Queensland Liberal Party
Queensland Liberal Party Queensland People's Party (1943–1949) | |
---|---|
Abbreviation |
|
Leader | Full list |
Founded | 3 October 1943[1] |
Dissolved | 26 July 2008 |
Preceded by | United Australia Party Queensland |
Merged into | Liberal National |
Membership (1949) | 20,764[2][a] |
Ideology | |
Political position | Centre-right |
National affiliation | Federal Liberal (1945–2008) |
Electoral alliance | National–Liberal Coalition (1957–1983; 1995–2008) |
Colours | Blue |
Legislative Assembly | 30 / 82 (1974–1977) |
House of Representatives | 17 / 26 (Qld seats; 1996–1998) |
Senate | 6 / 12 (Qld seats; 2005–2008) |
Brisbane City Council | 16 / 26 (2008) |
Website | |
qld.liberal.org.au | |
This article is part of a series on |
Liberalism in Australia |
---|
This article is part of a series on |
Conservatism in Australia |
---|
The Queensland Liberal Party, officially known as the Liberal Party of Australia (Queensland Division), was the Queensland division of the Liberal Party of Australia until 2008.
It was initially formed in October 1943 as the Queensland People's Party (QPP), which then absorbed the disbanded Queensland branch of the United Australia Party in 1944. In 1945, the QPP had an agreement with the newly formed Liberal Party, where in the "federal sphere", QPP would be the Queensland division of the Liberal Party and would run its candidates under the Liberal Party banner in federal elections.[4] However, in the "state sphere", it would continue to exist individually under its own banner. In July 1949, the QPP was renamed to reflect its status as the Queensland division of the Liberal Party.[5]
Based predominantly in
History
The centre-right in Queensland has a long history of splits and mergers, with much debate over whether to have a single party aiming to cover the whole state or to have distinctive voices for the metropolitan and rural areas. The Liberal Party was formed after a period that had seen three mergers and three splits in the preceding thirty years. Throughout its history it was beset by the question of relations with the Country/National Party until the two merged.
Origins
Affiliation with the Liberal Party
The following year, the national UAP was folded into the Liberal Party, and by April 1945, 17 non-Labor forces in Queensland joined the Liberal Party. However, the QPP declined to dissolve itself and join the Liberal Party, leading the Liberal Party the possibility to have to organise its own Queensland division.[8] However, in May 1945, the QPP eventually reached an agreement with the Liberal Party, where the QPP agreed to become the local apparatus of the Liberal Party for federal elections.[9][10] That meant in the "federal sphere" or relating to federal matters, QPP would be the Queensland division of the Liberal Party. During federal elections, QPP candidates would run under the Liberal Party banner and were bound by the Liberal Party policy and platform.[4][11] In the "state sphere", QPP would run candidates under its own banner in state elections and were bound by QPP policy and platform.[11] All candidates would be selected by a joint executive consisting of the state provisional executive of the Liberal Party and QPP representatives.[12][13]
Chandler was succeeded as leader in 1946 by Bruce Pie, a fellow Brisbane based businessman, who led the party to an increase to nine seats in the 1947 state election, offering a bold reform policy that at times clashed with the Country Party's aims.[14] However both Chandler and Pie had business concerns, as well as the former's continued local government role, that meant they could not devote all their time to leading the party.[15] Thomas Hiley took over the leadership in 1948.[16]
Since 1946, there were attempts to rename the QPP to the Liberal Party, including an unsuccessful attempt in October 1948.
Relations with the Country Party remained uneasy for much of the next decade through the leaderships of Hiley and then
Coalition government, 1957–1983
In 1957 the
The Liberals were still the smaller of the two coalition parties in the state parliament despite polling more votes, a position that was reinforced when the new government modified the malapportionment to its advantage despite some Liberal opposition.[26] Later in 1962 the Liberals secured the reintroduction of preferential voting which would allow the non-Labor vote to combine but also in the long term allowed for the two coalition parties to contest seats against one another.[27] However, for much of the first decade in power relations between the two coalition parties held well, helped by a determination to maintain the relation by Premier and Country Party leader Frank Nicklin and a succession of Liberal leaders including Kenneth Morris, Alan Munro, a brief return by Thomas Hiley and Gordon Chalk. In 1959 a Liberal convention passed a resolution to offer to merge with the Country Party "on any reasonable terms", but the latter rejected both this and a further offer in 1963.[28] However tensions started growing on several fronts, which put pressure on the traditional allocation of seats between the two partners. Brisbane's growth was rapidly spilling onto the Redcliffe Peninsula, and the Gold Coast was also seeing growing urbanisation. Additionally, the Liberals were setting up new branches in traditional Country Party areas.[29] The 1966 state election saw the Country and Liberal parties stand against each other in eight seats, but none changed between the coalition partners.[30]
Relations deteriorated during the premiership of Nicklin's longterm successor, Joh Bjelke-Petersen. The parties got off to a poor start when the previous premier, Jack Pizzey, died suddenly and Liberal leader Gordon Chalk was appointed as a temporary successor until the Country Party elected a new leader but at first tried to retain the office for himself until Bjelke-Petersen threatened to break up the coalition.[31] Bjelke-Petersen also moved to refine the malapportionment further, now dubbed the "Bjelkemander", which reinforced the Country Party's superior position.[32] However steady urbanisation in the state increased pressure on relations between the parties as traditional Country Party areas turned into Liberal targets. An early conflict came in the Albert by-election in 1970. The electoral district of Albert, based around the Gold Coast, had been in Country Party hands since 1936 but over the 1960s saw increased electoral pressure from first independents and then the Liberals. The by-election saw the Country Party vote collapse and the Liberals take the seat, contributing to a challenge against Bjelke-Petersen though he narrowly survived a leadership challenge.[33] There was little electoral change in the 1969 and 1972 state elections, but in the next few years the Country Party became increasingly assertive, changing its name to the "National Party" (a name adopted by its federal counterpart in 1982), standing in more urban seats and increasingly taking on the federal Whitlam government as part of greater assertiveness. The 1974 state election saw the Labor Party routed with both National and Liberal parties picking up seats.[34] With Labor increasingly unviable as a party of government, conflict between the two coalition parties increased as they stood against each other in more and more seats. The Liberals were outpolled by the Nationals at the 1977 state election and subsequently diminished in influence in the cabinet.[34]
In government itself the two parties held together, with the Liberals suffering increasing division over tactics between the parliamentary leadership, the backbenchers and the extra-parliamentary party. Chalk had retired in 1976, succeeded by
The long path to merger
Terry White was soon deposed as leader and replaced by the return of William Knox. However the Liberals were unable to recover much ground at the 1986 election which saw the Nationals consolidate their position and win an outright majority. Angus Innes became leader in 1988 as the National government was in decline, but proved unable to make any headway in the 1989 election which saw Labor take power for the first time in over thirty years.
The new Labor government of Wayne Goss dismantled the "Bjelkemander" and as a result Brisbane now elected nearly half the state parliament. Furthermore, the preferential voting system was changed to optional preferencing, making it harder for the Nationals and Liberals to contest the same seats without risking loss to Labor. These changes would have the effect of altering the relationship between the two parties as the Nationals could no longer seek government in their own right but the Liberals initially instead sought to achieve senior status and steadily replaced the Nationals as the main conservative party on first the Sunshine Coast and then the Gold Coast.[41] The Liberals elected their first female leader, Joan Sheldon, who was seen as less hostile to the National Party than Innes,[42] but the parties contested the 1992 election separately and made no real advance. Two months after the election, Sheldon and Nationals leader Rob Borbidge signed a new coalition agreement,[43][44] allowing them to present a united front in the 1995 election.[45] The initial results saw Labor retain power with a one-seat majority, but this was overturned when the result in one seat was declared void and the Liberals won the subsequent by-election. With the support of an independent, the National-Liberal coalition took power, holding it until 1998.[46]
However the coalition faced a strong threat from the rise of
The next seven years saw the Liberals in the awkward position of having been incredibly weakened by both the Nationals and Labor but also facing a potentially easier route to senior status over the Nationals, as the latter had been almost wiped out on the Gold and Sunshine Coasts with the Liberals starting to retake the seats. The party made only limited advances at the 2004 and 2006 elections. While it seemed increasingly likely the Liberals would be the larger party in any future coalition government, it also presented the awkward question of which party leader would be Premier, a question that Bruce Flegg, who replaced Quinn as leader in 2006, struggled to answer.[36] A proposal was made in 2005 to merge the two parties but this provoked much opposition, including from the federal governing coalition.[50] Following the federal defeat in the 2007 election and the proposal was revived, and in July 2008 under leader Mark McArdle the party agreed to merge with the Nationals as the Liberal National Party, with McArdle as the merged party's deputy leader.[36] The merged party has full voting rights with the Liberal Party and observer status with the National Party, even though at the time more of its elected members were former Nationals.
The merged party has so far lasted a decade, but from time to time calls are made for the parties to demerge from both Liberals[51] and Nationals.[52]
John-Paul Langbroek, from the Liberal side of the merger, took over the leadership following the resignation of founding leader Lawrence Springborg. It was the first time in 84 years that the non-Labor side in Queensland had been led by someone aligned federally with the Liberals or their predecessors. Langbroek gave way in 2011 to another former Liberal, Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman, who led the party to a record landslide victory in 2012, including all but three seats in Brisbane. The LNP was rolled out of office after only one term in 2015.
Brisbane city government
As well as state elections, the Liberals also regularly contested the elections for the City of Brisbane, the largest local authority in Australia.[53] The position of Lord Mayor of Brisbane was made a directly elected one in 1982, with the Liberals first winning the post in the 1985 election with Sallyanne Atkinson. The party also won a majority on the council and held both in the 1988 election.[54] Following Atkinson's defeat in the 1991 election, the Liberals did not win the mayoralty again until the 2004 election when Campbell Newman won the post but with a Labor majority on the council.[55] Newman was re-elected in 2008, this time with a Liberal majority on the council.[56]
Leaders
Leader | Date started | Date finished |
---|---|---|
Founded as Queensland People's Party
| ||
John Beals Chandler | 26 October 1943 | 7 March 1946 |
Bruce Pie | 8 March 1946 | 2 February 1948 |
Thomas Hiley | 3 February 1948 | 9 July 1949 |
Becomes the Liberal Party
| ||
Thomas Hiley | 9 July 1949 | 12 August 1954 |
Kenneth Morris | 17 August 1954 | 23 August 1962 |
Alan Munro | 23 August 1962 | 28 January 1965 |
Thomas Hiley | 28 January 1965 | 23 December 1965 |
Gordon Chalk | 23 December 1965 | 13 August 1976 |
William Knox | 13 August 1976 | 6 October 1978 |
Llewellyn Edwards |
9 October 1978 | 9 August 1983 |
Terry White | 9 August 1983 | 3 November 1983 |
William Knox | 3 November 1983 | 31 January 1988 |
Angus Innes | 31 January 1988 | 13 May 1990 |
Denver Beanland | 13 May 1990 | 11 November 1991 |
Joan Sheldon | 11 November 1991 | 23 June 1998 |
David Watson | 23 June 1998 | 28 February 2001 |
Bob Quinn | 28 February 2001 | 7 August 2006 |
Bruce Flegg | 7 August 2006 | 4 December 2007 |
Mark McArdle | 6 December 2007 | 26 July 2008 |
Merged into the Liberal National Party of Queensland
|
Election results
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Position | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1944 | John Beals Chandler | 124,437 | 24.72 | 7 / 62
|
3 | 3rd | Opposition |
1947 | Bruce Pie | 160,623 | 25.73 | 9 / 62
|
2 | 3rd | Opposition |
1950 | Thomas Hiley | 188,331 | 29.91 | 11 / 75
|
2 | 3rd | Opposition |
1953 | 129,633 | 21.30 | 8 / 75
|
3 | 3rd | Opposition | |
1956 | Kenneth Morris | 164,116 | 25.07 | 8 / 75
|
0 | 3rd | Opposition |
1957 | 162,372 | 23.23 | 18 / 75
|
10 | 3rd | Coalition | |
1960 | 178,567 | 24.03 | 20 / 78
|
2 | 3rd | Coalition | |
1963 | Alan Munro | 183,185 | 23.76 | 20 / 78
|
0 | 3rd | Coalition |
1966 | Gordon Chalk | 203,648 | 25.49 | 20 / 78
|
0 | 3rd | Coalition |
1969 | 201,765 | 23.68 | 19 / 78
|
1 | 3rd | Coalition | |
1972 | 201,596 | 22.23 | 21 / 82
|
2 | 3rd | Coalition | |
1974 | 324,682 | 31.09 | 30 / 82
|
9 | 2nd | Coalition | |
1977 | William Knox | 274,398 | 25.22 | 24 / 82
|
6 | 2nd | Coalition |
1980 | Llewellyn Edwards
|
316,272 | 26.92 | 22 / 82
|
2 | 3rd | Coalition |
1983 | Terry White | 196,072 | 14.88 | 8 / 82
|
14 | 3rd | Crossbench |
1986 | William Knox | 230,310 | 16.50 | 10 / 89
|
2 | 3rd | Crossbench |
1989 | Angus Innes | 331,562 | 21.05 | 8 / 89
|
2 | 3rd | Crossbench |
1992 | Joan Sheldon | 356,640 | 20.44 | 9 / 89
|
1 | 3rd | Crossbench |
1995 | 410,083 | 22.74 | 14 / 89
|
5 | 3rd | Opposition | |
1998 | 311,514 | 16.09 | 9 / 89
|
5 | 3rd | Opposition | |
2001 | David Watson | 294,968 | 14.32 | 3 / 89
|
6 | 3rd | Opposition |
2004 | Bob Quinn | 398,147 | 18.50 | 5 / 89
|
2 | 3rd | Opposition |
2006 | Bruce Flegg | 442,453 | 20.10 | 8 / 89
|
3 | 3rd | Opposition |
See also
Notes
References
- JSTOR 20634106.
- Brisbane Telegraph. Queensland, Australia. 9 July 1949. p. 11. Retrieved 9 December 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- .
- ^ a b "Liberals & Q.P.P. in agreement". The Courier Mail. 24 May 1945. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Change Took Years - Q.P.P's Name Died Hard". Brisbane Telegraph. 9 July 1949. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "People's Party - Formation in Brisbane". Queensland Times. 27 October 1943. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ John Laverty, 'Chandler, Sir John Beals (1887–1962)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/chandler-sir-john-beals-9724/text17171, published first in hardcopy 1993, accessed online 22 June 2018.
- ^ "Split Threat in Q'Land Non Labour". The Courier-Mail. 4 April 1945. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- ISBN 978-0702215155.
- ^ "Q.P.P. Likely to Endorse Link with Liberals". The Courier Mail. 21 May 1945. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Q.P.P. Organises For Polls". The Courier Mail. 2 January 1946. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "Q.P.P. To Select Seven Liberals For Federal Poll". The Courier Mail. 17 September 1945. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "Agreement Reached - Liberal Party and Q.P.P. Organisation". Warwick Daily News. 24 May 1945. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- ^ Paul D. Williams, 'Pie, Arthur Bruce (1902–1962)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/pie-arthur-bruce-11392/text20355, published first in hardcopy 2000, accessed online 22 June 2018.
- ^ ISBN 978-0702215155.
- ^ Manfred Cross, 'Hiley, Sir Thomas Alfred (Tom) (1905–1990)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/hiley-sir-thomas-alfred-tom-12634/text22763, published first in hardcopy 2007, accessed online 22 June 2018.
- ^ "Party's Name Disappears". The West Australian. 9 July 1949. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
- ^ "Assurance from Liberals - Move against Reds to get No. 1 priority". The Courier Mail. 8 October 1948. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "Q.P.P. Offer to Merge with Country Party". The Courier Mail. 20 November 1948. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "Queensland C.P. Offers Support To People's Party". The Courier Mail. 14 December 1948. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ISBN 9780702217340.
- ^ Stevenson, Brian "Frank Nicklin and the Coalition Government, 1957-1968", in Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland volume 13 issue 11: page 404
- ISBN 9780702217340.
- ^ B. J. Costar, 'Gair, Vincent Clare (Vince) (1901–1980)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gair-vincent-clare-vince-10267/text18159, published first in hardcopy 1996, accessed online 20 June 2018.
- ISBN 978-0702214288.
- ^ Stevenson, Brian "Frank Nicklin and the Coalition Government, 1957-1968", in Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland volume 13 issue 11: page 405
- ^ Stevenson, Brian "Frank Nicklin and the Coalition Government, 1957-1968", in Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland volume 13 issue 11: page 408
- ISBN 978-0702215155.
- ^ Stevenson, Brian "Frank Nicklin and the Coalition Government, 1957-1968", in Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland volume 13 issue 11: pages 407-408
- ^ Stevenson, Brian "Frank Nicklin and the Coalition Government, 1957-1968", in Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland volume 13 issue 11: pages 409-411
- ^ Rae Wear, 'Chalk, Gordon William (Chalkie) (1913–1991)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/chalk-gordon-william-chalkie-15168/text26356, published online 2014, accessed online 20 June 2018.
- ISBN 978-0702222306.
- ^ ISBN 978-0733302886.
- ^ ISBN 978-0702220876.
- ISBN 978-0702215155.
- ^ a b c Green, Antony (30 July 2008). "The Liberal-National Party - a new model party?". ABC News. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ISBN 978-0702233043.
- ISBN 978-0702222306.
- ISBN 978-0702233043.
- ISBN 978-070223742-3.
- ^ Antony Green (24 March 2012). "Election Preview - Queensland Votes 2012". ABC News. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- Sydney Morning Herald. p. 7.
- Sydney Morning Herald. p. 4.
- Sydney Morning Herald. p. 5.
- ^ a b Antony Green. "Queensland 2006/07 State Election". ABC News. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ "Borbidge remembers his time as premier, even if the LNP doesn't". Brisbanetimes.com.au. 3 February 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ "It took one massacre: how Australia embraced gun control after Port Arthur". The Guardian. 15 March 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ "Former premier's US talk show appearance goes viral". Smh.com.au. 25 April 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ "2001 Queensland Election". AustralianPolitics.com. 17 February 2001. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
- ^ "Queensland coalition merger plan dead". Abc.net.au. 1 June 2006. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ Michelle Grattan (21 November 2016). "Brandis says Queensland Liberal National Party merger could be revisited". Theconversation.com. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ "Queensland election: LNP merger 'was a mistake'". The Australian. 26 November 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- ^ Antony Green. "Election Preview - 2012 Brisbane City Council Election". ABC News. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
- ^ Green, Antony (17 March 2008). "Election Preview". ABC News.
- ^ Antony Green. "Election Preview - 2008 Brisbane City Council Election". ABC. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
- ^ Antony Green. "2008 Brisbane City Council Election". ABC. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
Bibliography
- Coaldrake, Peter (1989). Working the System: Government in Queensland. University of Queensland Press. ISBN 978-0702222306.
- Fitzgerald, Ross (1984). From 1915 to the Early 1980s: A History of Queensland. University of Queensland Press. ISBN 9780702217340.
- Hughes, Colin A. (1980). The Government of Queensland. University of Queensland Press. ISBN 978-0702215155.