James Gillespie Barclay (24 June 1882 – 5 October 1972) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party.

Biography

Early life

Barclay was born in Pigeon Bay on Banks Peninsula. His father was Morrison Barclay. He married Helen Betrice in 1907, but was a widower by the time he joined the army. Before World War I, he was a farmer and lived in the Christchurch suburb of Riccarton. He served with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force from 1916 to 1919. He then bought a property in Pukehuia, Northland, where he owned 1600 acre near the Wairoa River. He sold his farm in 1931 and retired to Whangārei. He served on several local boards in Northland.

Political career

Barclay unsuccessfully stood against the Prime Minister, Gordon Coates, in the electorate in the. In the, he unsuccessfully challenged the incumbent in the electorate in Northland, Alfred Murdoch. He beat Murdoch in the, but was defeated in turn by Murdoch after two parliamentary terms in 1943. He was a cabinet minister in the First Labour Government under Peter Fraser. He was Minister of Agriculture (1941–1943), Minister of Marketing (1941–1943), Minister of Lands (1943), and Commissioner of State Forests (1943). He then became High Commissioner to Australia from 1944 to 1950. His appointment (and that of the other defeated candidate Charles Boswell) attracted criticism as political appointments.

Later life

A son, Bruce Barclay, was Member of Parliament for Christchurch Central from to 1979. A nephew, Ron Barclay, was MP for New Plymouth from to 1975. James Barclay died in Christchurch in 1972.