Ten years as Mayor marked by fairness and compromise

Press, 30 December 1976, Page 2

Ten years as Mayor marked by fairness and compromise

Sir George Manning, who died yesterday at the age of 89, will probably be remembered as the best-loved Mayor of Christchurch and as a man of all the people, in spite of his Labour Party ties.

A steelworker in a Welsh tin works at the age of 14, Sir George never forgot his origins, but he never let them hold him back.

He was a strong believer in socialism and the trade union movement, but he did not let those beliefs stand in the way of political compromise in councils heavily stacked against his political philosophy. He was constantly urging people, especially the young, to “get together and have a purpose.” At a retirement function after his 10 years as Mayor, an opposition councillor said Sir George had never changed in the job. Only the respect of other people had changed —it had continued to grow. When he arrived in New Zealand at the age of 17, Sir George’s first job was shovelling coal for the Railways Department. This was only for a short time, however, and his next position was with the drainage board when he was employed to dig ditches. Soon after this. Sir George was taken on for a three month probationary period with the Government Life Insurance office. It was when this period expired that Sir George was offered a job by the Tramway Board. He then had to make a choice and decide which job he was going to take. He opted for the Tramway Board position and was taken on as a conductor on the Sumner run in 1911.

Many years later, he began a 10-vear run as chairman of the Christchurch Transport Board. He was a city councillor and Mayor more than 40 vears before he retired in 1968 at the age of 81. Sir George’s death means that Sir Robert Macfarlane, still a councillor, is the last surviving member of the city’s first Labour council. He was a firm advocate of adult education. In Christchurch, he was a member of the first Workers’ Educational

Association class, through which he took a degree course at Canterbury University and earned an M.A. degree in economics. He had been national president, organising secretary for Canterbury and the Dominion, and a metropolitan tutor of the W.E.A. In 1958, Sir George became the forty-first Mayor of Christchurch by a large majority in a by-election required by the resignation of Sir Robert Macfarlane, who became Speaker of the House of Representatives. It was a far cry from his first local body contest. In 1917, he tried to get on the council for the first time and failed with a low vote. He kept trying, and won a seat 10 years later. He served until 1929, then was re-elected in 1936 to begin 32 years of unbroken service. He also served on the Transport Board from 1937 to 1951, and was on the Lyttelton Harbour Board for several terms.

Sir George was knighted in 1967 while still Mayor. 57 years after coming to New Zealand. He had received the C.M.G. in 1960 for his service to local bodies and education.

When he retired the following year, he was told by a Citizens’ Association councillor that the people had paid him the compliment of allowing him to survive strong movements against his party. Although he was known as a political survivor—at one time, he was the only Labour councillor —he was also known as a man who represented all citizens.

For many years, he was the Mayor on a council with a Citizens’ Association majority. He always urged a strong opposition, and chided voters when not enough of them exercised their civic responsibilities at the polls. At his retirement function, he was described as “scrupulously fair” by the new Mayor, Mr A. R. Guthrey. Yesterday, both political supporters and opponents praised his even-handed work.

Mr H. P. Smith, a lojig-time Deputy Mayor, said Sir George respected the public will, and was always ready to listen to other sides. In 1968, Mr Guthrey said the Labour Mayor had pre-

sided over an unprecedented period of civic calm through the use Compromise to achieve fianleny. Bom in Gowerton, Wales, in 1887, Sir George would have been 90 on February 11. He started work at the age of 14 in conditions he had said would be hard for Christchurch people to believe. He used to say that if there were one black spot on the history of Great Britain, it would be nineteenth century working conditions. Sir George attended his first union meeting in a Welsh pub in 1907. That was the start of his Labour Party involvement, and he joined the genera! Labourers’ Union in this country when he arrived. He was later involved with the Tramway Union and Grocers’ Assistants Trade Union.

Twice he sought to enter national politics. In 1940 he stood unsuccessfully against the late Sir Sidney Holland in the old Christchurch North seat, and in 1949 he opposed Mr .1. T. Watts in St Albans, again without success. He worked for 25 years on the city’s town hall project, and in" 1966 led a delegation to bid for the 1970 Commonwealth Games. That bid was the groundwork for Christchurch being awarded the Commonwealth Games in 1974. His other close associations included the Cambrian Society and the Adult Cerebral Palsy Society, of which

he was a life member and patron.

A member of the Victory Park Board for 10 years, Sir George was an avid rugby fan. Later, he was a keen bowler.

For the past three years, Sir George had been forced to stay in a private hospital because of failing health. A public funeral sendee will be held for him on Friday at 11 a.m. in Christchurch Cathedral. He is survived by Lady Sarah Manning and a son, Penrhy.