Metropolitan Province (Western Australia)

The Metropolitan Province was a multi-member electoral province of the Western Australian Legislative Council, located in the metropolitan region of Perth. It was created by the Constitution Acts Amendment Act 1893, and became effective on 22 May 1894 following the first council elections following the granting of responsible government to Western Australia. The seat was safe for the Liberal Party and its predecessors.

Until the 1950 elections, it covered Perth's central business district and nearby environs, but moved at that point to the western and northern suburbs while still extending to include Perth itself. In 1963–1964, electoral changes to the Legislative Council, which abolished the 10 three-member seats and created 15 two-member seats in their place, resulted in the seat shrinking into the wealthy western suburbs region. Thereafter, it was a safe seat for the Liberal Party. In 1989, the province was abolished by the Acts Amendment (Electoral Reform) Act 1987, and with two others became part of the North Metropolitan Region under the new proportional voting system.

Geography

The province was made up of several complete Legislative Assembly districts, which changed at each distribution. It had a more restrictive franchise than the Legislative Assembly, however, so not all voters in the corresponding Assembly districts were eligible to vote in the Council.

Redistribution	Period	Electoral districts	Electors	% of State
1893	22 May 1894 – 22 May 1898	Perth, East Perth, West Perth
1896	22 May 1898 – 22 May 1900	Perth, East Perth, North Perth, West Perth
1899	22 May 1900 – 22 May 1904	Perth, East Perth, North Perth, West Perth
1904	22 May 1904 – 22 May 1912
1911	22 May 1912 – 22 May 1930
1929	22 May 1930 – 22 May 1950
1948	22 May 1950 – 22 May 1956	Claremont, Cottesloe, East Perth, Leederville, Nedlands, North Perth, Subiaco, Wembley Beaches, West Perth
1955	22 May 1956 – 22 May 1962	Claremont, Cottesloe, East Perth, Leederville, Mount Hawthorn, Nedlands, North Perth, Subiaco, Wembley Beaches, West Perth
1961	22 May 1962 – 22 May 1965	Balcatta, Claremont, Cottesloe, Karrinyup, Mount Hawthorn, Nedlands, Perth, Subiaco, Wembley
1963–64	22 May 1965 – 22 May 1968	Claremont, Cottesloe, Nedlands, Perth, Subiaco
1966	22 May 1968 – 22 May 1974	Cottesloe, Floreat, Nedlands, Perth, Subiaco
1972	22 May 1974 – 22 May 1977
1976	22 May 1977 – 22 May 1983
1982	22 May 1983 – 22 May 1989

Representation

Members

Three-member seat

Member 1	Party		Term	Member 2	Party		Term	Member 3	Party		Term
Sir George Shenton			1894–1906	Stephen Henry Parker			1894–1897	Henry Saunders			1894–1902
				George Randell			1897–1910
								James Wright			1902–1908
Charles Sommers		Liberal	1906–1918	Walter Kingsmill			1903–1922	Arthur Jenkins		Liberal	1908–1917
								Harry Boan		Nationalist	1917–1918
Henry Saunders		Independent	1918–1919					John Nicholson		Nationalist	1918–1941
Arthur Lovekin		Nationalist	1919–1931	James Macfarlane		Nationalist	1922–1928
Leonard Bolton		Nationalist	1932–1945	James Franklin		Nationalist	1928–1940
				Sir Hal Colebatch		Nationalist	1940–1945	James Hislop		Nationalist	1941–1945
		Liberal	1945–1948			Liberal	1945–1948			Liberal	1945–1965
Keith Watson		Liberal	1948–1965	Harry Hearn		Liberal	1948–1956
				Reg Mattiske		Liberal	1956–1965

Two-member seat

Member 1	Party		Term	Member 2	Party		Term
James Hislop		Liberal	1965–1971	Keith Watson		Liberal	1965–1968
John Williams		Liberal	1971–1989	Ian Medcalf		Liberal	1968–1986
				Max Evans		Liberal	1986–1989

References

• Black, David (1991). Legislative Council of Western Australia : membership register, electoral law and statistics, 1890-1989. Perth: Parliamentary History Project. ISBN 0-7309-3641-4.