The Nevanas affair was a political scandal in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

that was partly responsible for the downfall of

John Scaddan John Scaddan, CMG (4 August 1876 – 21 November 1934), popularly known as "Happy Jack", was Premier of Western Australia from 7 October 1911 until 27 July 1916. Early life John Scaddan was born in Moonta, South Australia, into a Cornish A ...

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

. Early in 1914, Scaddan and one of his

ministers 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 ...

signed a contract with the

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

financier S. V. Nevanas, for the erection of a meat works in Wyndham at an estimated cost of £155,000. They did so without consulting the rest of the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

, and against the advice of officers of the Public Works Department, who felt that the price was unrealistically low. Shortly afterwards, the government cancelled the contract on the grounds that the company had not complied with the conditions of the contract. However Nevanas received substantial financial compensation for the cancellation. Many members of the

party were angered at the failure to call for public tenders, and the opposition were unsatisfied with the government's explanation for the cancellation. Eventually, a Select committee was set up to inquire into the matter. The committee's report revealed, amongst other findings, that Scaddan had written to Nevanas offering him management of the works. The report triggered an extensive and acrimonious debate in the Legislative Assembly in November 1915, during which the government was strongly opposed by three of its backbench members, Edward Heitmann,

Bertie Johnston Edward Bertram Johnston (11 January 1880 – 6 September 1942), known as Bertie Johnston, was the Western Australian Legislative Assembly member for Williams-Narrogin from 1911 to 1928, and a Senator from 1929 until 1942. His resignation fr ...

and George Taylor. The government survived a no-confidence vote by a single vote, and only by promising its backbench critics a leadership spill. Despite this promise, caucus subsequently voted to confirm the existing ministry. In response,

resigned from the party and parliament. He then contested the subsequent by-election as an independent, and won. This left the government with only 24 seats in a house of 50, and shortly afterwards the Scaddan government was defeated and forced to resign.

Notes

References

* *{{cite book , author = Oliver, Bobbie , year = 1995 , title = War and Peace in Western Australia: The Social and Political Impact of the Great War , publisher = University of Western Australia Press , location = Nedlands, Western Australia , isbn = 1-875560-57-2 1914 in Australia Political scandals in Australia Kimberley (Western Australia) History of the Australian Labor Party 1910s in Western Australia