Robert H. Nesbitt

Robert H. Nesbitt
Australian Trade Commissioner to New Zealand
In office 1934–1937
Preceded by	Inaugural
Succeeded by	Charles Critchley OBE
Personal details
Born	24 June 1883 Isle of Man
Died	29 June 1966 (aged 83) Double Bay, New South Wales
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Ethel Lucie (née Murphy)
Education	Balham Grammar School, London
Occupation	Company secretary Accountant
Profession	Trade diplomat
Religion	Methodism

Robert Henry Nesbitt (1883–1966) was the first Australian Trade Commissioner to New Zealand^[1] and became chairman of the NSW Milk Board.^[2] During World War II he was a business member of the Air Board.^[3][4] He had extensive experience in the insurance industry and as a company secretary and accountant. Nesbit was an influential Methodist in New South Wales.^[5] He served as the Chairman of the Executive Comittee of the Council of Newington College for two decades.^[6]

Early life

Nesbit was born on the Isle of Man and educated in England. He emigrated from Great Britain to Australia in 1902 and settled in New South Wales.^[7]

Trade Commissioner

Nesbitt was appointed Australian Trade Commissioner in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1934 and his primary task was to cultivate Australia and New Zealand trade.^[8] He managed the trade diversion issue and negotiated a number of sensitive issues of trade diplomacy. New Zealand had for many years imported fresh citrus and pineapples from Australia but, in 1932, it imposed an embargo. This was in part retaliation against the Australian prohibition on the import of New Zealand potatoes that had been in force for several years. In 1933, Sir Walter Massy Greene initiated a discussion on these matters and secured a partial lifting of the embargo. Nesbitt was responsible for continuing the negotiations, and for tackling issues such as New Zealand's duties being higher than the British preferential rate. There are only limited records of Nesbitt’s time in New Zealand, but a measure of his effectiveness is indicated by the substantial growth in Australia–New Zealand trade in the mid-1930s and the avoidance of major trade disputes. In 1937, Nesbitt left the service to become chairman of the Milk Board of New South Wales.^[9]

Methodist Church

The Methodist Church of Australasia was formed in 1902 when Nesbitt emigrated to Australia and be became an active member of that Christian denomination. In 1929 the General Conference appointed him to the position of Lay General Treasurer of the Methodist Missionary Society of Australasia. For 20 years prior to that time he worked young people of the church and was Lay Treasurer of the Young People's Department of New South Wales. He was a Trustee of the Methodist Ladies' College in Burwood and Annesley Methodist Girls' College in Bowral.^[10]

Death

Nesbit died at home in Double Bay, New South Wales, on 29 June 1966, aged 83.^[11] The Nesbit Wing at Newington College is named in his honour. It was opened 29 September 1961 by Sir Robert Gordon Menzies KT, AK, CH, PC, QC, FAA, FRS the then Prime Minister of Australia.^[12]

References

1. "FOSTERING TRADE WITIH N.Z.". The Courier-mail (205). Queensland, Australia. 25 April 1934. p. 8. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
2. "R. H. Nesbitt New Milk Board Chief". The Land (1348). New South Wales, Australia. 9 April 1937. p. 10. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
3. "AIR BOARD MEMBERS HERE". Sunday Times (Perth) (2411). Western Australia. 30 April 1944. p. 3. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
4. Air Board Australia Retrieved 7 October 2016.
5. Biographical cuttings on Robert H. Nesbitt, noted in The Methodist, 20 May, 1961, p. 5., containing one or more cuttings from newspapers or journals, 1900, retrieved 6 October 2016
6. "WAR MEMORIAL SCIENCE BLOCK AT NEWINGTON COLLEGE". The Methodist. 63, (46). New South Wales, Australia. 13 November 1954. p. 5. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
7. State Library of Victoria. Council (1990), Who's who in Australia [1935] : biographical sketches and photos of representative commercial, professional, financial, pastoral, and business men of Australia, Council of the State Library of Victoria, ISBN 978-0-7241-9778-1
8. "TRADE WITH NEW ZEALAND.". The West Australian. 50, (9,950). Western Australia. 22 May 1934. p. 14. Retrieved 6 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
9. Emissaries of Trade: a history of the Australian trade commissioner service Retrieved 6 October 2016.
10. "METHODIST LAYMEN". The Methodist. 38, (32). New South Wales, Australia. 10 August 1929. p. 5. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
11. The Ryerson Index Retrieved 6 October 2016.
12. Speech by the Prime Minister, The Rt. Hon. R. G. Menzies at Newington College, Sydney on 29TH APRIL 1961