John Verran South Australia's premier 1910-12 after leading Labor to state's first majority government

John Verran called a 1912 election to protest the Legislative Council’s veto power but Labor was left with 16 of 40 seats.
Image courtesy State Library of South Australia

John Verran was premier in 1910-12 after leading the Labor party to South Australia’s first House of Assembly majority government.

Born in Cornwall, Verran’s boyhood was in Kapunda and then Moonta. He received little education and before the age of 10 was working at the copper mines as a pickey boy sorting ore. He later learned to read, encouraged by ministers of the Primitive Methodist church. He remained an active member and later preacher of the church.

A miner for nearly 40 years, Verran became president of Moonta miners’ association (1895-1913) and was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Wallaroo in 1901. When United Labor premier Tom Price died in 1909, Verran became Labor leader but Archibald Peake, head of the Liberal and Democratic Union, rcoalition partners refused to make Verran premier.

But Verran led Labor to South Australia’s first House of Assembly majority government in 1910, winning 19.1% of the vote and 22 of 42 seats. (Two weeks later, Labor formed Australia's first elected federal majority government and first elected Senate majority.) Verran, as premier, commissioner of public works and minister of mines and of water supply, was in charge for 21 months. He spent large sums on railways and harbors but was criticised for handing of riots during to a drivers’ strike.

Verran introduced the Aborigines Bill in 1910 that revealed the ignorance and racism of white attitudes. His Advances for Homes Act of 1911 allowed the State Bank to give loans to poorer people, but the Legislative Council blocked attempts to create state brickyards and timber mills. Verran called a 1912 election over the Legislative Council’s veto power but Labor suffered a swing and was left with 16 of 40 seats.

Verran was succeeded as Labor leader by Crawford Vaughan in 1913 and he broke with the Labor party in 1917 over the conscription issue. As a backbencher, he campaigned against locals of German descent during World War I and split from Labor in favour of conscription.