Josiah Thomas | |
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| Minister for External Affairs | |
| In office 14 October 1911 – 24 June 1913 | |
| Prime Minister | Andrew Fisher |
| Preceded by | Lee Batchelor |
| Succeeded by | Paddy Glynn |
| Postmaster-General of Australia | |
| In office 29 April 1910 – 14 October 1911 | |
| Prime Minister | Andrew Fisher |
| Preceded by | John Quick |
| Succeeded by | Charlie Frazer |
| In office 13 November 1908 – 2 June 1909 | |
| Prime Minister | Andrew Fisher |
| Preceded by | Samuel Mauger |
| Succeeded by | John Quick |
| Senator forNew South Wales | |
| In office 14 November 1925 – 30 June 1929 | |
| In office 1 July 1917 – 30 June 1923 | |
| Member of theAustralian Parliament forBarrier | |
| In office 29 March 1901 – 26 March 1917 | |
| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Michael Considine |
| Member of theNew South Wales Parliament forAlma | |
| In office 17 July 1894 – 11 June 1901 | |
| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | William Williams |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1863-04-28)28 April 1863 |
| Died | 5 February 1933(1933-02-05) (aged 69) Croydon Park, New South Wales, Australia |
| Party | Labor (to 1917) Nationalist (from 1917) |
| Spouses | |
| Occupation | Miner, trade unionist |
| Signature |  |
Josiah Thomas (28 April 1863 – 5 February 1933) was an Australian politician. He was elected to theHouse of Representatives at the inaugural1901 federal election, representing theLabor Party. Thomas served as a minister inAndrew Fisher's first two governments, asPostmaster-General (1908–1909, 1910–1911) andMinister for External Affairs (1911–1913). He joined theNationalist Party after the1916 Labor split and transferred to theSenate at the1917 election, serving as a Senator for New South Wales from 1917 to 1923 and from 1925 to 1929.
Thomas was born inCamborne,Cornwall, England, the son of Josiah Thomas Sr. and Ann Rablin. He went to Mexico as a child with his father, a mine manager, and later worked in mines in Cornwall. He travelled to Australia in the mid-1880s and worked at the Barrier Range, nearBroken Hill. He was appointed as a member of a royal commission on collieries in 1886 and worked as a mining captain and assayer in 1890. He married Henrietta Lee Ingleby in July 1889 and they subsequently had two sons and one daughter.[1][2]
Thomas was elected to the executive of the Amalgamated Miners' Association (AMA) in July 1891 and became president of its Broken Hill branch in 1892. He was a member of the Defence Committee formed during the1892 Broken Hill miners' strike. As a result of his criticism of themagistracy in relation to the arrest of eight fellow committee-members on conspiracy charges, he was dismissed as aJustice of the Peace. The mining companies refused to give him work and he had to take up labouring, although as president of the AMA, he was appointed to aNew South Wales Legislative Assembly inquiry intolead poisoning at the mines in 1892.[1]
Thomas was elected as theLabor Party member forAlma, covering part of Broken Hill in the Legislative Assembly in 1894,[2] where he campaigned for improvements to workplace health and safety. He opposed the bills for thefederation of Australia because he considered their referendums provisions inadequate.[1]
Thomas was elected to theAustralian House of Representatives in theinaugural election in 1901 for the seat ofBarrier. He was appointedPostmaster-General inAndrew Fisher's first ministry from November 1908 to June 1909 andhis second ministry from April 1910 to October 1911, when he becameMinister for External Affairs on the death ofLee Batchelor.[1] His appointment was welcomed by the Russian consul-generalAlexander Abaza, who wrote to the Russian foreign ministry that "from the point of view of the foreign representatives here, this seems quite a felicitous choice, as the new Minister for External Affairs is known for his broad horizons – rather uncommon in Australia – and has none of that narrow Australian exclusivity".[3]He held the position until the defeat of the government at the1913 federal election.[1]
Thomas visited England as a member of the Imperial Parliamentary Association in 1916 and was thus absent during Labor'ssplit over conscription. On his return he joinedBilly Hughes'Nationalist Party of Australia.[1]
Thomas did not seek re-election in Barrier at the1917 election, instead winning election to the Senate as a Nationalist.[4] He was the first New South Welshman to have servedin both houses of federal parliament.
In 1918 Thomas chaired the select committee on "the effect of intoxicating liquor on soldiers", submitting a dissenting report with senatorsWilliam Bolton andJames Guy that called for the introduction ofprohibition. He sought to increase Senate scrutiny of the government by allowing ministers from the House of Representatives to appear in the chamber (and vice versa), successfully introducing a motion to that effect in 1920. However, the House failed to reciprocate.[4]
Thomas was defeated at the1922 election, but was re-appointed to the Senate on 13 January 1926 to fill acasual vacancy caused by the death of ALP senatorAllan McDougall.[4] He was again defeated at the1928 election with his term expiring on 30 June 1929.[1] In his final months he chaired a select committee into internationalwireless telegraphy, which recommended their nationalisation. The report was not accepted by the government ofS. M. Bruce or his ALP successorJames Scullin.[4]
After politics, Thomas was active as aMethodist preacher opposed to gambling, smoking and drinking and in particular supportingprohibition of alcohol. He participated in the establishment of Sydney radio station2CH by the New South Wales Council of Churches. Thomas' first wife died in 1901 and he married her sister Clara Ingleby in 1909. One of his sons with Henrietta was killed on theWestern Front during World War I. He died ofheart disease in the Sydney suburb ofCroydon Park. He was survived by his second wife and a son from each of his marriages.[1]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Postmaster-General 1908–1909 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Postmaster-General 1910–1911 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for External Affairs 1911–1913 | Succeeded by |
| New South Wales Legislative Assembly | ||
| Preceded by New division | Member forAlma 1894–1901 | Succeeded by |
| Parliament of Australia | ||
| Preceded by New division | Member forBarrier 1901–1917 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| People | |
