Political Career
Munro was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly for North Melbourne in 1874. In 1877 he was elected for Carlton, then for North Melbourne again in 1881, where he was defeated in 1883. In 1886 he was elected for Geelong, retaining this seat until 1892.
Initially a liberal, Munro was Minister for Public Instruction in the first government of the radical leader Graham Berry, but became increasingly conservative in the 1880s and did not hold office in Berry's later governments. He was also preoccupied with business in these years, since his companies, the Federal Bank and the Federal Building Society, were leading players in the speculative Land Boom that gripped the colony. Unlike many of the Land Boomers, he had a reputation for stern Scots integrity, and as the Boom faded in 1890 he emerged as leader of the opposition to the government of Duncan Gillies. In November he moved a successful no-confidence motion in the Gillies government and became Premier — he was the third Scottish-born Premier in succession.
Munro's government was generally liberal, but was weakened by the absence of Alfred Deakin, the leading Victorian liberal, who chose to concentrate on the campaign for Australian federation. It was quite unable to cope with the accelerating financial collapse which began almost as soon as it took office. The crash climaxed in late 1891 with the failure of several major banks. Munro's own companies were soon in trouble as the bottom fell out of the land market, and in December the Federal Bank and the Federal Building Society suspended payments.
Read more about this topic: James Munro (Australian Politician)
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