A
leadership spill
In Australian politics, a leadership spill (or simply spill) is a colloquialism referring to a declaration that the leadership of a parliamentary party is vacant and open for contest. A spill may involve all or some of the leadership positions (l ...
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 ...
(ALP), then the opposition party in the
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislature, legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the ...
, was rejected on 21 October 1954.
Background
On 5 October 1954 Evatt gave an aggressive speech against '
disloyal elements' within the Labor Party, which aimed "to deflect the Labor Movement from the pursuit of established Labor objectives and ideals."
The speech caused ructions within the ALP leading many to question Evatt's position.
Labor's caucus rejected by 52 to 28 votes a motion for a
spill
A spill occurs when the contents of something, usually in liquid form, are emptied out onto a surface, person or clothes, often unintentionally.
Spill may also refer to:
* Oil spill
*Chemical spill
*Data spill
*Leadership spill
*Spill (audio), wh ...
moved by Senators
George Cole and
James Fraser. Deputy leader
Arthur Calwell
Arthur Augustus Calwell (28 August 1896 – 8 July 1973) was an Australian politician who served as the leader of the Labor Party from 1960 to 1967. He led the party to three federal elections.
Calwell grew up in Melbourne and attended St J ...
and
Allan Fraser would have stood for election as Leader and deputy leader respectively in the event of a spill occurring.
After the ballot, Evatt insisted on counting the names for and against, which only furthered his opponents animosity.
[
]
See also
*1954 Australian federal election
The 1954 Australian federal election were held in Australia on 29 May 1954. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives were up for election, but no Senate election took place. The incumbent Liberal–Country coalition led by Prime Minister Ro ...
*Australian Labor Party split of 1955
The Australian Labor Party split of 1955 was a split within the Australian Labor Party along ethnocultural lines and about the position towards communism.
Key players in the split were the federal opposition leader H. V. "Doc" Evatt and B. A. ...
References
{{Leadership spills in Australia
Australian Labor Party leadership spills
Australian Labor Party leadership spill