Forbes, George William (b. 12 May 1869, d. 17 May 1947). Prime Minister of New Zealand 1930–5 Born in Lyttleton (near Christchurch), he became involved in the Cheviot Settlers' Association. A staunch leaseholder,
Sedden appointed him to the Royal Commission on Land Tenure and Settlement in 1905, and in 1908 he became a
Liberal member of the House of Representatives. He was Liberal whip from 1912 to 1922, and in 1925 became party leader. The party contested the 1925 elections as the ‘National Party’, but was unable to secure more than nine seats in the 1925 elections. His career took a further turn for the worse when, after the creation of the new United Party, he had to step down as leader to make way for
Ward. In 1928, he became Deputy Prime Minister for the ailing Ward, whom he succeeded in 1930. In 1931, he formed a coalition with
Coates of the
Reform Party to cope with the Great
Depression. Full of integrity, but lacking imagination or charisma, most of his Cabinet's important legislation was carried out by his political rival Coates, rather than by himself. Against bitter resistance from the
Labour Party, his government abolished the twin pillars of the former Liberal Party, the graduated land tax and compulsory arbitration in labour disputes. He was unsympathetic to the grievances caused by the economic depression and his austere economic policies, maintaining that unemployment benefits should be cut since they were demoralizing. He was heavily defeated in the 1935 general elections, and resigned as party leader later that year.
