State Government of Western Australia beginning 16 September 1910 - period in office of Premier Wilson, Frank ending on 7 October 1911
Period in office of premier (see Glossary entry for 'period in office' and related terms)
Parliamentary support during period
Coalition partner 1
Number of ministers at beginning of period (this may vary during the period)
Assembly elections contested as premier or after which became premier (see Glossary entry for 'after election')
| Election | Premier at election | Premier's party | Premier after election | Premier's party |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WA 3 October 1911 | Frank Wilson | Liberal Party | John Scaddan | Australian Labor Party |
Previous period in this series for WA | Next period in this series for WA
Notes
Resignation of premier (Moore): Beginning of Wilson's first period in office: 'In September 1910 Moore resigned on grounds of ill-health, and Wilson was commissioned', Hughes and Graham, p. 227 (see 'Sources', below). Wilson was commissioned as Premier of a majority Ministerialist government.
Loss of general election: '... [T]he Wilson Government went into the 1911 election with confidence high, especially in view of the redistribution of seats which it had pushed through a few months before, against the vehement protest of the Labor Opposition, and the introduction of preferential voting which was expected to suit the Liberals. That the result was a Labor landslide shows the infinite capacity of politics to surprise', de Garis, p. 90 (see 'References', below).
Ministerialists and the emergence of political parties: During the 1890s, factional politics began to give way to political groupings and electoral organizations which foreshadowed the emergence of modern political parties. But these groupings were still fluid. The term ministerialists is often applied to groupings which, for a variety of reasons, supported a particular government. Hughes and Graham (p. 227, see 'Sources', below) label the Wilson ministry as 'Liberal', but the term reflects the predisposition of the Premier and his supporting group rather than a party organization, even though during Wilson's term of office such a body -- the National Liberal League -- was in the process of creation; see de Garis, p. 90 (see 'References', below).
For the emergence of political parties, see Brian de Garis, 'Western Australia', in P Loveday, A W Martin and R S Parker (editors), The Emergence of the Australian Party System, pp 298-354 (Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, 1977, ISBN 0908094035).
References: For a study of the style of parliamentary politics at the time, see Brian de Garis, 'Self-Government and the Emergence of Political Parties, 1890-1911', in David Black (editor), The House on the Hill: A History of the Parliament of Western Australia 1832-1990, pp 63-95, (Perth: Western Australian Parliamentary History Project, Parliament of Western Australia, 1991, ISBN 0730939839), and note C T Stannage, 'The Composition of the Western Australian Parliament 1890-1911', University Studies in History, 4 (3), 1965: 85-94.
Summary information on Western Australian premiers from 1890 to 1982 and a short essay, 'The Premiers -- An Introductory Comment', can be found in Reid and Oliver (see 'Sources', below).
For a survey of Wilson's career, see David Black, 'Wilson, Frank (1859 - 1918)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 12, pp 520-521, (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1990), on line at:
http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A120585b.htm
Sources
Colin A Hughes and B D Graham, A Handbook of Australian Government and Politics 1890-1964, (Canberra: Australian National University Press, 1968, SBN 708102700); John Mandy and David Black (editors),The Western Australian Parliamentary Handbook Centenary Edition, (Perth: Parliamentary History Project, Parliament of Western Australia, 1990, ISBN 0731697847); G S Reid and M R Oliver, The Premiers of Western Australia 1890-1982, (Perth: University of Western Australia Press, 1982, ISBN 0855642149).