Jack Critchley

Jack Critchley JP
Critchley c. 1950
Senator for South Australia
In office 1 July 1947 – 30 June 1959
Preceded by	George McLeay
Succeeded by	Jim Toohey
Member of the South Australian House of Assembly for Burra Burra
In office 5 April 1930 – 7 April 1933
Preceded by	New seat
Succeeded by	George Jenkins
Personal details
Born	(1892-04-18)18 April 1892 Callington, South Australia
Died	27 April 1964(1964-04-27) (aged 72) Glengowrie, South Australia
Political party	Labor
Spouse	Alice Cave ​ (m. 1919)​
Occupation	Wheelwright soldier carpenter union organiser public servant politician
Military service
Allegiance	Australia
Branch/service	Australian Imperial Force
Years of service	1916–1918
Rank	Private
Unit	10th Battalion
Battles/wars	World War I

John Owen Critchley JP (18 April 1892 – 27 April 1964) was an Australian politician who served as a Labor member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1930 to 1933 and then the Australian Senate from 1947 to 1959. Born at Callington in the Adelaide Hills of South Australia, and schooled in and around Petersburg (later Peterborough), Critchley completed an apprenticeship as a wheelwright, but was then sacked for forming a branch of his union. He was a founding member and also served twelve years on the executive of the Amalgamated Coach Rolling Stock Makers' and Wheelwrights' Society – later the Australian Coachmakers Employees' Federation then the Vehicle Builders Employees' Federation. He briefly served with the 10th Battalion on the Western Front in France and Belgium during World War I, but was repatriated as medically unfit, suffering from a neck condition.

Critchley returned to Peterborough and worked for South Australian Railways as a carpenter. He joined the Labor Party and was active in his local community, including serving two terms on the town council. He successfully ran as a Labor candidate for the seat of Burra Burra in the South Australian House of Assembly in the 1930 South Australian state election, but was defeated in 1933 after the Labor Party split over austerity measures and his expulsion from the party. He was readmitted to the party the following year, and worked as a vehicle registration clerk then managed clothing rations during World War II. In 1946 Critchley was elected to the Australian Senate, and served until 1958, being re-elected twice. He was opposition whip in the Senate from 1950 to 1957, responsible for maintaining party discipline. As a senator, Critchley advocated for returned servicemen, conservation, and railway reform, and was a fierce supporter of Labor's banking policies. He promoted a national perspective on a range of issues, including railway reform, conservation, and the flying of the Australian flag, and was a strong opponent of state parochialism. Illness caused him to step down as opposition whip in 1957, and he did not contest the 1958 election, retiring in June 1959. When he died five years later he was described by a fellow senator as "a true Labour man" who was "always ready to fight injustice and to resist it".