Albert Charles Willis (24 May 1876 – 22 April 1954) was an Australian politician. Born at

Tonyrefail Tonyrefail is a village and community in the Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough, Wales. It is situated at the head of the River Ely; northwest of Llantrisant, about from Trebanog and about from Williamstown. During the second half of the 19th ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

to sinker James Willis and Louisa Morse, he was educated at Bryn Mawr Board School and worked in the Monmouthshire mines from the age of ten. He was a

bursary A bursary is a monetary award made by any educational institution or funding authority to individuals or groups. It is usually awarded to enable a student to attend school, university or college when they might not be able to, otherwise. Some awa ...

to London Labour College and

Ruskin College Ruskin College, originally known as Ruskin Hall, Oxford, is an independent educational institution in Oxford, England. It is not a college of Oxford University. It is named after the essayist, art and social critic John Ruskin (1819–1900) an ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and became first secretary of the Cardiff Workers Educational Association. Ordained a lay preacher with the Church of God in 1899, he was a member of Abertillery Urban District Council and

Monmouthshire County Council Monmouthshire County Council (or simply Monmouthshire Council) ( cy, Cyngor Sir Fynwy) is the governing body for the Monmouthshire principal area – one of the unitary authorities of Wales. The current unitary authority was created in 1996 a ...

. On 1 October 1901 he married Alice Maud Parker in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, with whom he had three children. In 1911 he moved to

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and worked at Balmain Colliery, becoming president and secretary of the Illawarra Colliery Employees' Association from 1913 to 1915. The first general secretary of the

Australian Coal and Shale Employees' Federation The Australian Coal and Shale Employees' Federation (often known as the Miners' Federation of Australia) was an Australian trade union representing workers in the coal mining industry from 1913 to 1990. It was first federally registered in 1913 a ...

from 1916 to 1925, he was arrested in 1917 as a member of the strike committee. From 1916 to 1919 he was a member of the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

's central executive, but he resigned in 1919 as part of the group that formed the

Industrial Socialist Labor Party The Industrial Socialist Labor Party, Industrial Labor Party and the Independent Labor Party were short lived socialist political parties in Australia in 1919 and the early 1920s. The Industrial Socialist Labor Party was founded by radical soci ...

. Willis rejoined the ALP in 1923 and became party president until 1925, when he was appointed to the New South Wales Legislative Council and became

Vice-President of the Executive Council The Vice-President of the Executive Council is the minister in the Government of Australia who acts as the presiding officer of meetings of the Federal Executive Council when the Governor-General is absent. The Vice-President of the Executiv ...

and Representative of Government in the Upper House. In 1927 he was Acting

Secretary for Mines The position of Secretary for Mines is a now defunct office in the United Kingdom Government, associated with the Board of Trade. In 1929, the department took over responsibility for petroleum. In 1940, the department was divided with Geoffrey L ...

. He lost his portfolios with the defeat of the Lang government at the 1927 election, regaining them after the Lang victory at the 1930 election. In 1931 he was appointed Agent-General for New South Wales in London, serving until he was recalled following the dismissal of the Lang government and subsequent defeat at the 1932 election. He retained his appointment to the Legislative Council. Willis resigned from the Legislative Council to stand as a Miners' candidate at the 1933 Bulli by-election, however he was defeated, receiving 23.5% of the primary votes, and was expelled from

Lang Labor Lang Labor was a faction of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) consisting of the supporters of Jack Lang, who served two terms as Premier of New South Wales and was the party's state leader from 1923 to 1939. Following the expulsion of the N ...

for standing against an endorsed candidate. He was readmitted to the Federal Labor Party in February 1934, and was elected to the Federal Labor Executive in April 1934, holding that position until the dispute between federal and state labor was healed in 1936. Willis died at

Cronulla Cronulla is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Boasting numerous surf beaches and swimming spots, the suburb attracts both tourists and Greater Sydney residents. Cronulla is located 26 kilometres south of the Sydne ...

on .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Albert 1876 births 1954 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Welsh emigrants to Australia Alumni of Ruskin College Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales Agents-General for New South Wales