The McLarty–Watts Ministry was the 21st
Ministry of the
Government of Western Australia
The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the States and territories of Australia, Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also common ...
, led by
Liberal Premier Sir
Ross McLarty
Sir Duncan Ross McLarty, (17 March 1891 – 22 December 1962) was an Australian politician and the 17th Premier of Western Australia.
Early life
McLarty was born in Pinjarra, Western Australia, the youngest of seven children of Edward McLarty, ...
and his deputy,
Country Party leader
Arthur Watts. It succeeded the
Wise Ministry on 1 April 1947, following the defeat of the
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 labour ...
government at the
1947 election two weeks earlier. It was significant in that it included in
Florence Cardell-Oliver not only the oldest person, at age 70, to receive their first appointment to a ministerial post in Western Australia, but also the first female cabinet minister in Australia.
The ministry was followed by the
Hawke Ministry on 23 February 1953 after the Coalition lost government at the
state election held on 14 February.
First Ministry
On 1 April 1947, the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir
James Mitchell, constituted the Ministry. He designated eight principal executive offices of the Government and appointed the following ministers to their positions, who served until the reconstitution of the Ministry on 7 October 1949. Two honorary members were also appointed.
The list below is ordered by decreasing seniority within the Cabinet, as indicated by the Government Gazette and the Hansard index. Blue entries indicate members of the Liberal Party, whilst green entries indicate members of the National Country Party. The members of the Ministry were:
First Ministry (reconstituted)
On 7 October 1949, the Governor, Sir
James Mitchell, reconstituted the Ministry. He designated eight principal executive offices of the Government and appointed the following ministers to their positions, who served until the Ministry was reformed on 6 April 1950 after the
1950 election. As previously, two honorary ministers were appointed, with
David Brand
Sir David Brand KCMG (1 August 1912 – 15 April 1979) was an Australian politician. A member of the Liberal Party, he was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1945 to 1975, and also the 19th and longest-serving Pr ...
replacing
Robert Ross McDonald
Sir Robert Ross McDonald QC (25 January 1888 – 25 March 1964) was an Australian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1933 to 1950, representing the seat of West Perth. He served as leader of the ...
in the Ministry.
Second Ministry
On 6 April 1950, the Governor, Sir
James Mitchell, constituted the Ministry. He designated eight principal executive offices of the Government and appointed the following ministers to their positions, who served until the end of the Ministry.
On 24 October 1950, following the assent of the ''Acts Amendment (Increase in number of Ministers of the Crown) Act 1950'' (No.2 of 1950), the Ministry was expanded to 10 members and the two Honorary Ministers were promoted. The listed Ministers served until the end of the Ministry on 23 February 1953.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McLarty-Watts Ministry
Western Australian ministries