Leader of the House (Australia)
Leader in the House of Representatives of Australia
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In the Parliament of Australia, the Leader of the House is the government minister responsible for the management of government business in the House of Representatives, including the order in which the Government's agenda is to be dealt with, tactical matters in reaction to impediments to such management, negotiation with the Opposition's counterpart (the Manager of Opposition Business in the House) about the order in which bills are to be debated, and the time allotted for debates.[1] The position is currently held by Tony Burke since June 2022.
| Leader of the House | |
|---|---|
| |
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| Australian Government House of Representatives | |
| Style | The Honourable |
| Appointer | The Prime Minister of Australia |
| Inaugural holder | Sir Eric Harrison |
| Formation | 11 May 1951 |
As the Australian Parliament is bicameral, the Leader of the House must also be aware of developments in the Senate, for example, in order to anticipate whether a bill may be returned to the House with amendments.
The office was created in 1951 by the Prime Minister at the time, Robert Menzies. The Leader of the House and the Deputy Leader are appointed by the Prime Minister. The Deputy Leader's duties are largely contingent, coming into play only when the Leader of the House is absent from the House or is on leave, when they are referred to as Acting Leader of the House.
In the incumbent Albanese ministry, which took office in 2022, Tony Burke is the Leader of the House and Mark Butler his deputy. During the preceding Morrison ministry, Burke and Butler were the Manager of Opposition Business and Deputy Manager respectively.
List of Leaders of the House
The following individuals have been appointed as Leader of the Australian House of Representatives:
Note: For terms during the period 1951 to 1972, exact dates are taken from changes in Prime Minister. Other dates coincide with sitting periods of the House as an approximation of when terms began and ended.
Deputy Leaders of the House
The following individuals have been appointed as Deputy Leader of the Australian House of Representatives:
| Order | Minister | Party | Prime Minister | Portfolio | Term start | Term end | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter McGauran | National | Howard | Minister for Science and Technology | 11 March 1996 | 26 September 1997 | 1 year, 199 days | |
| 2 | Warren Truss | Minister for Customs and Consumer Affairs | 26 September 1997 | 21 October 1998 | 1 year, 25 days | |||
| (1) | Peter McGauran | Minister for the Arts and the Centenary of Federation | 21 October 1998 | 26 November 2001 | 9 years, 43 days | |||
| Minister for Science | 26 November 2001 | 26 October 2004 | ||||||
| Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs | 26 October 2004 | 6 July 2005 | ||||||
| Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | 6 July 2005 | 3 December 2007 | ||||||
| 3 | Stephen Smith | Labor | Rudd | Minister for Foreign Affairs | 3 December 2007 | 24 June 2010 | 5 years, 245 days | |
| Gillard | 24 June 2010 | 28 June 2010 | ||||||
| Minister for Foreign Affairs Minister for Trade | 28 June 2010 | 14 September 2010 | ||||||
| Minister for Defence | 14 September 2010 | 27 June 2013 | ||||||
| Rudd | 27 June 2013 | 5 August 2013 | ||||||
| 4 | Luke Hartsuyker | National | Abbott | Assistant Minister for Employment | 18 September 2013 | 21 September 2015 | 2 years, 153 days | |
| Turnbull | Minister for Vocational Education and Skills | 21 September 2015 | 18 February 2016 | |||||
| 5 | Darren Chester | Minister for Infrastructure and Transport | 18 February 2016 | 20 December 2017 | 1 year, 305 days | |||
| 6 | Michael McCormack | Minister for Veterans' Affairs Minister for Defence Personnel | 20 December 2017 | 5 March 2018 | 75 days | |||
| (5) | Darren Chester | 5 March 2018 | 24 August 2018 | 3 years, 119 days | ||||
| Morrison | 24 August 2018 | 2 July 2021 | ||||||
| 7 | David Gillespie | Minister Assisting the Minister for Trade and Investment | 2 July 2021 | 11 April 2022 | 283 days | |||
| 8 | Mark Butler | Labor | Albanese | Minister for Health and Aged Care | 31 May 2022 | 13 May 2025 | 4 years, 63 days | |
| Minister for Health and Ageing Minister for Disability and the National Disability Insurance Scheme | 13 May 2025 | Incumbent | ||||||