People Australia

John Tonkin, 1976

National Archives of Australia, B582:T3/​1/​1976/​P

John Trezise Tonkin (1902-1995) school teacher, parliamentarian and State premier

Birth: 2 February 1902 at Boulder, Western Australia, son of John Trezise (1872-1952), a winding engine driver and farmer born at Fryerstown, Victoria, and Julia, née Carrigan (1883-1962), born at Port Adelaide, South Australia. Marriages: (1) 29 December 1926 at West Perth, WA, to Rosalie Maud Cleghorn (1903-1969). They had two daughters and one son. (2) 1971 to a divorcee, Winifred Joan, née West (1920-2014), a shorthand typist. They had no children. Death: 20 October 1995 in Concorde Nursing Home, South Perth. Religion: Methodist. 

• Tonkin was educated at Boulder City Central School - Dux of school in 1916 – and Eastern Goldfields High School 1917. Office boy for several months in 1917 at Kalgoorlie Electric Power Co and monitor at Brown Hill School in 1918-1919, he attended Claremont Teachers Training College in 1921-22, gaining a Teachers’ Certificate.
• He studied accountancy by correspondence while school teaching and became FAIA.
• Head teacher on supply at Edjudina via Kookynie 1920 to July 1922; Claremont Training College until July 1922; school teacher at Yallingup 1922, Naralingup 1923-25, Rapid Landing (near Margaret River) February to September 1926, Kulin 1926-1927; Margaret River, Picton and Karnup during 1927, Hamel 1928, Palgarup 1929-1930, North Perth May-July 1930; first Assistant, North Fremantle state school July 1930 to 1933.
• Joining the Australian Labor Party in 1923, he established a branch at Forrest Grove and was a delegate to the State executive.
• He contested the Western Australian Legislative Assembly seats of Sussex (1927) and Murray-Wellington (1930) and was the member for North-East Fremantle from 1933 to 1950 and for Melville from 1950 to 1977.
• Secretary of the Parliamentary Labor Party 1936-1943; Minister for Education, Social Services and Agriculture (from August 1945) 1943-1947; Minister for Education (until 1954), Works and Water Supplies 1953-59; Deputy Premier 1955-59; Deputy Leader of Opposition 1951-1953, 1959-67; Leader of Opposition 1967-1971; Premier, Treasurer (from Oct 1971), Education (until Oct 1971), Environmental Protection (until Oct 1971) and Cultural Affairs 1971-74. Leader of the Opposition 1974-1976; Opposition spokesman on Treasury, and Minister Coordinating Regional and Economic Development 1974-1976.
• The Tonkin government was defeated at the general elections in 1974 and he did not renominate for Melville at the general elections in 1977. He was a member of the Library Committee 1939-53, 1959-65; chairman Select Committee inquiring: into the Investment and Security Co. of WA Ltd 1937, into the Operations of the Australian Wheat Board at North Fremantle 1943 and into the Disposal of Potatoes Grown Commercially in WA 1949; member of Select Committee inquiring: into the City of Perth Superannuation Fund Bill 1934, into the SGIO Bill 1937, into Wheat Held in Storage in WA by Merchants 1939, into Investment Companies in WA 1939 and into the Incidence of TB in Certain Dairy Cattle 1947. Member of the Royal Commission inquiring into the Municipal Council of the City of Perth in 1938 and into the Natural Therapists Bill of 1960-61. Led trade mission for the WA Government to the United Kingdom and the United States of America in 1958.
• Tonkin served the longest ever continuous and total period (43 years 9 months and 19 days) in either House of the WA parliament. He was Father of the House in 1968-1977.
• Although he held office for only one term as premier, his government was noted for its activity in the areas of social reform, establishing the Department of Community Welfare, the Aboriginal Lands Trust and the Environmental Protection Council. Under his government WA became the first State to create the office of Parliamentary Commissioner for Grievances (Ombudsman) and it reduced the minimum voting age to eighteen years.
• Warden State War Memorial 1977-1978; freeman Town of East Fremantle 1977; awarded Queen’s Jubilee Medal 1977; senior West Australian of the year 1983.
• Cause of death: bilateral bronchopneumonia (2 days), myocardial ischaemia (8 days), arteriosclerosis (years); contributory cause: carcinoma of prostate (8 years). 

Sources
David Black & G. C. Bolton (eds), Biographical Register of members of the parliament of Western Australia, vol 2 1930-2010 (Perth, 2011), pp 169-170; G. S. Reid and M. R. Oliver, The Premiers of Western Australia (Nedlands, 1982), pp 93-95; Australian, 25 October 1995 p.14