Watson ministry facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Watson ministry
3rd Ministry of Australia
Group photo of the Watson ministry with Governor-General Lord Northcote.
Date formed	27 April 1904
Date dissolved	17 August 1904
People and organisations
Monarch	Edward VII
Governor-General	Lord Northcote
Prime Minister	Chris Watson
No. of ministers	8
Member party	Labour
Status in legislature	Minority government (Protectionist support)
Opposition party	Free Trade
Opposition leader	George Reid
History
Legislature term(s)	2nd
Predecessor	First Deakin ministry
Successor	Reid ministry

The Watson ministry was a special group of leaders in the Australian Government. It was the third group of ministers to lead Australia, and it was the very first time a Labour (now called Labor) government was formed anywhere in the world! This important group was led by Chris Watson, who was Australia's third Prime Minister.

The Watson ministry started on 27 April 1904. It took over after the previous government, led by Alfred Deakin, had to step down. This happened because the Labour Party stopped supporting Deakin's government. The Watson ministry lasted for a few months until 17 August 1904. It ended when another political group, the Protectionist Party, stopped supporting them. This disagreement was about a new law called the Conciliation and Arbitration Bill, which was about solving workplace disputes. After the Watson ministry, the Reid ministry took over.

One interesting fact is that Billy Hughes, who was part of the Watson ministry, lived a very long time. He passed away in 1952 and was the last person alive from this historic government. He was also the last surviving member of several other Australian governments he served in later!

Who Was in the Watson Ministry?

This section lists the key people who were part of Chris Watson's government. Each person had an important job, called a 'portfolio', which meant they were in charge of a specific area of the government.

Party		Minister	Portrait	Job (Portfolio)
	Labor	Chris Watson (1867–1941) Member of Parliament for Bland (1901–1906)	Chris Watson	Prime Minister (the leader of the country) Leader of the Labor Party Treasurer (in charge of the country's money)
		Billy Hughes (1862–1952) Member of Parliament for West Sydney (1901–1917)	Billy Hughes	Minister for External Affairs (in charge of Australia's relationships with other countries)
	Protectionist	H. B. Higgins (1851–1929) Member of Parliament for Northern Melbourne (1901–1906)	H. B. Higgins	Attorney-General (the chief legal advisor to the government)
	Labor	Lee Batchelor (1865–1911) Member of Parliament for Boothby (1903–1911)	Lee Batchelor	Minister for Home Affairs (in charge of things like elections and public works)
		Andrew Fisher (1862–1928) Member of Parliament for Wide Bay (1901–1915)	Andrew Fisher	Minister for Trade and Customs (in charge of buying and selling goods with other countries)
		Anderson Dawson (1863–1910) Senator for Queensland (1901–1906)	Anderson Dawson	Minister for Defence (in charge of Australia's military)
		Hugh Mahon (1857–1931) Member of Parliament for Coolgardie (1901–1913)	Hugh Mahon	Postmaster-General (in charge of postal services and communications)
		Gregor McGregor (1848–1914) Senator for South Australia (1901–1914)	Gregor McGregor	Deputy Leader of the Labor Party Vice-President of the Executive Council (a senior role in the government's main decision-making body) Leader of the Government in the Senate (the main government spokesperson in the Senate)