Francis Daniel Crean (28 February 1916 – 2 December 2008) was an Australian politician who served as a member of the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
from 1951 to 1977, representing the
Labor Party. He was a minister in the
Whitlam government
The Whitlam government was the federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister Gough Whitlam of the Australian Labor Party. The government commenced when Labor defeated the McMahon government at the 1972 Australian federal elect ...
, including as
Treasurer
A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization.
Government
The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...
from 1972 to 1974 and the fifth
deputy prime minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...
for a few months in 1975.
Crean was born in
Hamilton, Victoria
Hamilton is a city in south-western Victoria, Australia, Victoria, Australia, at the intersection of the Glenelg Highway and the Henty Highway. The Hamilton Highway connects it to Geelong.
Hamilton is in the Australian House of Representatives, ...
. He attended
Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Single-sex education, single-sex Selective school, academically selective secondary school, secondary day school for boys, located in the Melbourne suburb ...
and the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
, and subsequently worked as a tax accountant. Crean was elected to the
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...
in 1945. He lost his seat in 1947 and reclaimed it in 1949, but quit state politics two years later to stand at the
1951 federal election. Crean spent the first 21 years of his career in federal politics
in opposition
''In Opposition'' was a Canadian television sitcom, which aired on CBC Television in 1989."Some Hon. Members: Yawn; In opposition a political sitcom without politics -- or laughs". ''Ottawa Citizen'', October 24, 1989. The show lasted only a singl ...
, albeit as a
frontbencher
In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then know ...
for most of that time. He became Treasurer after the
1972 election, but economic uncertainty and factional considerations meant he was replaced by
Jim Cairns
James Ford Cairns (4 October 191412 October 2003) was an Australian politician who was prominent in the Labor movement through the 1960s and 1970s, and was briefly Treasurer and the fourth deputy prime minister of Australia, both in the Whitl ...
after two years. He was instead appointed
Minister for Overseas Trade. Crean held that position until
the government's dismissal in 1975, and for its final six months was also deputy prime minister, replacing Cairns when he became embroiled in the
Khemlani affair. He left politics at the
1977 election. His son,
Simon Crean
Simon Findlay Crean (26 February 1949 – 25 June 2023) was an Australian politician and trade unionist. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and leader of the opposition from 2001 to 2003. He represented the seat of Hotham i ...
, was a Member of Parliament from 1990 to 2013.
Early life
Crean was born in
Hamilton
Hamilton may refer to:
* Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States
* ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda
** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
,
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India
* Victoria (state), a state of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital
* Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
, where his father was a bicycle-maker. Although his father was of Irish Catholic descent, Francis was raised in his mother's
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
faith. He was known as Francis in his early life, but later changed his name to the less Irish Catholic-sounding Frank. He graduated from the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
with degrees in arts and commerce and a diploma in public administration, and became an accountant and tax consultant.
In 1946, Crean married Mary Findlay, with whom he had three sons. His eldest,
Stephen
Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...
, became lost while skiing and died in a blizzard near
Charlotte Pass in August 1985. A massive search failed to find him. His remains were found more than two years later. His second son,
Simon Crean
Simon Findlay Crean (26 February 1949 – 25 June 2023) was an Australian politician and trade unionist. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and leader of the opposition from 2001 to 2003. He represented the seat of Hotham i ...
, was the federal Labor leader from 2001 to 2003, and was a cabinet member of the
Hawke,
Keating,
Rudd
''Scardinius'' is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Leuciscidae, which includes the daces, Eurasian minnows and related species. The fishes in this genus are commonly called rudds. Locally, the name "rudd" without ...
and
Gillard governments. His third son,
David Crean
David Mackenzie Crean (born 21 November 1950, Melbourne) is a former Labor member of the Parliament of Tasmania. He is the son of former Deputy Prime Minister Frank Crean and brother to former Australian federal opposition leader Simon Crean ...
, became a minister in the state Labor government in
Tasmania
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
.
Politics

In 1945 Crean was elected to the
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...
, but was defeated in 1947. He was re-elected in 1949. He quit state politics in 1951, to stand for the safe Labor seat of
Melbourne Ports in the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
. In Canberra, Crean advanced rapidly, since he was one of the few Labor members with formal qualifications in economics. Elected to the Opposition front-bench in 1956, he became, in effect, shadow Treasurer (although Labor did not have a formal shadow ministry until 1969). This position he held for 16 years. During the 1960s Crean was sometimes considered as a possible party leader, but his rather plodding public image meant that he was overtaken by
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from December 1972 to November 1975. To date the longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), he was notable for being ...
, who became leader in 1967. When Whitlam finally led Labor to office at the
1972 election, Crean became
Treasurer
A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization.
Government
The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...
, although Whitlam had no real confidence in him. Crean's tenure coincided with the onset of high
inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...
and rising
unemployment
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...
. He did not trust the orthodox economic advice he was getting from the Treasury, but he lacked the authority to challenge it. The leader of the
Labor Left
The Labor Left (LL), also known as the Progressive Left, Socialist Left or simply the Left, is one of the two major political factions within the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It is nationally characterised by social progressivism and democra ...
,
Jim Cairns
James Ford Cairns (4 October 191412 October 2003) was an Australian politician who was prominent in the Labor movement through the 1960s and 1970s, and was briefly Treasurer and the fourth deputy prime minister of Australia, both in the Whitl ...
, attacked Crean's policies in the Cabinet, and in December 1974 Whitlam gave Cairns the Treasury and moved Crean to the
Trade
Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market.
Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...
portfolio.
In July 1975 Whitlam sacked Cairns over his involvement in the
Loans Affair, and Crean was elected party Deputy Leader and
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...
in his place, defeating
Kim Beazley Sr. 47 votes to 31, with
Frank Stewart receiving 11 and
Kep Enderby
Keppel Earl Enderby (25 June 1926 – 7 January 2015) was an Australian politician and judge. Enderby was a member of the House of Representatives, representing the Australian Labor Party between 1970 and 1975 and became a senior cabinet minis ...
4.
He held this position until the
dismissal of the Whitlam government in November 1975. After the election he
contested the leadership, polling 13 votes to
Lionel Bowen
Lionel Frost Bowen (28 December 1922 – 1 April 2012) was an Australian politician. He was the deputy leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1977 to 1990 and served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Australia in the Hawke g ...
's 14 and Whitlam's 36. He retired from parliament in 1977.
Later years
From 1978 to 2004, Crean was chairman of the New Hope Migrant and Refugee Centre. In July 2006 it was reported that he was too frail to travel interstate for Gough Whitlam's 90th birthday function.
Crean died following a short illness on 2 December 2008, the 36th anniversary of the election of the Whitlam government in 1972.
References
Bibliography
*Frith, Marion (1995). "Family Politics--Like Father, Like Son." ''The Age''. 24 June.
*Griffiths, Tony (2005). ''Beautiful Lies: Australia From Menzies to Howard''. Kent Town: Wakefield Press.
*Smyth, Paul (1994). ''Australian Social Policy: The Keynesian Chapter''. Sydney: New South Wales University Press.
*Stewart Ian (1974). "Inflation Troubles Australian Labor Party." ''The New York Times''. 8 October.
*Trumbull, Robert (1973). "Problems Cloud Whitlam's Image." ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''. 4 February.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crean, Frank
1916 births
2008 deaths
Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia
Australian people of Irish descent
Members of the Australian House of Representatives
Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Melbourne Ports
Deputy prime ministers of Australia
Members of the Cabinet of Australia
1975 Australian constitutional crisis
Treasurers of Australia
Victoria (state) state politicians
University of Melbourne alumni
People educated at Melbourne High School
Australian Presbyterians
People from Hamilton, Victoria
Australian Army personnel of World War II
Australian MPs 1951–1954
Australian MPs 1954–1955
Australian MPs 1955–1958
Australian MPs 1958–1961
Australian MPs 1961–1963
Australian MPs 1963–1966
Australian MPs 1966–1969
Australian MPs 1969–1972
Australian MPs 1972–1974
Australian MPs 1974–1975
Australian MPs 1975–1977