Career
Born in Glasgow, Scotland and an operative in the boot trade. On arriving in Wellington McLaren became involved in the Union movement seeking to improve the lot of lower paid workers. McLaren was Secretary of the Wellington Wharf Labourers Union in New Zealand.
During World War I McLaren was appointed to the Military Service Board, and also served on the War Relief Association from its inception in 1914.
At the end of the war he was appointed to the Influenza Epidemic Commission. McLaren was one of nine candidates who contested the three-member City of Wellington electorate in the 1902 election.
He came last with 7% of the vote. Two Liberal candidates received similar votes and both were eliminated in the first ballot.
This left McLaren face a conservative candidate, Arthur Richmond Atkinson, in the second ballot, and with many liberal voters transferring their allegiance to McLaren, he became the only candidate of the IPLL who was ever elected to the House of Representatives.
In 1911 he was defeated by the conservative candidate, Alfred Newman, by 65 votes. At the 1914 contest, McLaren was again unsuccessful, this time by 48 votes. Later on, McLaren organised the wartime Welfare League and through this was associated with Edward Kellett.
He died on 3 November 1939 at Wellington Public Hospital.
