Joseph Silver Collings (11 May 1865 – 20 June 1955) was a long-serving Australian politician. He was a hardworking

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 ...

bureaucrat with valuable writing and speaking talents, who was eventually rewarded by a five-year stint as a federal government minister.

Early life

Collings was born in Brighton, England and educated at Brighton Board School and by his parents. He reported for the ''Sussex Daily News'' before emigrating with his parents to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

when he was 18. He worked as a farm labourer, failed as a

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and, in 1885, married Kate McInerney. He found work in the footwear industry and was at one time secretary of the ''Queensland Boot and Shoe Manufacturers' Association''. He worked with " scabs" during a strike in 1895 and was ostracised by the Australian Boot Trade Employees' Federation although he worked hard for the labour movement. His support for the

1912 Brisbane general strike The 1912 Brisbane General Strike in Queensland, Australia, began when members of the Australian Tramway and Motor Omnibus Employees' Association were dismissed when they wore union badges to work on 18 January 1912. They then marched to Brisbane ...

led to him being forgiven by the unions and he subsequently established the Federated Clerks' Union in Queensland.

Political career

Collings unsuccessfully contested elections to the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembl ...

in 1908, 1909, and 1915, but was elected to Balmoral Shire Council from 1910 to 1913. He attended Labor Party conventions from 1905 and was elected to the Queensland central executive of the party between 1913 and 1928. From 1914 to 1915 and 1919 to 1931 he was an organiser for the party. In 1916 he campaigned vigorously against conscription in Queensland and Victoria. He was appointed to the

Queensland Legislative Council The Queensland Legislative Council was the upper house of the parliament in the Australian state of Queensland. It was a fully nominated body which first took office on 1 May 1860. It was abolished by the Constitution Amendment Act 1921, which to ...

in 1920 and took part in the successful vote to abolish it in 1922. In 1931 he was organising secretary for the provisional state executive set up by the federal party to replace the expelled

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 ...

executive. Collings was elected the Australian Senate in

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and became Leader of the Opposition in the Senate in 1935 and Leader of the Government in the Senate with the coming to power of the Curtin government in October 1941. At the same time he became

Minister for the Interior Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of governme ...

, a position he held until July 1945, when he 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 ...

, a position he held until November 1946. He did not contest the 1949 election and retired from the Senate in June 1950. Along with

Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony B ...

, Collings was joint Father of the Senate from 1947 to 1950. Collings, at 85 years of age, remains the oldest person to have served in the Senate.

Later life

After retiring, Collings and settled in the Brisbane seaside suburb of Brighton. Collings died at his home, 694 Flinders Parade, Brighton on 20 June 1955, survived by one son(Eric) and one daughter of his six children. He was accorded a state funeral and cremated.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Collings, Joe Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian Senate for Queensland Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Cabinet of Australia 1865 births 1955 deaths Members of the Queensland Legislative Council Australian trade unionists People from Brighton 20th-century Australian politicians British emigrants to Australia