David Gervan McMillan (26 February 1904 – 20 February 1951) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party, and a medical practitioner.

Biography

McMillan was born in 1904 in New Plymouth, the eldest child of Annie Gertrude Pearce and David McMillan, a

dairy farmer Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a history that ...

near Stratford. He received his secondary education at Stratford Technical High School, where he was

dux ''Dux'' (; plural: ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, '' ...

. With the help of the Taranaki Scholarship, he could afford to study medicine at the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate ...

, from where he graduated

MB ChB Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

in 1929. He was a medical practitioner, first practising in

Kurow Kurow is a small town in the Waitaki District, New Zealand. It is located on the south bank of the Waitaki River, northwest of Oamaru. Description The name is an Anglicised form of the Māori name of the nearby mountain, Te Kohurau. In the ...

(1929–34) and then at 115 Highgate in Kaikorai,

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

(c.1935-36, after which the building was his electorate office to 1943, then again a medical practice after he had left parliament). The building was demolished after 1950 to make way for the Stuart Street extension. McMillan became involved with the Labour Party in 1923. In his view, good health extended beyond good medical support, but included educational, economic, and social factors. He represented the Dunedin West electorate from to 1943, when he retired. He was

Minister of Marine One of France's Secretaries of State under the Ancien Régime was entrusted with control of the French Navy ( Secretary of State of the Navy (France).) In 1791, this title was changed to Minister of the Navy. Before January 1893, this position als ...

(1940–1941) in the First Labour Government, and was responsible for much of the

social security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...

system introduced by Labour. In

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

he ran for the position of Labour Party leader, being nominated by

Arnold Nordmeyer Sir Arnold Henry Nordmeyer (born Heinrich Arnold Nordmeyer, 7 February 1901 – 2 February 1989) was a New Zealand politician. He served as Minister of Finance (1957–1960) and later as Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition ...

, a friend from Kurow and a supporter of John A. Lee. Clyde Carr also ran, but the winner to replace

Savage Savage may refer to: Places Antarctica * Savage Glacier, Ellsworth Land * Savage Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Savage Ridge, Victoria Land United States * Savage, Maryland, an unincorporated community * Savage, Minnesota, a city * Savage, Mi ...

was his deputy,

Peter Fraser Peter Fraser (; 28 August 1884 – 12 December 1950) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 24th prime minister of New Zealand from 27 March 1940 until 13 December 1949. Considered a major figure in the history of the New Zealand La ...

. He was a

Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council ( mi, Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ōtepoti) is the local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Dunedin is Jul ...

lor for 1935–1938, 1938–1941, 1944–1947 and 1950–1951. He twice unsuccessfully stood for the Dunedin mayoralty; he was beaten by Andrew Allen and Donald Charles Cameron in 1941 and

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

, respectively. McMillan died on 20 February 1951 at Dunedin from a heart disease. He was survived by his wife, Ethel McMillan, and their two sons. Two years after his death, his widow became a Member of Parliament for , also representing the Labour Party.

Notes

References

*
Dunedin City Council, Mayor & Councillors

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:McMillan, Gervan 1904 births 1951 deaths New Zealand Labour Party MPs Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand New Zealand MPs for Dunedin electorates University of Otago alumni Deputy mayors of places in New Zealand Dunedin City Councillors Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives People from New Plymouth New Zealand general practitioners 20th-century New Zealand politicians