JOHN GORTON

Party

In an interview with the ABC on 22 January 1968 Gorton said, 'the prime minister... should put to the Cabinet or the committee what he believes ought to be done, and if he believes strongly enough that it ought to be done, then it must be done.' Gorton's views on leadership were cause for some early collective anxiety within the party. This was followed by Gorton's decision to appoint Ainsley Gotto as his Principal Private Secretary. A number of senior ministers soon became concerned by Gorton's reliance on her advice, and her inexperience; she was 22 when appointed to the job.

Gorton encountered further criticism over his private life and what some perceived as behaviour unbecoming for a prime minister. Gorton's poor showing in the 1969 election led to a leadership challenge on 7 November 1969, which he survived.

With a party clearly divided, the next leadership challenge against Gorton appeared inevitable. It came early in 1971, precipitated by the resignation of Malcolm Fraser for what he saw as disloyalty from Gorton. A vote of no confidence in Gorton was called on 10 March 1971, and after the tied vote Gorton stood aside and declared the leadership vacant.

Partnerships

In his 1969 election campaign speech Gorton announced that ‘the time for this nation to enter the atomic age has now arrived’ and proposed the construction of a nuclear power plant at Jervis Bay on the New South Wales south coast. This was not a belief that Gorton had come to recently; in a 1957 Senate debate he argued that Australia should consider ‘some measure of atomic or hydrogen defence.’ Gorton had a keen ally for his nuclear ambitions in Philip Baxter, chairman of the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC).

Baxter was a formidable proponent for nuclear science, believing that Australia should be involved in uranium mining and enrichment, along with nuclear research and power generation. He had played a key role in the establishment of the Lucas Heights reactor. After some negotiating, and using policy work provided by the AAEC, Gorton secured Cabinet approval for the Jervis Bay facility. The Cabinet recommendation also alluded to ‘other special purposes’ and the ‘important long term defence implications’ of the power plant. Tenders were issued and roadwork commenced, with the power plant expected to be operational by 1975.

After Gorton lost the leadership in March 1971 momentum stalled and his successor William McMahon cancelled the project on the basis of concerns about the cost, and compatibility with Australia’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty obligations.  

People

Gorton had a natural affinity with the public, and displayed genuine warmth towards them. Before taking up residence at the Lodge, Gorton invited his neighbours to a farewell party at his home in the Canberra suburb of Narrabundah. On occasion, to the dismay of colleagues, he was late to Cabinet meetings because he stopped and chatted to school groups who were visiting Parliament House. Gorton accepted an invitation to attend the Anzac Day service at Ballarat in 1968.

He was given the honor of leading the march that included 2000 ex-servicemen. In the group lined up behind him were the captain and crew of the HMAS Ballarat, who had rescued Gorton from the sea after his air crash during the war. The crowd of some 6000 people witnessed Gorton order ‘Parade…quick march’ and ‘Eyes right’ and responded by calling out ‘Good on yer, Jack’ and ‘You little beauty’.

In his speech delivered during the service, Gorton reminded the audience that the war provided the chance ‘to create the world we want to see’. Afterwards Gorton moved among the crowd shaking hands and signing autographs for children. After he lost the leadership in 1971, newspapers received letters from voters who were angry that the Liberal Party had removed Gorton. The Malvern Town Hall even hosted a ‘Get Back Gorton’ public meeting.    

Publications

Roger Aldridge, 'Gorton leads the parade', The Age, 26 April 1968

Philip Gissing, Baxter, Sir John Philip (1876–1953), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/baxter-sir-john-philip-12185, published first in hardcopy 1988

Ian Hancock, He Did It His Way, Hodder Headline Australia, Sydney, 2000

Alan Reid, The Gorton Experiment, Shakespeare Head Press, Sydney, 1971

Alan Reid, The Power Struggle, Shakespeare Head Press, Sydney, 1969

Rohan Rivett, 'Gorton support grows', The Canberra Times, 11 November, 1971

Alan Trengrove, John Grey Gorton: an informal biography, Cassell Australia, Sydney, 1969