List of Australian Leaders of the Opposition

In the Australian House of Representatives, the Leader of the Opposition sits at the front table to the left of the Speaker's Chair (on the right-hand side in this photo).

This is a List of Australian Leaders of the Opposition, who in Australian Federal Politics is a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives. The position is usually held by the leader of the party which has the most seats but is not part of the Government. When in Parliament the Leader of the Opposition sits on the left-hand side of the table in the centre, in front of the Opposition and opposite the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is usually the leader of the party, or coalition of parties, with the most seats in Parliament, and thus is the leader of the Government.[1] The leader is elected by the Opposition Party according to its rules. A new Opposition Leader may be elected when the incumbent dies, resigns or is challenged for the leadership.

The Commonwealth of 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, in its formal title of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. This is an important component of the Westminster system: the Opposition directs its criticism at the Government and attempts to defeat and replace the Government. The Opposition is therefore the 'Government in waiting' and it is a formal part of the parliamentary system, just as is the Government. It is opposed to the Government, but not to the Crown, hence the term 'Loyal Opposition'.[2]

The Current Leader of the Opposition is Tony Abbott who defeated Malcolm Turnbull for leadership of the Liberal Party on 1 December 2009.[3] The Liberal Party has been in opposition since losing the 2007 election to the Labor Party who had formed the opposition since 1996.[4] To date there have been thirty-two Opposition Leaders, seventeen of whom have served terms as Prime Minister.[5] The selection of Tony Abbott as the current Opposition Leader in 2009 means that 2009 is the fifth year in a row in which there has been a change in Opposition leadership.

Contents

Leaders of the Opposition

Leader Portrait Party Constituency Took Office Left Office Prime Minister
George Reid Georgereid.jpg Free Trade Party East Sydney (NSW) 19 May 1901 17 August 1904   Barton 1901-03
  Deakin 1903-04
  Watson 1904
Chris Watson ChrisWatsonSepia.jpg Labour Party Bland (NSW) 18 August 1904 5 July 1905   Reid 1904-05
George Reid Georgereid.jpg Free Trade Party
Anti-Socialist Party		 East Sydney (NSW) 7 July 1905 16 November 1908   Deakin 1905-08
  Fisher 1908-09
Joseph Cook JosephCookPEO.jpg Anti-Socialist Party Parramatta (NSW) 17 November 1908 26 May 1909   Fisher 1908-09
Alfred Deakin AlfredDeakin.jpeg Commonwealth Liberal Party Ballarat (Vic) 26 May 1909 2 June 1909   Fisher 1908-09
Andrew Fisher Andrewfisher.JPG Labor Party Wide Bay (Qld) 2 June 1909 29 April 1910   Deakin 1909
Alfred Deakin AlfredDeakin.jpeg Commonwealth Liberal Party Ballarat (Vic) 1 July 1910 20 January 1913   Fisher 1909-1910
Joseph Cook JosephCookPEO.jpg Commonwealth Liberal Party Parramatta (NSW) 20 January 1913 24 June 1913   Fisher 1910-13
Andrew Fisher Andrewfisher.JPG Labor Party Wide Bay (Qld) 8 July 1913 17 September 1914   Cook 1913-14
Joseph Cook JosephCookPEO.jpg Commonwealth Liberal Party Parramatta (NSW) 8 October 1914 17 February 1916   Fisher 1914-16
  Hughes 1915-23
  Hughes 1915-23
  Hughes 1915-23
Frank Tudor Franktudor.jpg Labor Party Yarra (Vic) 1 November 1916 10 January 1922   Hughes 1915-23
Matthew Charlton Matthewcharlton.jpg Labor Party Hunter (NSW) 10 January 1922 29 March 1928   Hughes 1915-23
  Bruce 1923-29
James Scullin JScullin.jpg Labor Party Yarra (Vic) 29 March 1928 22 October 1929   Bruce 1923-29
John Latham Johnlatham.jpg Nationalist Party Kooyong (Vic) 20 November 1929 7 May 1931   Scullin 1929-32
Joseph Lyons Josephlyons.jpg United Australia Party Wilmot (Tas) 7 May 1931 6 January 1932   Scullin 1929-32
James Scullin JScullin.jpg Labor Party Yarra (Vic) 7 January 1932 1 October 1935   Lyons 1932-39
John Curtin Johncurtin.jpg Labor Party Fremantle (WA) 1 October 1935 7 October 1941   Lyons 1932-39
  Page 1939
  Menzies 1939-41
  Fadden 1941
Arthur Fadden FaddenPEO.jpg Country Party Darling Downs (Qld) 7 October 1941 23 September 1943   Curtin 1941-45
Robert Menzies Portrait Menzies 1941.jpg United Australia Party
Liberal Party		 Kooyong (Vic) 23 September 1943 19 December 1949   Curtin 1941-45
  Forde 1945
  Chifley 1945-49
Ben Chifley Benchifley.jpg Labor Party Macquarie (NSW) 19 December 1949 20 June 1951   Menzies 1949-66
Herbert Evatt Hvevatt.jpg Labor Party Barton (NSW) 1940-58
Hunter (NSW) 1958-60		 20 June 1951 9 February 1960   Menzies 1949-66
Arthur Calwell Calwell2.jpg Labor Party Melbourne (Vic) 7 March 1960 8 February 1967   Menzies 1949-66
  Holt 1966-67
Gough Whitlam Whitlam1955.jpg Labor Party Werriwa (NSW) 8 February 1967 2 December 1972   Holt 1966-67
  McEwen 1967-68
  Gorton 1968-71
  McMahon 1971-72
Billy Snedden BillySnedden.jpg Liberal Party Bruce (Vic) 2 December 1972 21 March 1975   Whitlam 1972-75
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser 1977.jpg Liberal Party Wannon (Vic) 21 March 1975 11 November 1975   Whitlam 1972-75
Gough Whitlam Whitlam1955.jpg Labor Party Werriwa (NSW) 11 November 1975 22 December 1977   Fraser 1975-83
Bill Hayden Labor Party Oxley (Qld) 22 December 1977 3 February 1983   Fraser 1975-83
Bob Hawke BobHawke(cropped).jpg Labor Party Wills (Vic) 3 February 1983 11 March 1983   Fraser 1975-83
Andrew Peacock Andrew Peacock.jpg Liberal Party Kooyong (Vic) 11 March 1983 5 September 1985   Hawke 1983-91
John Howard John Howard May 2006.jpg Liberal Party Bennelong (NSW) 5 September 1985 9 May 1989   Hawke 1983-91
Andrew Peacock Andrew Peacock.jpg Liberal Party Kooyong (Vic) 9 May 1989 3 April 1990   Hawke 1983-91
John Hewson Liberal Party Wentworth (NSW) 3 April 1990 23 May 1994   Hawke 1983-91
  Keating 1991-96
Alexander Downer AlexanderDowner.jpg Liberal Party Mayo (SA) 23 May 1994 30 January 1995   Keating 1991-96
John Howard John Howard May 2006.jpg Liberal Party Bennelong (NSW) 30 January 1995 11 March 1996   Keating 1991-96
Kim Beazley Ac.kimbeazleynew.jpg Labor Party Brand (WA) 19 March 1996 11 November 2001   Howard 1996-2007
Simon Crean Simon Crean.jpg Labor Party Hotham (Vic) 11 November 2001 2 December 2003   Howard 1996-2007
Mark Latham Ac.marklatham.jpg Labor Party Werriwa (NSW) 2 December 2003 18 January 2005   Howard 1996-2007
Kim Beazley Ac.kimbeazleynew.jpg Labor Party Brand (WA) 28 January 2005 4 December 2006   Howard 1996-2007
Kevin Rudd KevinRuddZoom.JPG Labor Party Griffith (Qld) 4 December 2006 3 December 2007   Howard 1996-2007
Brendan Nelson BrendanNelson.JPG Liberal Party Bradfield (NSW) 3 December 2007 16 September 2008   Rudd 2007-
Malcolm Turnbull TurnbullZoom.jpg Liberal Party Wentworth (NSW) 16 September 2008 1 December 2009   Rudd 2007-
Tony Abbott CROP Tony Abbott2.jpg Liberal Party Warringah (NSW) 1 December 2009 Incumbent   Rudd 2007-

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Denotes an Opposition Leader who had previously been Prime Minister.
  2. ^ Denotes an Opposition Leader who later became Prime Minister.
  3. ^ 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.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Leader of the Opposition - Fact Sheet". Parliamentary Education Office. http://www.peo.gov.au/students/fss/fss15.html. Retrieved 2006-04-11. 
  2. ↑ Jaensch, Dean (1997). The Politics of Australia. Melbourne: MacMillan Education Australia. pp. 100. ISBN 0732941288. 
  3. ↑ Abbott wins three-way fight for the Liberal leadership, The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 December 2009.
  4. ↑ "Details of Australian election results in the Australian Government and politics database". The University of Western Australia. http://elections.uwa.edu.au/listelections.lasso. Retrieved 2006-04-28. 
  5. ↑ "A House for the nation". Commonwealth of Australia. http://www.houseforthenation.gov.au/explore/ahn03_p9.html. Retrieved 2007-12-14. 
  6. ↑ Gough Whitlam. "Whitlam Speeches - 1975 Election Policy Speech". Whitlam Dismissal. http://whitlamdismissal.com/speeches/75-11-24_policy-speech.shtml. Retrieved 2006-04-12.