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1917 Grey By-election
The Grey by-election of 1917 was a by-election held during the 18th New Zealand Parliament. Background After the outbreak of World War I, MP Paddy Webb became a leading critic of the Reform Party (New Zealand), Reform government of William Massey's policy of conscription, leading him to be briefly jailed for sedition in April 1917. In October the same year, Webb was called up for the military himself though he refused to co-operate. To back up his decision, he resigned from his seat in Parliament and challenged the government to fight a by-election on the issue in the hopes of gaining a public mandate for his decision. However, Massey's government declined, refusing to make the episode a public one. As a result, Webb was returned to his seat in Parliament unopposed. References Unopposed by-elections in New Zealand, Grey 1917 1917 elections in New Zealand History of the West Coast, New Zealand {{NewZealand-election-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paddy Webb
Patrick Charles Webb (30 November 1884 – 23 March 1950) was a New Zealand trade unionist and politician. Early life Webb was born in Rutherglen, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria. His father, George Webb, was a miner, and Paddy Webb eventually worked in the mines himself. He quickly became active in the mining unions, becoming head of the local Amalgamated Miners' Association branch by 1904. During this time, he met Michael Joseph Savage, who would eventually become the first Labour Prime Minister of New Zealand. As a result of his involvement in strike action, Webb was blacklisted, and in 1905, he moved to New Zealand to seek work. After briefly living in Dunedin, he moved to the West Coast, working in mines first on the Denniston plateau and then at Runanga. Webb became involved with the New Zealand Socialist Party, and was an advocate for socialist ideals. Working in the Runanga mine, Webb was somewhat sheltered from repercussions he would otherwise hav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
