John Ballance - Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

In 1875, Ballance entered Parliament, having stood in the electorate of Rangitikei in a by-election. He campaigned on two major issues – the abolition of the provinces (widely regarded as incompetent, petty, and obstructive) and the provision of free education. In 1877, he entered the cabinet of Sir George Grey, a former Governor who was then serving as Premier. Grey's policies were not closely aligned with those of Ballance, but Ballance believed that he could nevertheless accomplish something worthwhile. He served as Minister of Customs, as Minister of Education, and later as treasurer. His alliance with Grey ended with a notorious and very painful quarrel, however – Ballance found Grey far too controlling and authoritarian.

From 1879 Ballance represented the electorate of Wanganui. But in 1881 he lost the election for Wanganui by just 4 votes (393 to 397), and it was reported that 7 of his supporters were too late to vote as their carriage broke down. He returned to Parliament for Wanganui in 1884.

In 1884, Ballance became a minister in the Cabinet of Robert Stout, a fellow liberal. He was made Minister of Lands and Immigration, Minister of Defence, and Minister of Native Affairs (relations with the Māori). In his role as Minister of Lands, he encouraged intensive settlement of rural areas, aiming to increase the number of people leaving the cities to "work the land" (a measure he believed was essential to increase productivity and self-sufficiency). His system of state-aided "village settlements" by which small holdings were leased by the Crown to farmers, and money lent them to make a beginning of building and cultivation, was generally successful. Despite this desire for increased settlement of colonist-held lands, however, he strongly supported the rights of Māori to retain the land they still held – many other politicians of his time believed that acquisition of Māori land was essential to increasing settlement. He also reduced the government's military presence in areas where strong tensions with Māori existed, and made an attempt to familiarise himself with Māori language and culture. In 1887, Stout's government lost the general election, but Ballance himself remained popular. Illness initially prevented his full participation in politics, but with his recovery in July 1889, he became Leader of the Opposition.