Andrew Fisher Australian politician, fifth prime minister of the country. Date of Birth: 29.08.1862 Country: Australia

Biography of Andrew Fisher

Andrew Fisher was an Australian politician and the fifth Prime Minister of the country. He was born into a family of Robert Fisher and Jane Garvin and was one of seven children. His father worked in a mine and was one of the founders of a cooperative store in 1863. Andrew Fisher primarily engaged in self-education at the library, which was helped to establish by his father's store. He attended evening school and started working in a mine at the age of 10. At 17, he was elected as the secretary of the local trade union organization.

In 1885, Fisher immigrated to Queensland, where he worked in coal and gold mines for a long time, and also obtained a driver's license. In 1891, he became the president of the miners' association and the political organization of workers, which was a local branch of the Labor Party. This marked the beginning of Andrew Fisher's political career.

In 1901, Fisher married Margaret Irvin, and they had six children. In 1911, while in Great Britain, he visited his hometown where he was welcomed as a hero. After ending his political career, Fisher became a commissioner in 1916, representing Australia in London. He replaced George Reid in this position and served for five years. After that, Fisher returned to Australia, where he was greeted by his supporters who wanted him to continue his political career. However, Fisher himself had no interest in politics and left for London after a year.

In April 1893, he won the elections to the Queensland Legislative Assembly from Gympie as a candidate of the Labor Party. He lost his seat in 1896 but was re-elected in 1899.

In the first elections in the unified Australia, Fisher was a candidate from the Labor Party in the Wide Bay district. He won these elections and the next five. In 1904, he served as the Minister of Trade and Customs in the government of Chris Watson. In 1905, he became the deputy leader of the Australian Labor Party, and in 1907, he became its leader. Fisher served as Prime Minister three times, and each time he also held the position of Treasurer of the country.

The first time he became Prime Minister was after the resignation of the Protectionist government of Alfred Deakin, and he left office after the strengthening of the Deakin-Joseph Cook coalition, despite the fact that the Governor-General did not sign the resignation of the entire government. The second time Fisher became Prime Minister was after the victory of the Labor Party in the Fourth General Elections (43 out of 75 seats in the House of Representatives and 23 out of 36 in the Senate). Fisher managed to remain in office for the entire term. The active legislative program at that time included the establishment of the Commonwealth Bank, the expansion of the Supreme Court, and the determination of the capital in Canberra. In terms of social policy, compensation for workers, maternity leave for women, liberalization of age and disability pensions were introduced. The recommendations of the Royal Commission provided the basis for the further development of the sugar industry.

In 1913, the Liberals won the elections by a margin of one seat. Joseph Cook became the Prime Minister, and Andrew Fisher became the leader of the official opposition. In the subsequent elections in September 1914, he again became the Prime Minister. At that time, the war was already underway, and Fisher promised that Australia would support the United Kingdom "to the last man and last shilling". On October 27, 1915, he was forced to resign due to health problems. He was succeeded by his deputy, William Morris Hughes.