Philip Benwell, MBE

Statement by Mr R. J. Ellicott QC

Statement by Mr R. J. Ellicott, Q.C

In this statement, Mr Bob Ellicott, a leading Queen’s Counsel at the time and an Opposition front-bencher has said that the Governor-General is “entitled to and should ask the Prime Minister if the government is prepared to advise him to dissolve the House of Representatives and the Senate or the House of Representatives alone as a means of ensuring that the disagreement between the two Houses is resolved. If the Prime Minister refuses to do either it is then open to the Governor General to dismiss his present Ministers and seek others who are prepared to give him the only proper advice open. This he should proceed to do.”

Letter from Sir John Kerr dated 20th November 1975

LETTER FROM SIR JOHN KERR DATED 20 NOVEMBER 1975

In this letter Sir John seeks to further explain his actions and those of the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition. He says “As you know, when the Senate launched upon its tactic of deferring supply I became concerned that the two parties were on a collision course which, if maintained could cause enormous chaos and even political disaster. The two leaders were both stubborn and proud men. This feeling of mine became accentuated day by day especially as Mr Whitlam, in effect, challenged Mr Fraser's manhood and said something along the lines that he would in the end not have "the guts" to deny supply in fact. As you know, and I will not go into the details again, I did my best to try to arrange some kind of compromise.”

Sir John mentions that “At all times during the crisis he [Mr Whitlam] stated in the clearest terms that he intended to govern without supply and would never recommend a dissolution of the House or a double dissolution whilst supply was denied. He said both publicly and privately that it was his intention to break the power of the Senate over money bills forever.

“There could be no doubt, and I had no doubt, of the absolute irreversibility of this decision. Mr Whitlam was engaged in a crusade based upon a single minded determination to destroy the power of the Senate on money bills. No one talking to him privately at that time could come to any other conclusion. The matter was not discussable. He was prepared and said he was prepared to take the country through makeshift banking arrangements, if he could achieve this, over Christmas and on into the new year - governing without supply.”

It was therefore clear that the Governor-General had no option but to force an election so that the issue could be put to the people.

Letter From The Palace

LETTER FROM SIR MARTIN CHARTERIS TO SIR JOHN KERR DATED 17 NOVEMBER 1975

This is the reply to Sir John’s letter informing the Queen via Sir Martin of the Dismissal of Gough Whitlam and his government. Sir Martin commends Sir John on not letting the Queen know prior to his action. “If I may say so with the greatest respect, I believe that in NOT informing The Queen what you intended to do before doing it, you acted not only with perfect constitutional propriety but also with admirable consideration for Her Majesty’s position.”

Letter from Sir John Kerr

LETTER FROM SIR JOHN KERR DATED 17 NOVEMBER 1975

In this letter Sir John contemplates his future as Governor-General in light of his actions and the manner in which it has Polarised the community. As far as the Dismissal is concerned he says “The historians and academics can argue about it for years.” This is, of course, very true, but I doubt that anyone at the time would have realized that it was a catalyst for moves towards a republic and was probably the main reason why the Labor Party adopted a republic as a policy. Of course, the letters clearly show that they were misguided and that Australia’s system of constitutional monarchy truly represents democracy in action.

The Letter of Dismissal

LETTER FROM THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL TO THE PRIME MINISTER DATED 11 NOVEMBER 1975

In this letter, Sir John Kerr presents Gough Whitlam with a letter terminating his commission and that of the entire ministry.

Letter from Malcolm Fraser

LETTER DATED 11 NOVEMBER 1975 FROM MALCOLM FRASER TO THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL

In this letter Mr Fraser commits to passing the Appropriation Bills, thus guaranteeing supply.

Letter from Sir John Kerr

LETTER FROM SIR JOHN KERR DATED 6 NOVEMBER 1975

In this letter, Sir John rushes off a letter to advise on the latest developments. He has been having meetings with a number of people, including the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition. Very telling is this sentence “He [Mr Whitlam] said that he would never recommend an election for the House of Representatives until he himself was ready to do so and certainly would not do it at the behest of Mr Fraser or the Senate. He later said that the only way in which an election for the House could occur would be if I dismissed him.

Letter from Sir John Kerr

Letter from Sir John Kerr dated 22 October 1975
(including additions dated 23 October & 24 October.)

In this letter, Sir John advises that there are increasing calls in the media for him to take action to resolve the impending crisis. He mentions his discussion with the Prime Minister raising concerns that the “very serious political crisis” may become “a true constitutional crisis”, if the Senate rejects the Budget and money runs out.

With the permission of the Prime Minister he met with the Leader of the Opposition and came to the conclusion that “there is really nothing that I can do to bring the two main contenders to some point of compromise.”

Letter from Sir John Kerr

LETTER FROM SIR JOHN KERR DATED 27 OCTOBER 1975
(Including additions dated 29 October 1975 and 30 October 1975)

In this letter Sir John ponders on the political crisis and his position. He also mentions “There has been the odd reference in the press to The Queen having been kept informed and this has been confirmed from the Palace.” Towards the end of the letter he emphasizes that “In mentioning this I have no desire to escape from any responsibility which the Constitution places on my shoulders or to lessen it or have some excuse for any particular course I may take, but I feel that I should consider, in deciding what I ought to do, anything which may directly or indirectly affect The Queen.”

Letter from Sir John Kerr

Letter from Sir John Kerr

Letter From the Chief Justice Dated 10 November 1975

Letter From The Palace to Gordon Scholes dated 17 November 1975

Letter from Sir John Kerr Dated 24 November 1975

Letter From The Palace Dated 25 November 1975

Letter from Sir John Kerr Dated 28 November 1975

Letter from Sir John Kerr -Dated 28 November 1975

Letters From The Palace

LETTERS FROM SIR MARTIN CHARTERIS DATED 4 & 5 NOVEMBER 1975

In the letter of 4 November, Sir Martin comments on the Reserve Powers of the Crown and cautions that they should only be used as a last resort. “The fact that you have powers is recognized, but it is also clear that you will only use them in the last resort and then only for constitutional and not for political reasons.”

In his letter of 5 November, Sir Martin comments on the media report that the Queen is being kept informed but emphasises that the crisis has to be worked out in Australia. “I think it is good that people should know that The Queen is being informed but, of course, this does not mean that she has any wish to intervene, even if she had the constitutional power to do so. The crisis, as you say, has to be worked out in Australia.”

He ends with a quote from Arthur Meighen, a former Prime Minister of Canada, about the duty of a Governor-General “It is his duty to make sure that parliament is not stifled by government, but that every government is held responsible to parliament, and every parliament held responsible to the people."