Bill Hayden

Interviewed by
Sue Yarrow
Apr 01 2011
Bill Hayden
Bill Hayden, federal Labor Party leader (1977-83), discusses his experiences as a member of the Labor Party with particular reference to the 1980 intervention into the Queensland branch of the party.
Biography
Time Summary Keywords
00:00:00 Bill Hayden discusses his early failed attempts to join the Labor Party. He tells of the left leaning sympathies of his family and briefly touches on his career in the police force. Police
00:02:36 Bill Hayden discusses the impact of the 1957 split on members of the Labor Party with particular reference to Ipswich. Hayden tells of his election to federal parliament in 1961. He states that he did not expect to win so soon after the split but equates part of his success to Gough Whitlam's efforts to tap into feelings of discontent over the neglect of Queensland. 1961 election, Gough Whitlam
00:05:27 Bill Hayden relates his experience of ideological conflict in Queensland. He discusses the political culture of Ipswich which was solidly left and influenced by the Masons. He talks about his own religious history moving from Catholicism to atheism and tells how he was approached to join the Masons. Ipswich, Joe King, Masons
00:09:35 Bill Hayden discusses the lessons of the split for Queensland. He sees much of the split as about political opportunism and personal promotion. He tells how he offered his resignation to the Inner Executive in the 1980s to make way for Denis Murphy. Denis Murphy, Francis Nicklin
00:13:38 Bill Hayden discusses the long term impacts of the split on the Queensland branch of the Labor Party. He describes his own concerns about the Catholic Church and how these concerns influenced his views on appropriate party membership. religion
00:15:20 Bill Hayden relates his feelings towards Trades Hall leader and Labor Party President Jack Egerton and reflects on Egerton's working style. He details his own political views and the fact that he was never really part of a faction despite his involvement in the foundation of the Centre Left. Denis Murphy, education, factions, George Georges, Gough Whitlam, Jack Egerton, Joy Guyatt, Madeline McPherson, Manfred Cross
00:25:57 Bill Hayden discusses the administration of the Queensland branch of the Labor Party in the 1960s and the importance of the party's branch structure. He talks about Burns' skill at campaigning in country areas. He discusses the party administration's support for the protests at the time but their lack of practical involvement. He talks about the importance of the radicalism of young people for the Labor Party in this period. George Georges, Joh Bjelke-Petersen, Manfred Cross, Springboks Rugby tour 1971, Tom Burns
00:35:58 Bill Hayden argues that the Labor Party was responsive to the needs to the radical movements at the time.
00:37:24 Bill Hayden talks about Queensland Labor's poor showing in the 1974 Senate election. He argues that Whitlam developed good policies but suggests the implementation process could have been better managed. He recalls Vince Gair's appointment to be Ambassador of Ireland. Courier mail, Gough Whitlam, Vincent Gair
00:40:02 Bill Hayden discusses a review of his electorate prepared by Colin Hughes after the 1974 election. Colin Hughes, Ipswich
00:41:36 Bill Hayden discusses Benny Humphries' working style. Courier mail, Denis Murphy
00:42:59 Bill Hayden details the governance and culture of the Queensland branch of the Labor Party prior to intervention. He tells how he offered to resign from the state executive in order to give Denis Murphy an opportunity. Denis Murphy, Harry Hauenschild, Jack Egerton
00:48:31 Bill Hayden discusses his conflict with Neal Kane. He notes the drinking culture within the Labor Party. He discusses militancy versus gradualism. Jack Egerton, Wayne Swan
00:52:01 Bill Hayden discusses the origins of the reform group in 1977. He notes the differences between working and middle class people. He describes the dissatisfaction of the middle class with the Labor Party. He notes the lack of education opportunities for working class Queenslanders in the past. Denis Murphy, education, media, Peter Beattie
00:59:54 Bill Hayden discusses his own involvement in the reform group and Murphy's role in pushing him to promote intervention. He details factionalism in the Labor Party and his belief they are causing problems for the Labor Party today. He goes into the nature of Labor Party conference debates of the past which he describes as a real contest of ideas. Bob Hawke, Denis Murphy, homosexuality, Jack Egerton, Manfred Cross
01:07:45 Bill Hayden discusses his time as leader and delves into the state of the party, generally and in Queensland, after the 1975 election.
01:09:10 Bill Hayden discusses the origins of the factions and the internal politics of the Labor Party and AWU. Craig Emerson, Denis Murphy, Di Fingleton, Errol Hodder, factions, Wayne Swan
01:12:52 Bill Hayden discusses the Labor Party factions. factions, Gough Whitlam
01:14:26 Bill Hayden describes what makes a good leader and the importance of consultation. He discusses his own and Whitlam's attributes as leaders. Bob Hawke, Gough Whitlam, leadership
01:16:32 Bill Hayden discusses the benefits of intervention and cites the greater middle class involvement in the Labor Party. He discusses more recent cultural change in the party and the downfall of Kevin Rudd. Kevin Rudd
01:23:17 Bill Hayden discusses his willingness to give up his position on the Inner Executive for Denis Murphy. He recalls his parents' support for the Labor Party and his own political temperament. Denis Murphy, Paul Keating
01:25:56 Interview ends.
Further reading: 
Bill Hayden, Hayden: an autobiography, Angus and Robertson, Pymble, 1996
John Stubbs, Hayden, Mandarin, Port Melbourne, 1990
Position:
Labor, Politician
Decade:
1970s, 1980s
Sound byte: 

Bill Hayden

Biography

Bill Hayden

Labor politician Bill Hayden served as member of the Australian House of Representatives from 1961 to 1988, a Minister in the Whitlam and Hawke governments, and as Governor General from 1989 to 1996.

Bill Hayden was born in Brisbane in 1933 to a family which supported the International Workers of the World and held radical left intellectual and ideological values. He first attended school at St Ita’s Convent in Dutton Park, then the Dutton Park State School, and Brisbane State High School, developing an interest in politics as he grew older.

Hayden’s first job was as a Queensland public servant before he did his National Service in the navy at age 18. In 1953, he joined the Queensland Police Force, and after initial service in Brisbane, was transferred to Mackay and then to Redbank outside Ipswich.  Hayden joined the Australian Labor Party and, with the support of senior Trades Hall figures, stood for the federal House of Representatives seat of Oxley in 1961. At 29, Hayden was the youngest member of the house, Prime Minister Robert Menzies once describing him as ‘The boy delinquent from Queensland.’

When the Whitlam Government took office at the 1972 election, Hayden became Minister for Social Security, introducing the Medibank legislation which provided Australia’s first universal health insurance system. He also introduced the single mothers’ pension and, later, served as Treasurer. After the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in December 1975, Hayden was the only Labor Party member re-elected in Queensland.

In December 1977 Hayden replaced Whitlam as Leader of the Opposition, a position he continued to hold until February 1983. He knew that to win back the government benches, the Labor Party would have to be functioning soundly in all states, and recognised that Queensland was failing at both state and federal levels. Hayden threw his support behind reforming the Queensland branch, putting his leadership on the line. On 1 March 1980, he carried the Federal Executive of the Labor Party to support intervention into the Queensland branch.

Hours before Prime Minister Fraser announced the date of the federal election, Bob Hawke challenged successfully for the leadership. Labor won the 1983 election. Hayden served in the Hawke Government, holding the portfolios of Foreign Affairs and, later, Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Hayden resigned from the parliament in 1988 and in early 1989 took up the role of Governor General, a position he held until February 1996. Bill Hayden is a life member of the Labor Party and in February 1989 became a Companion of the Order of Australia. He was recognised as the Australian Humanist of the Year in 1996.

Copyright © The Centre for the Government of Queensland, the University of Queensland, 2011.

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Associated interviews: 
Colin Hughes
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Harry Hauenschild
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Manfred Cross
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Peter Beattie