Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia

The Leader of the Liberal Party, also known as Leader of the Parliamentary Liberal Party, is the highest office within the Liberal Party of Australia and the Liberal–National Coalition. The position is currently, and has been since 30 May 2022, held by Peter Dutton, who represents the Division of Dickson in Queensland. Peter Dutton is the fifteenth leader of the Liberal Party. Dutton is also the first leader of the party to represent a Queensland electorate.

Leader of the Liberal Party
Incumbent
Peter Dutton
since 30 May 2022
TypeThe Honourable
Member of
Term lengthNo fixed term
Constituting instrumentClause 14.2, Constitution of the Federal Liberal Party[1]
Inaugural holderRobert Menzies
Formation21 February 1945
Unofficial namesLeader of the Coalition
DeputySussan Ley
WebsitePeter Dutton

The current Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party is Sussan Ley.

History

The Liberal Party leadership was first held by former United Australia Party leader and eventual co–founder Robert Menzies, along with eighteen political organisations and groups.[2]

Following the oustings of two Liberal prime ministers in three years, Scott Morrison introduced a new threshold to trigger a Liberal Party leadership change in government, requiring two-thirds of the partyroom vote to trigger a spill motion. The change was introduced at an hour long party room meeting on the evening of 3 December 2018. Morrison said the changes, which were drafted with feedback from former prime ministers John Howard and Tony Abbott, would only apply to leaders who lead the party to victory at a federal election.[3]

Role

Since the days of Menzies, the Liberal Party has either been in government with a coalition or in opposition to the Labor. Thus, the leader of the Liberal Party can often be the Prime Minister of Australia or Leader of the Opposition. Furthermore, the leader picks the Cabinet and is also the leader of the Coalition. The Liberal Party only had one leader of the party from the Senate, John Gorton, for a brief period in January 1968 before he resigned from the Senate to contest the Higgins by-election in February 1968.

Leaders of the Liberal Party
Note: the right-hand column does not allocate height proportional to time in office.

A list of leaders (including acting leaders) since 1945.[4]

No. Leader
(birth–death)		 Portrait Electorate Took office Left office Prime Minister (term)
1 Robert Menzies
(1894–1978)		 Kooyong, Vic. 21 February 1945 20 January 1966 Curtin (1941–1945)
Forde (1945)
Chifley (1945–1949)
Himself (1949–1966)
2 Harold Holt
(1908–1967)		 Higgins, Vic. 20 January 1966
(unopposed)		 17 December 1967
(died in office)		 Himself (1966–1967)
3 John Gorton
(1911–2002)		 Senator for Victoria
(9 January – 1 February)
Higgins, Vic.		 9 January 1968
(elected)		 10 March 1971 McEwen[lower-alpha 2] (1967–1968)
Himself (1967–1971)
4 William McMahon
(1908–1988)		 Lowe, NSW 10 March 1971
(elected)		 20 December 1972 Himself (1971–1972)
Whitlam (1972–1975)
5 Billy Snedden
(1926–1987)		 Bruce, Vic. 20 December 1972
(elected)		 21 March 1975
6 Malcolm Fraser
(1930–2015)		 Wannon, Vic. 21 March 1975
(elected)		 11 March 1983
Himself (1975–1983)
Hawke (1983–1991)
7 Andrew Peacock
(1939–2021)
(1st time)		 Kooyong, Vic. 11 March 1983
(elected)		 5 September 1985
8 John Howard
(b. 1939)
(1st time)		 Bennelong, NSW 5 September 1985
(elected)		 9 May 1989
(7) Andrew Peacock
(1939–2021)
(2nd time)		 Kooyong, Vic. 9 May 1989
(elected)		 3 April 1990
9 John Hewson
(b. 1946)		 Wentworth, NSW 3 April 1990
(elected)		 23 May 1994
Keating (1991–1996)
10 Alexander Downer
(b. 1951)		 Mayo, SA 23 May 1994
(elected)		 30 January 1995
(8) John Howard
(b. 1939)
(2nd time)		 Bennelong, NSW 30 January 1995
(unopposed)		 29 November 2007
Himself (1996–2007)
11 Brendan Nelson
(b. 1958)		 Bradfield, NSW 29 November 2007
(elected)		 16 September 2008 Rudd (2007–2010)
12 Malcolm Turnbull
(b. 1954)
(1st time)		 Wentworth, NSW 16 September 2008
(elected)		 1 December 2009
13 Tony Abbott
(b. 1957)		 Warringah, NSW 1 December 2009
(elected)		 14 September 2015
Gillard (2010–2013)
Rudd (2013)
Himself (2013–2015)
(12) Malcolm Turnbull
(b. 1954)
(2nd time)		 Wentworth, NSW 14 September 2015
(elected)		 24 August 2018 Himself (2015–2018)
14 Scott Morrison
(b. 1968)		 Cook, NSW 24 August 2018
(elected)		 30 May 2022 Himself (2018–2022)
Albanese (2022–present)
15 Peter Dutton
(b. 1970)		 Dickson, Qld. 30 May 2022
(unopposed)		 Incumbent

Federal leaders by time in office
No Name Term began Term ended Time in office Term as Prime Minister
1 Sir Robert Menzies 21 February 194520 January 1966 20 years, 333 days (UAP 1939–41), 1949–66
(8) John Howard 30 January 199529 November 2007 12 years, 303 days 1996–2007
6 Malcolm Fraser 21 March 197511 March 1983 7 years, 355 days 1975–83
13 Tony Abbott 1 December 200914 September 2015 5 years, 287 days 2013–15
9 John Hewson 3 April 199023 May 1994 4 years, 50 days
8 John Howard 5 September 19859 May 1989 3 years, 246 days
14 Scott Morrison 24 August 201830 May 2022 3 years, 157 days 2018–2022
3 Sir John Gorton 10 January 196810 March 1971 3 years, 59 days 1968–71
(12) Malcolm Turnbull 14 September 201524 August 2018 2 years, 344 days 2015–2018
7 Andrew Peacock 11 March 19835 September 1985 2 years, 178 days
5 Sir Billy Snedden 20 December 197221 March 1975 2 years, 91 days
2 Harold Holt 20 January 196619 December 1967 1 year, 333 days 1966–67
4 Sir William McMahon 10 March 19715 December 1972 1 year, 270 days 1971–72
12 Malcolm Turnbull 16 September 20081 December 2009 1 year, 76 days
15 Peter Dutton 30 May 2022Incumbent 1 year, 148 days
(7) Andrew Peacock 9 May 19893 April 1990 329 days
11 Brendan Nelson 29 November 200716 September 2008 292 days
10 Alexander Downer 23 May 199430 January 1995 252 days

Totals for leaders who served multiple non-consecutive terms:

Federal deputy leaders
#NameStateTerm startTerm endDurationLeader(s)
1Eric HarrisonNew South Wales21 February 194526 September 195611 years, 218 daysRobert Menzies
2Harold HoltVictoria26 September 195620 January 19669 years, 116 days
3William McMahonNew South Wales20 January 196610 March 19715 years, 49 daysHarold Holt
John Gorton
4John GortonVictoria10 March 197116 August 1971159 daysWilliam McMahon
5Billy SneddenVictoria18 August 197120 December 19721 year, 124 days
6Phillip LynchVictoria20 December 19728 April 19829 years, 109 daysBilly Snedden
Malcolm Fraser
7John HowardNew South Wales8 April 19825 September 19853 years, 150 daysMalcolm Fraser
Andrew Peacock
8Neil BrownVictoria5 September 198517 July 19871 year, 315 daysJohn Howard
9Andrew PeacockVictoria17 July 19879 May 19891 year, 296 days
10Fred Chaney[lower-alpha 3]Western Australia9 May 19893 April 1990329 daysAndrew Peacock
11Peter ReithVictoria24 March 199013 March 19932 years, 354 daysJohn Hewson
12Michael WooldridgeVictoria13 March 199323 May 19941 year, 71 days
13Peter CostelloVictoria23 May 199429 November 200713 years, 190 daysAlexander Downer
John Howard
14Julie BishopWestern Australia29 November 200724 August 201810 years, 268 daysBrendan Nelson
Malcolm Turnbull
Tony Abbott
15Josh FrydenbergVictoria24 August 201830 May 20223 years, 279 daysScott Morrison
16Sussan LeyNew South Wales30 May 2022Incumbent1 year, 148 daysPeter Dutton

Leaders in the Senate
Leader Term began Term ended Portfolio[7] Status Parliamentary leader Term in office Deputy
Neil O'Sullivan21 February 1950[8]8 December 1958
Government Menzies 8 years, 290 days
Bill Spooner8 December 1958[9]2 June 1964[10]
5 years, 178 days Shane Paltridge
Shane Paltridge10 June 1964[11]19 January 1966[12] Defence 1 year, 230 days Denham Henty
Denham Henty26 January 1966[13]16 October 1967 Supply Holt 1 year, 263 days John Gorton
John Gorton16 October 19671 February 1968
108 days Denham Henty
None
Himself
Ken Anderson28 February 1968[lower-alpha 4]5 December 1972
Gorton 4 years, 281 days
Annabelle Rankin
McMahon
Reg Wright
Reg Withers20 December 197211 November 1975OppositionSnedden5 years, 230 days
OppositionFraser
12 November 1975[15]7 August 1978[16]
Government
John Carrick7 August 1978[17]11 March 1983
4 years, 216 days
Fred Chaney11 March 1983[18]27 February 1990
 Opposition Peacock 6 years, 353 days
 Howard
  • Industrial Relations (1989-1990)
  • Deputy Leader of the Opposition (1989-1990)
 Peacock
Robert Hill 3 April 1990[19]11 March 1996
  • Foreign Affairs (1990-1993)[20]
  • Defence, Public Administration (1993-1994)
 Hewson 15 years, 292 days
Education, Science and Technology Downer
Howard
11 March 1996[21]20 January 2006
Government Howard Nick Minchin
Nick Minchin27 January 2006[22]3 December 2007
4 years, 96 days Helen Coonan
3 December 2007[23]3 May 2010
Defence Opposition Nelson Eric Abetz
Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy Turnbull
Resources and Energy Abbott
Eric Abetz 3 May 2010[24][25]18 September 2013 Employment and Workplace Relations 2 years, 2 days George Brandis
18 September 2013[26][25]21 September 2015 Employment Government Abbott
George Brandis21 September 201520 December 2017 Attorney-General
V-P Exec. Council		 Turnbull 2 years, 90 days Mathias Cormann
Mathias Cormann20 December 201730 October 2020 Finance and the Public Service
V-P Exec. Council		 5 years, 309 days Mitch Fifield
Simon Birmingham
Morrison
Simon Birmingham 30 October 2020 Incumbent Finance
Trade, Tourism and Investment (to Dec 2020)
V-P Exec. Council		 2 years, 360 days Michaelia Cash
Foreign Affairs OppositionDutton

See also

Notes
  1. Not to be confused with the federal cabinet of Australia.
  2. After the Disappearance of Harold Holt, the Deputy Prime Minister, McEwen, took over as a caretaker until the leadership election of the Liberal Party was concluded.
  3. From 23 May 1989 to 24 March 1990 (305 days), Wal Fife occupied the unique position of "Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party in the House of Representatives". This was because Fred Chaney was a member of the Senate during that time; it was necessary to elect a temporary House-only deputy for procedural reasons.[5][6]
  4. Anderson was appointed Leader of the Government before the second session of the 26th Parliament,[14] and Gorton made his appointments on 28 February 1968.[7]
  5. Withers was appointed Vice-President of the Executive Council the day after the Dismissal as part of Fraser's Caretaker Cabinet, but he continued in that office for his entire tenure as Leader of the Government. On the same date, he was appointed caretaker the Capital Territory, Special Minister of State, Minister for the Media, and Tourism and Recreation. He served in those offices until 22 December, when Fraser's first full Cabinet was sworn in. The Senate did not meet during the period 12 November to 22 December 1975 (indeed it was dissolved for most of that time). Withers gained the Administrative Services portfolio as part of 22 December reshuffle.
  6. Minister for Environment 1996–98.

References
  1. "Liberal Party of Australia Federal Constitution" (PDF). cdn.liberal.org.au. Liberal Party of Australia. 2019.
  2. "Menzies Creates the Liberal Party". ABC. 1944. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  3. "Scott Morrison summons Liberal MPs to after-hours meeting to pass changes to leadership spill rules". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 3 December 2018. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  4. "Our History". Liberal Party. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  5. "Liberal brawl may defer deputy vote". The Canberra Times. 22 May 1989.
  6. "Peacock hopes brawling ended". The Canberra Times. 24 May 1989.
  7. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Ministries and Cabinets". Parliamentary Handbook (32nd ed.). Retrieved 6 September 2013.
  8. "Dr. Evatt Survives a Challenge, Mr. E. J. Ward Beaten For Labour Party Post". The West Australian. 22 February 1950. p. 2. Retrieved 6 September 2014 – via Trove.
  9. "5 New Men in Federal Ministry, Dr. Allen Fairhall Omitted". The Canberra Times. 9 December 1958. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  10. "Spooner Resigns from Cabinet: Government Solves One Problem, Finds Another". The Canberra Times. 3 June 1964. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  11. "P.M. Fills Vacancies in Cabinet Reshuffle: Anderson and Howson New Ministers". The Canberra Times. 11 June 1964. p. 1. Retrieved 1 August 2013 – via Trove.
  12. "Paltridge Resigns Defence Portfoliio". The Canberra Times. 20 January 1966. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  13. "Bury in Cabinet: Holt chooses woman Minister in reshuffle". The Canberra Times. 26 January 1966. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  14. Ken Anderson, Leader of the Government in the Senate (12 March 1968). "Ministerial Arrangement". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Commonwealth of Australia: Senate. p. 12.
  15. "Fraser Caretaker Cabinet". The Canberra Times. 13 November 1975. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  16. "PM sacks Withers, Durack gets post". The Canberra Times. 8 August 1978. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  17. "Person Details: Hon Sir John Leslie Carrick KCMG, AC". National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  18. "Peacock elected Opposition leader: Naming of shadow ministry next week". The Canberra Times. 12 March 1983. p. 3. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
  19. "Winner Hewson sets his agenda". The Canberra Times. 4 April 1990. p. 1.
  20. "OPPOSITION EXECUTIVES AND SHADOW MINISTRIES". Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  21. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Hill, Robert (1946–)". Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  22. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Minchin, Nick (1953–)". Retrieved 6 September 2013 – via Trove.
  23. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Minchin, Nick (1953–)". Trove. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
  24. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Abetz, Eric". Retrieved 8 September 2013 – via Trove.
  25. "Senator the Hon Eric Abetz". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
  26. Australian Parliamentary Library. "Abetz, Eric". Retrieved 8 September 2013 – via Trove.
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