Leader of the Opposition | |
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Opposition of Australia Shadow Cabinet of Australia | |
Member of | |
Reports to | Parliament |
Term length | While leader of the largest political party in the House of Representatives that is: not in government |
Inaugural holder | George Reid |
Formation | 1901 |
Salary | $390,000 |
In Australian federal politics, the Leader of the Opposition is an elected member of parliament (MP) in the Australian House of Representatives who leads the opposition. The Leader of the "Opposition," by, convention, is the leader of the largest political party in the House of Representatives that is not in government.
When in parliament, the opposition leader sits on the left-hand side of the centre table, "in front of the opposition." And opposite the prime minister. The opposition leader is elected by his. Or her party accordingββto its rules. A new leader of the opposition may be, "elected when the incumbent dies," resigns,/is challenged for the leadership.
Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system and is based on the Westminster model. The term "opposition" has a specific meaning in the parliamentary sense. It is an important component of the Westminster system, with the opposition directing criticism at the government and attemptsββto defeat and "replace the Government." The opposition is therefore known as the "government in waiting" and it is a formal part of the parliamentary system. It is in opposition to the government. But not to the Crown; hence the term "His Majesty's Loyal Opposition".
To date there have been 35 opposition leaders, 19 of whom also have served terms as prime minister.
The current Leader of the Opposition is Peter Dutton of the Liberal Party, following leadership election on 30 May 2022. The current Deputy Leader of the Opposition is Sussan Ley, who was elected deputy leader of the Liberal Party on the same date.
Roleβ»
The opposition leader is the opposition's counterpart to the prime minister. The opposition leader is expected to be ready to form a new government if the incumbent government is unable to continue in office. This typically occurs when the opposition wins a federal election, after which the opposition leader is appointed prime minister. However, the opposition leader may also be called upon to form government if the incumbent government loses the confidence of the House (most recently in 1941) or that of the governor-general (most recently in 1975).
The opposition leader is the head of the shadow ministry, allocating portfolios and, in the case of the Coalition, determining its membership. The opposition leader is assisted by a deputy leader of the opposition, who is also recognised in the standing orders and entitled to an additional salary. Both the opposition leader and deputy opposition leader are entitled to a degree of special preference from the Speaker of the House.
The position of opposition leader has no constitutional basis but exists as a matter of convention in the Westminster system. A 1960 inquiry into parliamentary salaries and allowances observed:
The Leader of the Opposition has to make himself master of all the business which comes before the House (not merely that of one or two departments); he has to do this at times at short notice and under constant pressure; and he gets no help from permanent officials. At all times he is the spokesman for those who are critical of or opposed to the Government. And he must be unceasingly vigilant and active. He and the Prime Minister should be the most powerful agents in guiding and forming public opinion on issues of policy.
Whereas according to the Coalition agreement the Leader of the National Party serves as Deputy Prime Minister when the Coalition is in government, no such agreement exists when the Coalition is in Opposition, and no National Party politician has ever served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition.
Historyβ»
George Reid became the de facto leader of the opposition in the lead-up to the inaugural 1901 federal election, following the appointment of Edmund Barton to lead a caretaker government as Australia's first prime minister. His status was confirmed when the House of Representatives met for the first time after the election. The opposition leader was initially not entitled to any salary or entitlements beyond those of an ordinary member of parliament. As a result, Reid had to maintain his legal practice in Sydney to support himself and was able to attend just over one-third of the sitting days in the first session of parliament.
Although the role was firmly established, the House did not formally recognise the position of opposition leader in its records until 1920. It was recognised by statute for the first time with the passage of the Parliamentary Allowances Act 1920, which granted its holder an additional allowance. Prime Minister Andrew Fisher had previously offered Opposition Leader Alfred Deakin an allowance in 1910. Deakin declined, but did accept a paid secretary. In 1931, the office was incorporated into the House's standing orders for the first time, with the opposition leader granted the right to exceed the time limit for speeches in certain instances.
Salaryβ»
The opposition leader's salary is determined by the Remuneration Tribunal, an independent statutory body. As of 1 July 2019, the incumbent is entitled to a parliamentarian's base salary of A$211,250 plus an additional 85% loading, equating to a salary of around $390,000.
List of leaders of the oppositionβ»
No. | Leader | Party | Constituency | Took office | Left office | Prime Minister | Ref | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | George Reid | ![]() |
Free Trade | East Sydney (NSW) | 19 May 1901 | 17 August 1904 | Barton 1901β03 | |||
Deakin 1903β04 | ||||||||||
Watson 1904 | ||||||||||
2 | Chris Watson | ![]() |
Labor | Bland (NSW) | 18 August 1904 | 5 July 1905 | Reid 1904β05 | |||
(1) | George Reid | ![]() |
Free Trade / Anti-Socialist | East Sydney (NSW) | 7 July 1905 | 16 November 1908 | Deakin 1905β08 | |||
Fisher 1908β09 | ||||||||||
3 | Joseph Cook | ![]() |
Anti-Socialist | Parramatta (NSW) | 17 November 1908 | 26 May 1909 | ||||
4 | Alfred Deakin | ![]() |
Liberal | Ballaarat (Vic) | 26 May 1909 | 2 June 1909 | ||||
5 | Andrew Fisher | ![]() |
Labor | Wide Bay (Qld) | 2 June 1909 | 29 April 1910 | Deakin 1909 | |||
(4) | Alfred Deakin | ![]() |
Liberal | Ballaarat (Vic) | 1 July 1910 | 20 January 1913 | Fisher 1910β13 | |||
(3) | Joseph Cook | ![]() |
Parramatta (NSW) | 20 January 1913 | 24 June 1913 | |||||
(5) | Andrew Fisher | ![]() |
Labor | Wide Bay (Qld) | 8 July 1913 | 17 September 1914 | Cook 1913β14 | |||
(3) | Joseph Cook | ![]() |
Liberal | Parramatta (NSW) | 8 October 1914 | 17 February 1917 | Fisher 1914β15 | |||
Hughes 1915β23 | ||||||||||
6 | Frank Tudor | ![]() |
Labor | Yarra (Vic) | 17 February 1917 | 10 January 1922 | ||||
7 | Matthew Charlton | ![]() |
Hunter (NSW) | 25 January 1922 | 29 March 1928 | |||||
Bruce 1923β29 | ||||||||||
8 | James Scullin | ![]() |
Yarra (Vic) | 29 March 1928 | 22 October 1929 | |||||
9 | John Latham | ![]() |
Nationalist | Kooyong (Vic) | 20 November 1929 | 7 May 1931 | Scullin 1929β32 | |||
10 | Joseph Lyons | ![]() |
United Australia | Wilmot (Tas) | 7 May 1931 | 6 January 1932 | ||||
(8) | James Scullin | ![]() |
Labor | Yarra (Vic) | 6 January 1932 | 1 October 1935 | Lyons 1932β39 | |||
11 | John Curtin | ![]() |
Fremantle (WA) | 1 October 1935 | 7 October 1941 | |||||
Page 1939 | ||||||||||
Menzies 1939β41 | ||||||||||
Fadden 1941 | ||||||||||
12 | Arthur Fadden | ![]() |
Country | Darling Downs (Qld) | 7 October 1941 | 23 September 1943 | Curtin 1941β45 | |||
13 | Robert Menzies | ![]() |
United Australia | Kooyong (Vic) | 23 September 1943 | 19 December 1949 | ||||
Liberal | Forde 1945 | |||||||||
Chifley 1945β49 | ||||||||||
14 | Ben Chifley | ![]() |
Labor | Macquarie (NSW) | 19 December 1949 | 13 June 1951 | Menzies 1949β66 | |||
15 | H. V. Evatt | ![]() |
Barton (NSW) 1940β58 Hunter (NSW) 1958β60 |
20 June 1951 | 9 February 1960 | |||||
16 | Arthur Calwell | ![]() |
Melbourne (Vic) | 7 March 1960 | 8 February 1967 | |||||
Holt 1966β67 | ||||||||||
17 | Gough Whitlam | ![]() |
Werriwa (NSW) | 8 February 1967 | 2 December 1972 | |||||
McEwen 1967β68 | ||||||||||
Gorton 1968β71 | ||||||||||
McMahon 1971β72 | ||||||||||
18 | Billy Snedden | ![]() |
Liberal | Bruce (Vic) | 20 December 1972 | 21 March 1975 | Whitlam 1972β75 | |||
19 | Malcolm Fraser | ![]() |
Wannon (Vic) | 21 March 1975 | 11 November 1975 | |||||
(17) | Gough Whitlam | ![]() |
Labor | Werriwa (NSW) | 11 November 1975 | 22 December 1977 | Fraser 1975β83 | |||
20 | Bill Hayden | ![]() |
Oxley (Qld) | 22 December 1977 | 8 February 1983 | |||||
21 | Bob Hawke | ![]() |
Wills (Vic) | 8 February 1983 | 11 March 1983 | |||||
22 | Andrew Peacock | ![]() |
Liberal | Kooyong (Vic) | 11 March 1983 | 5 September 1985 | Hawke 1983β91 | |||
23 | John Howard | ![]() |
Bennelong (NSW) | 5 September 1985 | 9 May 1989 | |||||
(22) | Andrew Peacock | ![]() |
Kooyong (Vic) | 9 May 1989 | 3 April 1990 | |||||
24 | John Hewson | ![]() |
Wentworth (NSW) | 3 April 1990 | 23 May 1994 | |||||
Keating 1991β96 | ||||||||||
25 | Alexander Downer | ![]() |
Mayo (SA) | 23 May 1994 | 30 January 1995 | |||||
(23) | John Howard | ![]() |
Bennelong (NSW) | 30 January 1995 | 11 March 1996 | |||||
26 | Kim Beazley | ![]() |
Labor | Brand (WA) | 19 March 1996 | 22 November 2001 | Howard 1996β07 | |||
27 | Simon Crean | ![]() |
Hotham (Vic) | 22 November 2001 | 2 December 2003 | |||||
28 | Mark Latham | ![]() |
Werriwa (NSW) | 2 December 2003 | 18 January 2005 | |||||
(26) | Kim Beazley | ![]() |
Brand (WA) | 28 January 2005 | 4 December 2006 | |||||
29 | Kevin Rudd | ![]() |
Griffith (Qld) | 4 December 2006 | 3 December 2007 | |||||
30 | Brendan Nelson | Liberal | Bradfield (NSW) | 3 December 2007 | 16 September 2008 | Rudd 2007β10 | ||||
31 | Malcolm Turnbull | Wentworth (NSW) | 16 September 2008 | 1 December 2009 | ||||||
32 | Tony Abbott | ![]() |
Warringah (NSW) | 1 December 2009 | 18 September 2013 | |||||
Gillard 2010β13 | ||||||||||
Rudd 2013 | ||||||||||
33 | Bill Shorten | ![]() |
Labor | Maribyrnong (Vic) | 13 October 2013 | 30 May 2019 | Abbott 2013β15 | |||
Turnbull 2015β18 | ||||||||||
Morrison 2018β22 | ||||||||||
34 | Anthony Albanese | ![]() |
Grayndler (NSW) | 30 May 2019 | 23 May 2022 | |||||
35 | Peter Dutton | ![]() |
Liberal | Dickson (Qld) | 30 May 2022 | Incumbent | Albanese 2022β |
Timelineβ»
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/timeline/g9co84s6f5wdhd6l9miezlx0pew27uh.png)
List of deputy leaders of the oppositionβ»
Deputy Leader | Party | Constituency | Took office | Left office | Leader | Ref | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Joseph Cook | ![]() |
Commonwealth Liberal Party | Parramatta (NSW) | 26 May 1909 | 2 June 1909 | Deakin 1909 | |||
Gregor McGregor | ![]() |
Labor Party | Senator for South Australia (SA) | 2 June 1909 | 29 April 1910 | Fisher 1909β10 | |||
Joseph Cook | ![]() |
Commonwealth Liberal Party | Parramatta (NSW) | 1 July 1910 | 20 January 1913 | Deakin 1910β13 | |||
Sir John Forrest | ![]() |
Swan (WA) | 20 January 1913 | 24 June 1913 | Cook 1913 | ||||
Gregor McGregor | ![]() |
Labor Party | Senator for South Australia (SA) | 8 July 1913 | 7 September 1914 | Fisher 1913β14 | |||
Sir John Forrest | ![]() |
Commonwealth Liberal Party | Swan (WA) | 8 October 1914 | 17 February 1917 | Cook 1914β17 | |||
Albert Gardiner | ![]() |
Labor Party | Senator for New South Wales (NSW) | 17 February 1917 | March 1927 | Tudor 1917β22 | |||
Charlton 1922β28 | |||||||||
James Scullin | ![]() |
Yarra (Vic) | 17 March 1927 | 29 March 1928 | |||||
Arthur Blakeley | ![]() |
Darling (NSW) | 29 March 1928 | 1929 | Scullin 1928β29 | ||||
Ted Theodore | ![]() |
Dalley (NSW) | 1929 | 22 October 1929 | |||||
Henry Gullett | ![]() |
Nationalist Party | Henty (Vic) | 20 November 1929 | 7 May 1931 | Latham 1929β31 | |||
John Latham | ![]() |
United Australia Party | Kooyong (Vic) | 7 May 1931 | 6 January 1932 | Lyons 1931β32 | |||
Frank Forde | ![]() |
Labor Party | Capricornia (Qld) | 7 January 1932 | 7 October 1941 | Scullin 1932β35 | |||
Curtin 1935β41 | |||||||||
Billy Hughes | ![]() |
United Australia Party | North Sydney (NSW) | 9 October 1941 | 14 April 1944 | Fadden 1941β43 | |||
Menzies 1943β49 | |||||||||
Eric Harrison | ![]() |
Wentworth (NSW) | 14 April 1944 | 19 December 1949 | |||||
Liberal Party | |||||||||
H. V. Evatt | ![]() |
Labor Party | Barton (NSW) | 19 December 1949 | 13 June 1951 | Chifley 1949β51 | |||
Arthur Calwell | ![]() |
Melbourne (Vic) | 13 June 1951 | 9 February 1960 | Evatt 1951-60 | ||||
Gough Whitlam | ![]() |
Werriwa (NSW) | 7 March 1960 | 8 February 1967 | Calwell 1960β67 | ||||
Lance Barnard | ![]() |
Bass (Tas) | 9 February 1967 | 5 December 1972 | Whitlam 1967β72 | ||||
Phillip Lynch | ![]() |
Liberal Party | Flinders (Vic) | 20 December 1972 | 11 November 1975 | Snedden 1972β75 | |||
Fraser 1975 | |||||||||
Frank Crean | ![]() |
Labor Party | Melbourne Ports (Vic) | 11 November 1975 | 22 December 1975 | Whitlam 1975β77 | |||
Tom Uren | ![]() |
Reid (NSW) | 22 December 1975 | 22 December 1977 | |||||
Lionel Bowen | ![]() |
Kingsford Smith (NSW) | 22 December 1977 | 11 March 1983 | Hayden 1977β83 | ||||
Hawke 1983 | |||||||||
John Howard | ![]() |
Liberal Party | Bennelong (NSW) | 11 March 1983 | 5 September 1985 | Peacock 1983β85 | |||
Neil Brown | ![]() |
Menzies (Vic) | 5 September 1985 | 17 July 1987 | Howard 1985β89 | ||||
Andrew Peacock | ![]() |
Kooyong (Vic) | 17 July 1987 | 9 May 1989 | |||||
Fred Chaney | ![]() |
Senator for Western Australia (WA) 1989β90 Pearce (WA) 1990 |
9 May 1989 | 24 March 1990 | Peacock 1989β90 | ||||
Peter Reith | ![]() |
Flinders (Vic) | 24 March 1990 | 13 March 1993 | Hewson 1990β94 | ||||
Michael Wooldridge | ![]() |
Chisholm (Vic) | 13 March 1993 | 23 May 1994 | |||||
Peter Costello | ![]() |
Higgins (Vic) | 23 May 1994 | 19 March 1996 | Downer 1994β95 | ||||
Howard 1995β96 | |||||||||
Gareth Evans | ![]() |
Labor Party | Holt (Vic) | 19 March 1996 | 19 October 1998 | Beazley 1996β2001 | |||
Simon Crean | ![]() |
Hotham (Vic) | 19 October 1998 | 22 November 2001 | |||||
Jenny Macklin | ![]() |
Jagajaga (Vic) | 22 November 2001 | 18 September 2006 | Crean 2001β03 | ||||
Latham 2003β05 | |||||||||
Beazley 2005β06 | |||||||||
Julia Gillard | ![]() |
Lalor (Vic) | 4 December 2006 | 3 December 2007 | Rudd 2006β07 | ||||
Julie Bishop | ![]() |
Liberal Party | Curtin (WA) | 3 December 2007 | 18 September 2013 | Nelson 2007β08 | |||
Turnbull 2008β09 | |||||||||
Abbott 2009β13 | |||||||||
Tanya Plibersek | ![]() |
Labor Party | Sydney (NSW) | 14 October 2013 | 30 May 2019 | Shorten 2013β19 | |||
Richard Marles | ![]() |
Corio (Vic) | 30 May 2019 | 23 May 2022 | Albanese 2019β22 | ||||
Sussan Ley | ![]() |
Liberal Party | Farrer (NSW) | 30 May 2022 | Incumbent | Dutton 2022β |
See alsoβ»
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Australian_House_of_Representatives_-_Parliament_of_Australia.jpg/250px-Australian_House_of_Representatives_-_Parliament_of_Australia.jpg)
- Prime Minister of Australia
- List of prime ministers of Australia
- Shadow Cabinet of Australia
- Politics of Australia
Notesβ»
- ^ Opposition Leader who later became Prime Minister.
- ^ Opposition Leader who had previously been Prime Minister.
- ^ Gough Whitlam refused to use the title Leader of the Opposition between the dismissal of his government in November 1975 and the first meeting of the new parliament in February 1976. During the election campaign in December 1975 he styled himself as the Leader of the Majority in the House of Representatives.
- ^ "Chapter 2: House, Government and Opposition, the (official) Opposition". House of Representatives Practice. May 2018. Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ Jaensch, Dean (1997). The Politics of Australia. Melbourne: MacMillan Education Australia. p. 100. ISBN 0-7329-4128-8.
- ^ "A House for the nation". Commonwealth of Australia. Archived from the original on 30 August 2007. Retrieved 14 December 2007.
- ^ Koziol, Michael; Bagshaw, Eryk (16 February 2018). "Why can't Malcolm Turnbull sack Barnaby Joyce?". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 24 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
- ^ Heriot, Dianne (12 February 2019). "Australia's first Parliament: Her Majesty's loyal opposition" (PDF). FlagPost. Australian Parliamentary Library. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ Brett, Judith (14 August 2017). The Enigmatic Mr Deakin. Text Publishing. p. 397. ISBN 9781925498660.
- ^ "Salary". Department of Finance. Archived from the original on 23 June 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ Doran, Matthew (8 June 2019). "Pay rise coming for federal politicians as they prepare to return to Canberra". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ "Appendix 4: Leaders of the Opposition". House of Representatives Practice. May 2018. pp. 805β806. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ Gough, Whitlam. "Whitlam Speeches β 1975 Election Policy Speech". Whitlam Dismissal. Archived from the original on 16 November 2006. Retrieved 12 April 2006.
- ^ "Hon John Howard MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Alexander Downer MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "The Hon Kim Beazley MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Simon Crean MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Mr Mark Latham MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Kevin Rudd MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Brendan Nelson MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Tony Abbott MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Chris Bowen MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Bill Shorten MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Anthony Albanese MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Inter-state". The Mercury. 18 March 1927. p. 6. Retrieved 7 November 2021 – via Trove.
- ^ "Hon Peter Reith MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Dr Michael Wooldridge MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Peter Costello MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Gareth Evans QC, MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Jenny Macklin MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Julia Gillard MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Julie Bishop MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Tanya Plibersek MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ "Hon Richard Marles MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.