Thomas Bavin

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Sir Thomas Rainsford Bavin KCMG (5 May 1874 - 31 August 1941) was the 24th Premier of New South Wales.

Born in Kaiapoi, New Zealand to a Methodist minister and his wife, Bavin was educated at Auckland Grammar School until 1889 when his family moved to Sydney and Bavin enrolled at Newington College and the University of Sydney. There he came into conflict with his parents by renouncing Methodism (he later converted to Anglicanism), and graduated with a BA in 1894 and LLB in 1897, winning the University Medal in the process.

Called to the New South Wales Bar in 1897, Bavin became involved in the cause of Australian Federation, unsuccessfully standing for the Electoral district of Canterbury on a pro-Federation platform in 1898. After lecturing in law at the University of Tasmania in 1900, Bavin returned to Sydney to marry Edith Winchcombe, the daughter of Frederick Winchcombe, a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and Council, on 6 February 1901, and serve as private secretary to Australia's first and second Prime Minister's, Sir Edmund Barton and Sir Alfred Deakin.

Bavin returned to the Bar in 1904 but found briefs scarce and so began writing op-ed pieces for Sydney newspapers, and, along with Deakin, serve as the Australian correspondent for the London Morning Post from 1907 to 1911.

Bavin was elected as an Alderman to Willoughby Municipal Council in 1910 but his attempts to enter federal parliament were thwarted, thrice losing Commonwealth Liberal Party pre-selection, due partly to his support for greater social welfare expenditure. He gained pre-selection for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Electoral district of Albury in 1916 but the elections were deferred until 1917, when he was elected as the Nationalist Party of Australia member for Gordon in 1917, switching to the Electoral district of Ryde in 1920 and returning to Gordon in 1927.

Following his election, Bavin rapidly rose through the parliamentary ranks, becoming deputy leader of the Nationalists in October 1920 and served as Attorney-General and Minister for Justice in 1921 and Attorney-General from 1922-25. After the Nationalist loss at the 1925 election, Bavin was elected party leader (and by dint, Leader of the Opposition).

Following an agreement by the Nationalist and Country parties not to stand candidates against each other, the coalition won the 1927 election and Bavin became Premier and Treasurer on 18 October 1927.

During his term as Premier, Bavin introduced the Income Tax (Management) Act (1928), where the incomes of husband and wife were combined, and a progressive tax system introduced (angering many of his conservative supporters in the process). In reaction to Australian Labor Party calls to abolish the Legislative Council, Bavin pushed through legislation requiring a referendum to do so.

Bavin was plagued by ill health throughout his Premiership, absenting him from Cabinet during crucial times, especially in the wake of the Great Depression in 1929. Faced with a growing number of strikes, Bavin turned to non-unionised labour, which led to violent confrontations between striking workers and police.

Following the Nationalists loss in the 1930 election, Bavin continued to lead the party until 1932, when he joined the newly created United Australia Party. Appointed KCMG in 1933, Bavin retired from politics in 1935 to serve as a Justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court. Bavin also returned to writing, authoring a number of books, including Thomas Rainsford Bavin: Extracts from his Speeches from 1923 until 1932 (1933), and Sir Henry Parkes: His Life and Work (1941).

Bavin died of cancer in Bellevue Hill, New South Wales, survived by his wife, son and three daughters.

[edit] References

• __________ "Sir Thomas Rainsford Bavin (Former Member)", Parliament of New South Wales, [1]. Accessed 26 November 2006.
• __________ (1998) "Biographical Note", Guide to the Papers of Sir Thomas Bavin, MS 560, National Library of Australia, [2]. Accessed 24 November 2006.
• McCarthy, J. (1979) "Bavin, Sir Thomas Rainsford", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 7, Melbourne University Press, Carlton.

Political offices
Preceded by Jack Lang	Premier of New South Wales 1927-1930	Succeeded by Jack Lang

Premiers of New South Wales
Donaldson | Cowper | Parker | Forster | Robertson | Martin | Parkes | Farnell | Stuart | Dibbs | Jennings | Reid | Lyne | See | Waddell | Carruthers | Wade | McGowen | Holman | Storey | Dooley | Fuller | Lang | Bavin | Stevens | Mair | McKell | McGirr | Cahill | Heffron | Renshaw | Askin | Lewis | Willis | Wran | Unsworth | Greiner | Fahey | Carr | Iemma