Free Trade Party Free Trade and Liberal Association | |
|---|---|
| Leader |
|
| Deputy Leader | Joseph Cook (1904–1908) |
| Founded | April 1889[1] |
| Dissolved | May 1909 |
| Merger of |
|
| Succeeded by | Liberal |
| Headquarters | Hunter Street, Sydney, New South Wales[1] |
| Ideology |
|
| Political position | Centre-right[4] to right-wing[3][5] |
| Colours | Yellow |
| House of Representatives | 28 / 75 (1901–1903) |
| Senate | 17 / 36 (1901–1903) |
| New South Wales Legislative Assembly | 79 / 124 (1887–1889) |
| This article is part of a series on |
| Liberalism in Australia |
|---|
 |
The Free Trade Party, officially known as the Free Trade and Liberal Association, and also referred to as the Revenue Tariff Party in some states, was an Australian political party, formally organised in 1887 in New South Wales, in time for the 1887 New South Wales colonial election, which the party won.
It advocated the abolition of protectionism, especially protective tariffs and other restrictions on trade, arguing that this would create greater prosperity for all. However, many members also advocated use of minimal tariffs for government revenue purposes only. Its most prominent leader was George Reid, who led the Reid government as the fourth Prime Minister of Australia (1904–1905).
In New South Wales, it was succeeded by the Liberal and Reform Association in 1902, and federally by the Anti-Socialist Party in 1906. In 1909, the Anti-Socialist Party merged with the Protectionist Party to form the Liberal Party.
- ^ a b c d e Kemp, David (2019). A Free Country: Australians' Search for Utopia 1861–1901. Melbourne University Publishing. ISBN 9780522873498.
- ^ Brett, Judith (2012). Australian Liberals and the Moral Middle Class: From Alfred Deakin to John Howard. Cambridge University Press. p. 21. ISBN 978-0521536349.
- ^ a b Griffiths, Phil (January 1998). "Chapter 2: Reid's anti-socialist gamble". The Decline of Free Trade In Australian Politics, 1901–1909 (Thesis). Macquarie University. pp. 15–25. doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.12644.01927.
- ^ "Australian Free Trade and Liberal Association". oxfordreference.com. Oxford University Press.
- ^ Griffiths, Phil (2024). "White Australia and the Labour Movement" (PDF). The Queensland Journal of Labour History (37 ed.): 20.