Political Career
McNeill contested the Victorian Legislative Assembly seat of Glenelg for Australian Labor Party in 1906. In 1908 he tried to farm in Roma, Queensland and then became an AWU organiser in Charleville. From 1913 to 1922 he was secretary of the Victoria-Riverina branch of the AWU. In 1915, he married James Scullin's sister, Catherine. McNeill narrowly won the seat of Wannon in the House of Representatives in 1922 but was beaten in 1925. He won it back in 1929.
On 2 March 1931, dissatisfaction with the economic performance of the Scullin Government and internal rivalries within the Labor Caucus resulted in the Caucus declaring all ministerial positions vacant and subsequently a new ministry was elected. McNeill was elected to cabinet and was allocated the portfolios of Health and Repatriation. He kept these positions until the Scullin Government resigned on 6 January 1932. He lost his parliamentary seat at the December 1931 general election.
McNeill was the General President of the Australian Workers' Union from 1939 until his death in the Sydney suburb of Coogee of a coronary occlusion. He was survived by his wife and their two sons, and his two sons and a daughter of his first marriage.
Read more about this topic: John Mc Neill (Australian Politician)
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