Born 25 Feb 1901 in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia

Husband of Florence (Glynn) Gair — married 1924 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Husband of Ellen Mary (Sexton) Gair — married 1944 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Died 11 Nov 1980 in South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Preceded by MLA Neil Francis MacGroarty Preceded by Treasurer James Larcombe Preceded by Deputy Premier Ted Walsh Preceded by 26th Premier of Queensland Edward "Ned" Hanlon Preceded by Ambassador Keith Brennan

Vincent Clair "Vince" Gair Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for South Brisbane 1932—1960 Treasurer of Queensland 1950—1952 Deputy Premier of Queensland 1947—1952 27th Premier of Queensland 1952—1957 Senator for Queensland 1965—1974 Australian Ambassador to Ireland 1974—1976

Succeeded by MLA Colin James "Col" Bennett Succeeded by Treasurer Ted Walsh Succeeded by Deputy Premier Tom Foley Succeeded by 28th Premier of Queensland George Francis "Frank Nicklin Succeeded by Ambassador Brian Hill

Biography

Vince Gair is Notable.

Vince Gair was the member for South Brisbane in the Queensland Legislative Assembly for 28 years and premier of Queensland from 1952 until 1957, when stormy relations with the trade union movement saw him expelled from the Australian Labor Party and form the Queensland Labour Party. He was later elected to the Australian Senate and led the Democratic Labor Party (merged with the QLP) for a further nine years. In 1974 he was appointed Australian Ambassador to Ireland by the Whitlam government, which caused his expulsion from the DLP.

Vincent Clair Gair was born on 25th February 1901 at Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, the fifth son of Scottish-born John Gair and Irish-born Catherine McGuire, and raised a Catholic. His parents were founding members of the Labor Party in Queensland in the 1890s. Gair began work with the Department of Railways upon the family's move to Dutton Park, Queensland. In 1916 he joined the Australian Labor Party (ALP).^[1]

He married Florence Glynn in 1924 at Brisbane, Queensland.^[2] She died in an accident five years later. In 1941, Gair's only daughter from his first marriage, Gloria died. In 1944 he married again, to Ellen Sexton;^[3] the couple had two sons.^[1]

Gair won the seat of South Brisbane in the Legislative Assembly in 1932 and immediatley worked at consolidating his hold on the marginal electorate; remaining a backbencher for ten years during the Forgan Smith government before being appointed Secretary for Mines under the elderly Frank Cooper in 1942. The same year he became Minister for Labour and Employment (later Labour and Industry), and in 1947 he was elected by his colleagues as Deputy Premier. In 1950 he also became Treasurer. Having been acting premier since the previous August, Gair was elected by the ALP Caucus to succeed him on 17th January 1952. Under Gair's premiership, reforms were carried out in worker's compensation, sick leave, and annual leave; long-service leave was also introduced, while the government's price controls enabled workers in Queensland to enjoy the highest real wages (adjusted for prices) in Australia. Falling out with trade unions, Gair was expelled from the ALP in 1957 and formed the Queensland Labour Party (which later merged with the Democratic Labour Party). He was defeated at South Brisbane at the 1960 state election.^[1]

On his election to the Australian Senate, Gair became the federal Democratic Labour Party's (DLP) leader, a post he held until 1973. During his time in the Senate he advocated a strong defence and foreign policy based on anti-Communism.^[1]

Gair resigned from the Senate in 1974 upon being appointed Ambassador to Ireland by Gough Whitlam. During his tenure, he got into numerous rows with the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and other ambassadors. After the Fraser government took office after the 1975 election, Foreign Minister Andrew Peacock promptly had Gair recalled on 21st January 1976, not for political reasons, but because he was unfit for diplomacy.^[1]

He passed away, aged 79 years, on 11th November 1980.^[4] He is buried in Nudgee Cemetery, Queensland.^[1]

Gair Park in Dutton Park, South Brisbane, is named after Gair. The park is a triangular 'garden of remembrance' with a Cenotaph, which opened on 25th April 1951.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6} Wikipedia profile: Vince Gair; accessed 18 Aug 2019]
2. ↑ Queensland Marriage Index #B35113/1924
3. ↑ Queensland Marriage Index #B63881/1945
4. ↑ Queensland Death Index #9039/1980

See also

• Costar, B J. Gair, Vincent Clare (Vince) (1901–1980), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1996; accessed online 18 Aug 2019.
• Costar, Brian. Vincent Clare Gair: Labor's Loser. In Murphy D, Joyce R, Cribb M, and Wear, R (Ed.), The Premiers of Queensland pp268–285. University of Queensland Press, Brisbane. ISBN 0-7022-3173-8.

More Genealogy Tools