George Hutchison (1846 – 30 July 1930) was a New Zealand politician from Taranaki.
Early life
Hutchison was born in Dundee, Scotland, in 1846. He was a son of William Hutchison, later a Wellington Mayor and Member of Parliament. Hutchison Jr received his education in Ireland and Scotland until age 15. He came to New Zealand with his parents in 1866. His father, a journalist, had been hired by The Southern Cross newspaper in Auckland.
Hutchison Jr studied law and from 1872, he practised in Wanganui and then Wellington. He married Agnes Hogg, the daughter of Rev. David Hogg, on 31 March 1874 at Wanganui.
Political career
His first attempt at entering the New Zealand House of Representatives was in April 1875, when he stood in the Rangitikei by-election. He performed poorly and of the three candidates, he came last with 11% of the vote. His father was successful in the City of Wellington electorate in the . Hutchison Jr announced his candidacy in the in the Waitotara electorate, but stood aside in favour of John Bryce; he instead stood in the electorate against Sir Harry Atkinson but was unsuccessful. In the , he stood in the electorate.
He represented the Waitotara electorate from , when he defeated Bryce, to 1893, and then Patea from to 1901, when he resigned to move to South Africa. He was an independent conservative MP, and a lawyer.
He came to oppose the conservative Atkinson government, and in late-1890 he made allegations in parliament that several ministers of the government had large personal overdrafts and were being given preferential treatment by the government owned Bank of New Zealand. A committee of inquiry into the bank was set up which would serve to bury the allegations. Ahead of the 1890 election campaign the Leader of the Opposition and newspaper proprietor, John Ballance, was loaned a sum of ₤300 to establish the Egmont Settler newspaper. The Settler printed anti-government articles and endorsed Hutchison in his re-election bid for Waitotara. Hutchison was on friendly terms with Ballance and sided with the opposition at the election. This was despite some differences on land policies to the Liberal Party. During the campaign and formation of Ballance's ministry, Hutchison was tipped for a position in the cabinet. However, he was omitted from the ministry with Ballance choosing other candidates for cabinet posts he deemed stronger as well as mindful of Hutchison's differences on some political positions. Consequently, Hutchison voted against several of Ballance's bills and by August 1891 had crossed the floor and joined the opposition. He also attempted to start a "middle party" with other members of fluid allegiance such as Henry Fish and George Fisher though it came to nothing.
He contested the 1893 election against William Cowern. For six years (from 1890 to 1896) George and his father were in Parliament at the same time, and were often seen glaring at each other from opposite sides of the house. Hutchison made allegations against Liberal Prime Minister Richard Seddon regarding his local body service while Mayor of Kumara. A privileges committee hearing was held, chaired by William Massey, which came to the conclusion that Seddon was innocent of any of Hutchison's claims. Hutchison's attempt to discredit Seddon backfired with the Prime Minister using the occasion to engage in a moment of triumphalism, holding an eight hour long debate in the house on his innocence.
When parliament opened in 1901, there were questions asked of the Speaker as to when he actually resigned, and it was intimated that he had actually resigned eight or nine months earlier. His seat was declared vacant, and he was replaced as a result of the .
Later life Hutchison went to South Africa during 1899 as a legal advisor for Lord Roberts during the Second Boer War. He returned to South Africa in 1901 and practised law for a few years. He came back to Taranaki in January 1906 and by 1908 had resumed his law practice in Wanganui. Hutchison stood in the Wanganui electorate in the , but was defeated by James Thomas Hogan in the second ballot. He then spent two years in England before he returned to Auckland, where he lived for the remaining years of his life. He died on 30 July 1930 at the Auckland suburb of Saint Heliers.
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