Littleton Groom

Sir Littleton Ernest Groom ( born April 22, 1867 in Toowoomba, Queensland, † November 6, 1936 in Canberra) was an Australian politician and, among others, Foreign Minister of the country.

Early life

Groom was born in Toowoomba, Queensland and attended the Toowoomba Grammar School, where he was captain of the football so like his school cricket team, and the Ormond College, Melbourne University, where he received a law scholarship. He then worked as a lawyer and an active judge. In July 1894 he married Jessie Bell.

Political career

Groom was an Australian nationalist and advocated the extension of the power of the Commonwealth and its industrial strength. In 1904 he assisted the Government of Chris Watson. During the second term of Deakin he was from July 1905 to October 1906 Minister of the Interior. In October 1906 he was attorney general of Australia. This office he held until the failed third term Deakins in November 1908. He managed to introduce laws for the supply of disability and the elderly of the Commonwealth.

With the beginning of the fourth term of Deakin in June 1909 Groom 's post was as Minister of Foreign Affairs, which he held until the election defeat of 1910. After 1910, he was a persistent adversary of the Labour Party and criticized among other things, the government-owned Commonwealth Bank of Australia and their attempt to establish a monopoly. In the government's Joseph Cooks from June 1913 to September 1914 he was minister of trade and consumers.

Nationalist government

Groom was during the fourth term of office of Hughes ' ​​from November 1917 to March 1918 Vice - President of the Executive Council and from March 1918 to December 1921 Labour and Minister of Railways. He decided, among others, the expansion of the railroad and was involved in the decision to relocate the seat of government to Canberra. In December 1921 he was again general counsel. He was also minister of trade and consumers, as well as Australian Health Ministers in May and June 1924 due to Austin Chapman's poor health. He led the Australian delegation to the fifth meeting of the League of Nations in Geneva to let After a miserably failed attempt to deport "foreign" workers in 1924., And after several political transgressions, he was forced to resign in December 1925.

Speaker

After his resignation, he was from January 1926 to 1929 Speaker of the House. At the time, he oversaw the move of the government from Melbourne to Canberra. However, since he wanted to continue to hold on to the Commonwealth of Australia and dependence to the motherland, failed in 1929, the government of Stanley Bruce. The disgruntled Nationalist Party of Australia presented successfully on a candidate against Groom. Thus Groom was the first speaker who lost his seat in an election.

Groom returned to his law firm back in Brisbane. In the 1931 election he was re-elected as an independent and joined the United Australia Party in August 1933. From 1932 to 1936 he was manager of the Bankruptcy Law Committee. He died in Canberra on the cerebro -vascular disease. He left behind his wife and their two daughters together.

Groom was with Sir John Quick author of the Judicial Power of the Commonwealth in 1904 and part author of numerous publications in Queensland. As a member of the Anglican Church Groom came in part the honor of the Order of St Michael and St George to. He was raised in January 1924 for his achievements in politics to knighthood. 1984 election district was named after him, as in his home town of Toowoomba Groom Park.

Grooms older brother, Henry Littleton Groom, was a long time member of the Queensland Legislative Council.