The Willis–Punch ministry or Willis ministry was the 70th ministry of the

New South Wales Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the executive state government of New South Wales, Australia. The government comprises 11 portfolios, led by a ministerial department and supported by several agencies. Th ...

, and was led by the 34th

Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster system, Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales actin ...

, Sir Eric Willis in a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

coalition A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...

with the Country Party of Australia, that was led by Leon Punch.

Background

Willis joined the newly formed Liberal Party of Australia in 1945, after hearing a speech by

Sir Robert Menzies ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part ...

. After unsuccessfully seeking election to the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Australian Senate, Senate. Its composition and powers are set out in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. ...

, Willis was elected to the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House ...

in 1950 and served continuously up until 1978, representing the seat of Earlwood, in the inner southwestern suburbs of Sydney. Upon Sir Robert Askin's retirement in January 1975, Willis was seen as the favourite to take the premiership. However, despite Askin's initial support, Willis refused his help, preferring to gain the leadership on his own merits. Askin then put his support behind the Minister for Lands, Tom Lewis. Willis, sure he had support, refused to campaign, and the party put its support behind Lewis, leading to his election to Premier. Willis was then replaced as Deputy by John Maddison. For Willis' service as Deputy Leader he was appointed a

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on 14 June 1975. Lewis was Premier for only one year and looked increasingly likely to lead the state Liberals to defeat. At the party room meeting on 20 January 1976, parliamentary backbencher Neil Pickard called a spill motion. This was carried 22 votes to 11 and Willis was made Leader unopposed. Punch was elected to the NSW Legislative Assembly in 1959 and served continuously up until 1985, representing variously the seats of Upper Hunter (1959-1962) and then

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(1962-1985). Elected Deputy Leader of the Country Party in 1973, Punch was elected as leader of his party following the retirement and resignation of the Sir Charles Cutler in December 1975.

Composition of ministry

The ministry was sworn in by the

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

Sir Laurence Street on 23 January 1976, a few days after Willis deposed Tom Lewis in a spill motion for the leadership of the parliamentary branch of the Liberal Party in New South Wales. It ended on 14 May 1976 when the coalition was defeated at the 1976 election by the Labor Party and the First Wran ministry was sworn in. Ministers are members of the Legislative Assembly unless otherwise noted.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis-Punch ministry New South Wales ministries 1976 establishments in Australia 1976 disestablishments in Australia

Background

Composition of ministry

See also

Notes

References