Clifton Webb (politician) explained

Honorific-Prefix:The Honourable
Sir Clifton Webb
Order1:18th Attorney-General
Term Start1:13 December 1949
Term End1:26 November 1954
Primeminister1:Sidney Holland
Predecessor1:Rex Mason
Successor1:Jack Marshall
Order3:31st Minister of Justice
Term Start3:13 December 1949
Term End3:26 November 1954
Primeminister3:Sidney Holland
Predecessor3:Rex Mason
Successor3:Jack Marshall
Birth Name:Thomas Clifton Webb
Birth Date:8 March 1889
Birth Place:Te Kōpuru, New Zealand
Death Place:Wellington, New Zealand
Spouse:Lucy Nairn
Children:2 daughters
Party:National
Alma Mater:Auckland University College

Sir Thomas Clifton Webb (8 March 1889 – 6 February 1962) was a New Zealand politician and diplomat.

Early life

He was born in Te Kōpuru, near Dargaville, in 1889. Thomas Webb was his father. He received his education at Te Kōpuru School, Auckland Grammar School, and the studied at Auckland University College.[1] He practised law in Dargaville. He was in the army from 1917 to 1919, then returned to his practice in Dargaville and was a borough councillor there from 1921 to 1923. He moved to Auckland in 1927 and established a new law firm there.

Member of Parliament

He sat in Parliament from 1943 until 1954: first as an Independent National MP for (1943–1946) and then as the National Party MP for Rodney (1946–1954).[2] A key aide to party leader Sidney Holland, he was appointed to Attorney-General upon National gaining power in 1949. As Minister of Justice, he was responsible for drafting the legislation that resulted in the abolition of the Legislative Council.

In 1951, he took his first step into diplomacy by adding Minister for External Affairs and Minister of Island Territories to his other duties; portfolios which he held from 1951 to 1954.[3] In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal.[4] In 1955, Webb was granted the use of the title of "Honourable" for life, having served more than three years as a member of the Executive Council. He served as the country's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom between 1955 and 1958, and was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 1956 New Year Honours.

Family

On 1 September 1915, Webb married Lucy Nairn in Auckland; they were to have two daughters. He died on 6 February 1962 in Wellington.[5] His wife died in 1983.[6]

External links

|-|-

Notes and References

  1. Book: Petersen, George Conrad . George Petersen (historian)

    . Who's Who in New Zealand, 1961 . George Petersen (historian) . 1961 . 7th . . Wellington . 290.

  2. Book: Scholefield, Guy . New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 . Guy Scholefield . 3rd . First ed. published 1913 . 1950 . Govt. Printer . Wellington . 147.
  3. New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, Vols. 296–304 (1951–1954).
  4. News: Coronation Medal . Supplement to the New Zealand Gazette . 37 . 3 July 1953 . 1021–1035 . 20 March 2022.
  5. Book: Petersen, George Conrad . George Petersen (historian)

    . Who's Who in New Zealand, 1964 . George Petersen (historian) . 1964 . 8th . . Wellington . 305.

  6. Web site: Details . . 2 May 2021.