William McKell - Premier of New South Wales

Premier of New South Wales

In 1941 he became Premier when he led Labor to a convincing victory in the state elections, mainly by concentrating on country seats. During his time as Premier, the Kosciusko State National Park was established, while increased levels of funding were made available for art galleries, libraries, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. In addition, various reforms were carried out in soil conservation, education, child welfare, and workers’ compensation.

During World War II he became a close collaborator of Labor Prime Ministers John Curtin and Ben Chifley, being a particularly close friend of the latter. In 1944 he won another election victory, the first time a New South Wales Labor government had been re-elected. On 13 February 1946 he announced he would be retiring from politics before the next state election.