Memories of the Bureau, 1946 to 1962
Foreword
Terminology
Prologue
Preface
Chapter 1: The Warren Years, 1946 to 1950
Chapter 2: International Meteorology
Chapter 3: The Timcke Years, 1950 to 1955
Chapter 4: A Year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Chapter 5: The Dwyer Years, 1955 to 1962
Chapter 6: A Springboard for the Future
My Springboard
Proposal for More Staff
Efforts to Improve Scientific Status of the Bureau
Gibbs-Priestley-White Prospectus
Successes and Struggles with Ministers and Permanent Heads
Submission to Royal Commission on Government Administration
The Committee of Inquiry
Achievements 1962 to 1978
Appendix 1: References
Appendix 2: Reports, Papers, Manuscripts
Appendix 3: Milestones
Appendix 4: Acknowledgements
Appendix 5: Summary by H. N. Warren of the Operation of the Meteorological Section of Allied Air Headquarters, Brisbane, 1942–45
Endnotes
Index
Search
Help
Contact us
Successes and Struggles with Ministers and Permanent Heads (continued)
My objections when I felt Sir Hugh was unreasonable in criticising Bureau performance prompted him to become somewhat overbearing. This is not the place to elaborate on the story of the struggle which developed between us. I was not the only head of an organisation within his Department to suffer from his tactics. Frank Peters, head of Analytical Laboratories became something of a nervous wreck and retired on grounds of ill-health after a long struggle to maintain the integrity of his organisation. Tim Bowden's book on ANARE mentions that Ray Garrod, Head of the Antarctic Division, also had difficulty with Ennor's negative attitude.My concern that the achievements of the Bureau during the Warren-Timcke-Dwyer years and our subsequent progress were being eroded prompted me to seek interviews with Bill Morrison and Clyde Cameron during their terms as Minister for Science. I argued that the Meteorology Act of 1955 made me directly responsible to the Minister for Science. Sir Hugh invoked a management arrangement which he argued made him administratively responsible for the Bureau. Ministers Bill Morrison and Clyde Cameron would have found it difficult to intervene on my behalf with their Permanent Head, and the only result of my initiative was to spur Sir Hugh into making life more difficult for me as Director of Meteorology.
I was to learn later that Sir Hugh had sought an opinion on my approach to the Ministers from the Solicitor-General. Sir Hugh was told that my argument regarding the force of the Meteorology Act over-rode Sir Hugh's claim. I hold a copy of a letter from C. W. Harders, Permanent Head of the Attorney-General's Department, in a reply to a letter from Sir Hugh in which the latter had sought Harder's advice on this matter. Harders' reply leaves no doubt of his view that the Meteorology Act gave me direct access to the Minister for Science, under whom I had responsibility for the management of the Bureau.
Of course Sir Hugh did not acquaint me of the advice he had received from the Solicitor-General and continued to make life difficult.
People in Bright Sparcs - Dwyer, Leonard Joseph; Ennor, Arnold Hughes; Warren, Herbert Norman
 |
Bureau of Meteorology |  |
© Online Edition Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre and Bureau of Meteorology 2001
Published by Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre, using the Web Academic Resource Publisher
http://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/fam/1151.html