Basil Arthur
Sir Basil Malcolm Arthur, 5th Baronet (18 September 1928 – 1 May 1985) served as Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 1984 to 1985. He was a member of the Labour Party.
Sir Basil Arthur | |
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20th Speaker of the House of Representatives | |
In office 14 July 1984 – 1 May 1985 | |
Prime Minister | David Lange |
Preceded by | Richard Harrison |
Succeeded by | Gerry Wall |
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Timaru | |
In office 21 July 1962 – 1 May 1985 | |
Preceded by | Clyde Carr |
Succeeded by | Maurice McTigue |
Personal details | |
Born | 18 September 1928 Timaru, New Zealand |
Died | 1 May 1985 56) | (aged
Nationality | New Zealand |
Political party | Labour |
Signature |
Early life
Arthur was born in Timaru, New Zealand, and educated at Timaru Boys' High School.[1] His father, a hotel proprietor, inherited the title of 4th Baronet in 1941, and Arthur in turn inherited it on his father's death in 1949. However, he showed a preference for labouring jobs, and made little of his title.[2]
Member of Parliament
New Zealand Parliament | ||||
Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
1962–1963 | 33rd | Timaru | Labour | |
1963–1966 | 34th | Timaru | Labour | |
1966–1969 | 35th | Timaru | Labour | |
1969–1972 | 36th | Timaru | Labour | |
1972–1975 | 37th | Timaru | Labour | |
1975–1978 | 38th | Timaru | Labour | |
1978–1981 | 39th | Timaru | Labour | |
1981–1984 | 40th | Timaru | Labour | |
1984–1985 | 41st | Timaru | Labour |
In 1960 Arthur stood for Labour in the Hamilton electorate, coming second.
In 1962, he contested two by-elections for the Labour Party: first, unsuccessfully, in Waitaki; then, successfully, in Timaru. On entering Parliament at age 33 he was the country's youngest member of parliament. He was reluctant to be called "Sir", but the Speaker at the time, Ronald Algie, said that refusing this honorific would be disrespectful to the Queen.[2]
Cabinet minister
Arthur was both Minister of Transport and Minister in Charge of the State Insurance Office from 1972 until 1975 during the Third Labour Government.[3]
Speaker
When Labour won the 1984 election, Arthur became Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives.[2] He served in that capacity for one year, before dying in office of Legionnaires' disease.[4] The then Prime Minister, David Lange recalled in My Life (2005) that Arthur was gravely ill in Wellington Hospital, and if he resigned from the member's superannuation scheme before he died (but not otherwise) his estate would get a lump-sum payment. He had to answer a question in the house, then went to hospital with a letter of resignation "only to find that he had died hardly a minute before I got there". Labour lost the subsequent Timaru by-election, with a candidate that did not suit "the conservative character of the electorate."[5]
Arthur was the second baronet to serve as Speaker, the first being Sir Charles Clifford, 1st Baronet (the first Speaker of the House of Representatives), although he was made a baronet some time after he had retired from politics.
Honours
In 1977, Arthur was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal.[1]
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Notes
- Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 50. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
- Henderson, John. "Arthur, Basil Malcolm". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- Wilson 1985, p. 92.
- Michael Bassett, Working with David: Inside the Lange Cabinet, 2010, Hachette UK, ISBN 978-1-86971-241-9
- David Lange (2005). My Life. Viking. ISBN 0-670-04556-X.
- Debrett's Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage & Titles of Courtesy. 1878.
References
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840–1984 (4 ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Basil Arthur. |
Political offices | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by Richard Harrison |
Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives 1984–1985 |
Succeeded by Gerry Wall |
Preceded by Peter Gordon |
Minister of Transport 1972–1975 |
Succeeded by Colin McLachlan |
New Zealand Parliament | ||
Preceded by Clyde Carr |
Member of Parliament for Timaru 1962–1985 |
Succeeded by Maurice McTigue |
Baronetage of the United Kingdom | ||
Preceded by George Malcolm Arthur |
Baronet (of Upper Canada) 1949–1985 |
Succeeded by Stephen Arthur |