Billy Snedden

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Billy Snedden in the 1950s

Sir Billy Mackie Snedden , KCMG , QC (born December 31, 1926 in Perth , Western Australia - † June 27, 1987 ) was an Australian politician and the fifth chairman of the Liberal Party of Australia .

Early life

Billy Snedden was born on December 31, 1926 in Perth, Western Australia, the son of a stonemason and was taught in state schools. In 1945, the last year of the Second World War , he joined the Royal Australian Air Force . After the war, he retired from the army and studied law at the University of Western Australia . In 1950, Snedden married Joy Forsyth with whom he had four children. In 1951, after successfully completing his studies, he started working as a lawyer. During this time he tried once for the Parliament of Western Australia and once for the Australian House of Representatives to win a seat, but was unsuccessful both times.

Political career

In 1954, Snedden moved to Melbourne , where he worked as a lawyer for the out-of-town Bruce constituency until his election to the House of Representatives. He was appointed Attorney-General of Australia by Robert Menzies in 1965. From 1966 to 1969 he worked as immigration minister and from 1969 to 1971 as labor and military service minister, which made him a target of his political opponents, as the government's policy of conscription in Australia during the Vietnam War met with enormous popular resistance bumped. In 1967, after the death of Harold Holt , he was the first candidate for the party leadership of the Liberals, but where he was not seriously considered as a candidate.

Party leadership

In 1971, Snedden was appointed Treasury Secretary by William McMahon and elected his party's vice-chairman. After McMahon lost to the Labor Party under Gough Whitlam in 1972 , Snedden was formally elected as the new party chairman.

After the 1974 elections, the conservative wing of the Liberal Party, led by Malcolm Fraser , decided to oust Snedden from the party leadership, which could only be prevented with great effort. In March 1975, Fraser dared to make another attempt at the post of chairman, since Snedden could not bring his Labor rival Whitlam in trouble. Snedden was voted out of office, becoming the first Liberal leader to not become the country's prime minister . He retired from the front lines until Fraser supported him in the February 1976 election as House Speaker.

Speaker of the House of Representatives

Snedden exercised his new office with dignity and passion and was knighted during his tenure (January 1978). In 1982, Snedden was given revenge on Fraser when he was called a liar by a Labor MP, Bob Hawke , and Snedden did not reprimand him. Fraser had to accept this because he was not allowed to attack the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Next life

After the government around Fraser lost the elections to Hawke in 1983, Snedden suddenly resigned from parliament. He separated from his wife and withdrew from public life due to his poor health.

In 1987, Snedden died of a heart attack during sexual intercourse .

Honors

Snedden was named Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (KCMG) in January 1978 . He also became a Crown Attorney (QC).

Web links

literature

  • Billy Mackie Snedden, M. Bernie Schedvin: Billy Snedden, an unlikely liberal . Macmillan Australia, South Melbourne 1990, ISBN 0333501306 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Sydney Morning Herald , "Achievements: Billy's bedtime story", September 25, 2006 (English)
    NEWS.com.au , "Sir Billy and son 'shared mystery lover'", September 23, 2006 (English)
personal data
SURNAME Snedden, Billy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Snedden, Billy Mackie
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Australian politician
DATE OF BIRTH December 31, 1926
PLACE OF BIRTH Perth , Western Australia
DATE OF DEATH June 27, 1987