zealand Government appointed him a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to New Zealand – Australia relations.^[9]

References

• Troy Bramston (ed.)(2006), The Wran Era, Federation Press, Sydney (NSW).
• Brian Dale (1985), Ascent to Power, Allen and Unwin Australia, North Sydney (NSW)
• Mike Steketee and Milton Cockburn (1986), Wran. An Unauthorised Biography, Allen and Unwin Australia, North Sydney (NSW).

v t e Premiers of New South Wales Stuart Donaldson Charles Cowper Henry Parker William Forster John Robertson James Martin Henry Parkes James Farnell Alexander Stuart George Dibbs Patrick Jennings George Reid William Lyne John See Thomas Waddell Joseph Carruthers Charles Wade James McGowen William Holman John Storey James Dooley George Fuller Jack Lang Thomas Bavin Bertram Stevens Alexander Mair William McKell James McGirr Joseph Cahill Bob Heffron Jack Renshaw Robert Askin Tom Lewis Eric Willis Neville Wran Barrie Unsworth Nick Greiner John Fahey Bob Carr Morris Iemma Nathan Rees Kristina Keneally Barry O'Farrell