 On 6 June 1975, he succeeded Jim Cairns as Treasurer, a position he held until the Whitlam government was dismissed by the Governor-General, Sir John Kerr, on 11 November 1975.Labor suffered its worst-ever defeat in the election held a month later, and Hayden was left as the only Labor MP from Queensland.When Labor lost the 1977 election in yet another landslide, Whitlam retired as leader.