1949 Chifley in Caucus with Calwell, Dedman, Duthie and Fuller
1949
Chifley entering a caucus before the 1949 Federal election. Whilst Chifley seems in high spirits his government was facing a serious challenge from the recently formed Liberal Party led by the former conservative Prime Minister Robert Menzies.
Other topics in The Chifley Years
Ben Chifley: The man, his history and his values
Ben Chifley was one of Australia's most productive treasurers and prime ministers, helping to lead Australia successfully through the Second World War and the challenges of the early post-war years. Yet his path to the prime ministership was far from easy. Chifley was born the…
Sustaining the war economy
Ben Chifley’s experience as a minister in the Scullin government during the Depression, together with his time on the banking Royal Commission, provided good foundations for his role as Treasurer in the Curtin government. He was acutely aware of how the banks had exacerbated the…
Post-war reconstruction: Nation Building
Prior to becoming Treasurer in October 1941, Chifley had already turned his mind to post-war reconstruction and the expanded role that government would have to play if a better world was to emerge from the conflict. Like many people around the world, he feared that…
Conflict and the Cold War
Although Australia avoided invasion during the Second World War, Japan's frightening lunge southward, culminating in the fall of Singapore, confirmed the deep-seated fears of many Australians about the territorial ambitions of their northern neighbours. Those fears helped to reconcile Australians to the Labor government's announcement…