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Member for Herbert (Queensland) 1901-1925 |
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Born in Dubbo, New South Wales, Fred Bamford moved to Queensland as a child, where he worked as a cabinet-maker, and became involved in municipal politics. He was Mayor of Bowen, Queensland, in 1898.
Bamford was elected to the House of Representatives at the first federal election in 1901 as the Labor Party member for Herbert, Queensland, a seat which he held until his retirement from Parliament in 1925. During this time he served as a minister, Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker, and sat on a number of committees and royal commissions.
A Vice-President of the Waterside Workers Federation 1902-16, Bamford formed a close association with W.M. Hughes. He was one of the first members of the House of Representatives to openly support conscription for overseas military service during the First World War, and on expulsion from the Labor Party in October 1916, Bamford joined Hughes in the National Labor Government as Minister for Home and Territories.
Throughout his parliamentary career Bamford earnestly represented the interests of the sugar industry in northern Queensland. His personal popularity ensured his repeated return to Parliament, despite his expulsion from the Labor Party.
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