John Cain (26 April 1931 – 23 December 2019) was an Australian politician who was the 41st Premier of Victoria, in office from 1982 to 1990 as leader of the Labor Party.

During his time as premier, reforms were introduced such as liberalised shop trading hours and liquor laws, equal opportunity initiatives, and occupational health and safety legislation.

After Wilkes narrowly lost the 1979 election to the Liberal premier, Dick Hamer, Cain challenged him for the leadership, becoming leader in September 1981.

At that election, Labor won a sweeping victory on a 17-seat swing—the worst defeat that a non-Labor government has ever suffered in Victoria.

Cain took office at the helm of the first Labor government in Victoria since the one led by his father 27 years earlier.

[2][5] Cain was a Keynesian, opposed to the doctrines of economic rationalism, and he increased government spending in the hope of stimulating growth and investment.

Cain, who had played Australian football at Scotch College, made sure Waverley Park had no chance to succeed and the MCG remained the number one venue.

Cain said that such a major event must be played in the centre of Melbourne, but his real reason for sabotaging Waverley Park was to look after the MCC.

A highly respected theologian, McCaughey was a popular choice after the controversy surrounding the resignation of Rear Admiral Sir Brian Murray, following disputed accusations that he had improperly accepted free air travel.

However, Cain remained very popular with the Victorian electorate, and was easily elected to a second term in 1985 over the Liberals under Jeff Kennett, the first time a Labor government had been reelected in Victoria.

However, a fresh election was ordered by the Court of Disputed Returns after it was found that the Chief Electoral Officer should have cast deciding vote.

Within a week the chairman of the Victorian Nuclear Disarmament Party lodged an official complaint about a deceptive NDP how to vote card handed out at the booths.

The stock market crash of 1987 created a crisis which forced the government to cut spending, alienating some trade union supporters.

There was a bid for the 1996 Olympic Games and another proposal was to turn the Docklands into a technology city known as the Multifunction Polis (MFP).

The VEDC collapsed under poor management and an absence of accountability after it had provided $450 million of loan and equity assistance to business.

The Cain government wanted to save $24 million a year, by the introduction of a new Met Ticket system – or scratchies as they were colloquially known.

[2] By this time Cain was becoming frustrated at the reluctance of his government's caucus members to approve his plans for tax rises and spending cuts to reduce the growing budget deficit.

Kirner was unable to make up the lost ground, and Labor was heavily defeated at the 1992 Victorian state election.

In 2004 he surfaced in the media with a damning critique of the University of Melbourne's experimentation with what he said were risky financial ventures and what he argued was its departure from its public mission.

[22] A State Memorial Service for the Honourable John Cain, former Premier of Victoria, was held on Monday 3 February 2020 at St Paul's Cathedral.