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Story: History of immigration

Labour cabinet, 1935

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Labour cabinet, 1935

In the early years of the 20th century there was a major migration of Australians, as New Zealand’s recovery coincided with drought in Australia. Unionists and socialists were among those who came, and the Labour government which took the reins in New Zealand in 1935 included five Australians who had arrived in this period. They were Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage (in the front row), Robert Semple (back row, third from left), William Parry (fourth from left), Mark Fagan (fifth from left), and Paddy Webb (far right).

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: 1/1-018443; F

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Jock Phillips, History of immigration – Migration: 1900 to 1914, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/2131/labour-cabinet-1935 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Jock Phillips, published 4 March 2009, updated 1 August 2015.