Arthur Gibson Manning was an Australian politician who served in both the Australian House of Representatives and the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.
Education
Born to pastroralists Frederick and Jane Belle Manning in Wagga Wagga, Manning was educated in public schools in Wagga and Yass before purchasing grazing land in Narrabri and West Wyalong and marrying Florence Hogarth in 1899. They had no children.
Career
He became a vocal proponent for the rights of farmers and served as President of the Australian Meat Council and on the boards of the Farmers and Settlers" Association and the Graziers" Association. Defeated at the 1920 election, Manning remained involved in the Nationalist Party and rural affairs and was chosen as the Nationalist candidate for the federal Division of Macquarie for the 1922 election. Manning was victorious, narrowly defeating sitting Australian Labor Party representative Samuel Nicholls by less than 100 votes after preferences from an independent were distributed.
Manning faced controversy during his first term in federal parliament when it was revealed in 1924 that he and fellow parliamentarian farmer William Killen had signed cheques on behalf of the government to the Australian meat industry (in which they both had interests).
Following a lively parliamentary debate, a motion that Manning and Killen were in breach of section 44(v) was defeated. Despite this, Manning retained his seat at the 1925 election, defeating Labor candidate and future Prime Minister Ben Chifley.
Chifley argued that he would help keep Australia white and while Manning used his campaign speeches to deny that he was in favour of Asian immigration, the electorate was in no mood for someone they considered soft on immigration. Out of parliament, Manning remained on the executive of the Nationalist Party and stood as the official Nationalist Party candidate for the suburban Sydney federal Division of Wentworth at the 1929 election following the expulsion of the sitting member Walter Marks from the party.
He died in Sydney.
Politics
Manning lost and returned to his life as a gentleman grazier while remaining involved in farming and political issues, including a stint as a United Australia Party (the successor to the Nationalist Party) councillor from 1933 to 1935.
Membership
This was considered by some to be in breach of section 44(v) of the Australian constitution, whereby members of parliament were banned from deriving a benefit from government actions. In 1926, Manning was a member of the Australian delegation to the League of Nations General Assembly, discussing, amongst other issues, Australia"s administration of New Guinea.