William Wentworth (Australian politician)
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The Honourable Bill Wentworth AO MA (Oxon) |
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| Member of the Australian Parliament for Mackellar |
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In office 1949 – 1977 |
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| Preceded by | Division created |
| Succeeded by | Jim Carlton |
| Minister for Social Services | |
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In office 1968–1972 |
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| Preceded by | Ian Sinclair |
| Succeeded by | Bill Hayden |
| Minister for Aboriginal Affairs | |
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In office 1968–1971 |
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| Preceded by | New Title |
| Succeeded by | Peter Howson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
8 September 1909 Sydney |
| Died | 15 June 2003 (aged 95) Sydney |
| Political party | Independent (1943-1945) Liberal Party of Australia (1945-1977) Independent (after 1977) |
| Alma mater | New College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Politician |
William Charles "Bill" Wentworth AO (8 September 1907 – 15 June 2003), Australian politician, was a Liberal and later Independent member of the Australian House of Representatives from 1949 to 1977, with a reputation as a fierce anti-Communist.
Wentworth was born in Sydney, the son of a prominent Sydney barrister of the same name, and the great-grandson of William Charles Wentworth, a leading political and literary figure in colonial New South Wales. He is sometimes referred to as "William Charles Wentworth IV" but he never used this name himself. His family and friends called him Bill or Billy. The prominent journalist Mungo MacCallum is his nephew.
Wentworth was educated at The Armidale School in Armidale in northern New South Wales, and at New College, Oxford, where he gained an MA, and a Blue in athletics (he was a fine half miler and ran as first string to the future Olympic Champion and world record holder Tom Hampson).
Returning to Australia aged 23, he briefly worked as a factory hand at Lever Brothers in Balmain, Sydney, before becoming Secretary to the Attorney-General of New South Wales, Sir Henry Manning. Then he joined the New South Wales public service as an economic advisor to the Premier's Department and the Treasury, a position from which he resigned in 1937 in protest against what he saw as the state conservative government's timid economic policies. He was an early exponent of Keynesianism and favoured an expansion of state credit.
From 1941 to 1943 Wentworth served in the Australian army in administrative positions. At the 1943 federal election, he stood as an independent for the House of Representatives seat of Wentworth (named after his great-grandfather), arguing for an all-party "national government". He polled 20 per cent of the vote against the Deputy Leader of the United Australia Party, Eric Harrison. In 1945 he joined Robert Menzies' new party, the Liberal Party of Australia. At the 1949 election, Wentworth was elected to the House of Representatives for Mackellar in the northern suburbs of Sydney.
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