The Minister for Home Affairs is the minister in the Australian government responsible for the Department of Home Affairs, the country's interior ministry. The current minister is Tony Burke of the Labor Party, who has held the position since July 2024 in the Albanese ministry.
The current Department of Home Affairs was created in December 2017. The first department with that name was created in 1901, as one of the original six departments created at Federation, and was responsible for a wide range of areas not captured by the other departments. Similar departments have existed in almost all subsequent governments, under several different names. The specific title "Minister for Home Affairs" has been created six times – in 1901, 1929, 1977, 1987, 2007 and 2017.
History
The Minister for Home Affairs was a ministerial portfolio that existed continuously from 1901 to 12 April 1932, when Archdale Parkhill became Minister for the Interior in the first Lyons Ministry — subsuming his portfolios of Home Affairs and Transport.
The Home Affairs or Interior portfolio was responsible for various internal matters not handled by other ministries. In due course, other portfolios were established that took over functions from it, including: Transport from 1928 to 1932 and continuously since 1941 Immigration since 1945 Agriculture since 1942 Industry from 1928 to 1945 and since 1963
The Minister for the Interior existed from 1932 to 1972. The Territories portfolio has been the responsibility for the varying titles of the Minister for Territories.
The Home Affairs Ministry was re-established in 2007, assuming the responsibilities of the Minister for Justice and Customs within the Attorney-General's Department with policy responsibilities for criminal justice, law enforcement, border control and national security and with oversight responsibilities of the Australian Customs Service and the Border Protection Command, the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Crime Commission, and the Office of Film and Literature Classification.
From September 2010 to September 2013, the Minister for Home Affairs also held the position of Minister for Justice. In September 2013 with the change of government, the position Minister for Home Affairs was disbanded and its responsibilities were assumed by the newly created Minister for Immigration and Border Protection for border control and by the Minister for Justice for law enforcement.
On 18 July 2017, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced the creation of a new home affairs department to be headed by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, with responsibility for immigration, border control, domestic security, and law enforcement.
On 20 December 2017, Governor-General Peter Cosgrove swore Dutton into the position of Minister for Home Affairs. The Home Affairs portfolio was formed by way of an Administrative Arrangements Order issued on 20 December 2017 with responsibilities for national security including cybersecurity and counterterrorism, law enforcement, emergency management, transport security, immigration, citizenship, border control, and multicultural affairs.
In July 2024, upon the reshuffle of the Albanese Ministry, responsibility for oversight of ASIO was delegated to the Attorney-General's Department rather than being accountable to the Home Affairs Department. Prime Minister Albanese had previously moved responsibility for oversight of the AFP from the Home Affairs Department to the Attorney-General's Department in 2022 upon his election as Prime Minister.
List of ministers for home affairs
The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Home Affairs, or any of its related titles:
Order Minister Party Prime Minister Title Term start Term end Term in office 1 Sir William Lyne, Protectionist Barton Minister for Home Affairs 2 Sir John Forrest, days Deakin 3 Lee Batchelor Labor Watson days 4 Dugald Thomson Free Trade Reid days 5 Littleton Groom, Protectionist Deakin 6 Thomas Ewing days 7 John Keating 8 Hugh Mahon Labor Fisher days 9 George Fuller Liberal Deakin days 10 King O'Malley Labor Fisher 11 Joseph Cook Liberal Cook 12 William Archibald Labor Fisher (10) King O'Malley Hughes 13 Fred Bamford National Labor Minister for Home and Territories days 14 Paddy Glynn, Nationalist 15 Alexander Poynton, 16 George Pearce Bruce 17 Sir William Glasgow, days 18 Charles Marr, days 19 Sir Neville Howse, days 20 Aubrey Abbott Country days 21 Arthur Blakeley Labor Scullin Minister for Home Affairs 22 Sir Archdale Parkhill, United Australia Lyons 23 Robert Ellicott, Liberal Fraser Minister for Home Affairs Minister for Home Affairs and Environment 24 Michael MacKellar days 25 Ian Wilson 26 Tom McVeigh National Country 16 October 1982 days National 16 October 1982 11 March 1983 27 Barry Cohen Labor Hawke 28 Robert Ray Labor Hawke Minister for Home Affairs 29 Bob Debus Labor Rudd Minister for Home Affairs 30 Brendan O'Connor Gillard 31 Jason Clare Rudd 32 Peter Dutton Liberal Turnbull Minister for Home Affairs Morrison 33 Karen Andrews Scott Morrison * Jim Chalmers (Interim) Labor Albanese 34Clare O'Neil 35Tony Burke incumbent
Morrison was appointed as Minister for Home Affairs by the Governor-General on Morrison's advice in May 2021, with both Morrison and Andrews holding the position of Minister for Home Affairs until May 2022. However, the appointment of Morrison was not made public until August 2022.
Former ministerial titles List of ministers for customs From 1901 to 1956 Customs was handled by the Minister for Trade and Customs. In 1956 Frederick Osborne was appointed Minister for Customs and Excise. Kep Enderby was appointed Minister for Police and Customs in 1975. In 1975 responsibility for customs was absorbed into the portfolio of the Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs, John Howard. In May 1982, the portfolio of the Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs was abolished and customs functions were transferred to the Minister for Industry and Commerce, Phillip Lynch. In January 1988, Barry Jones became responsible for customs as Minister for Science, Customs and Small Business within John Button's portfolio of Industry and Commerce and there were subsequently junior ministers responsible for customs within the industry portfolio until March 1993 and from March 1994 until December 2007, when customs became part of the responsibility of the Minister for Home Affairs, Bob Debus. Between September 2013 and December 2017, it was the responsibility of the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection.
The following individuals have held responsibility for customs:
Order Minister Party Prime Minister Title Term start Term end Term in office 1 Charles Kingston Protectionist Barton Minister for Trade and Customs 2 William Lyne days Deakin 3 Andrew Fisher Labor Watson days 4 Allan McLean Protectionist Reid days 5 William Lyne Deakin 6 Austin Chapman 7 Frank Tudor Labor Fisher days 8 Robert Best Protectionist Deakin days n/a Frank Tudor Labor Fisher 9 Littleton Groom Commonwealth Liberal Cook n/a Frank Tudor Labor Fisher Hughes 10 Billy Hughes days 11 William Archibald National Labor days 12 Jens Jensen Nationalist 13 William Watt days 14 Walter Massy-Greene 15 Arthur Rodgers n/a Austin Chapman Bruce n/a Littleton Groom days 16 Herbert Pratten 17 Stanley Bruce days 18 Henry Gullett days 19 James Fenton Labor Scullin 20 Frank Forde days n/a Henry Gullett United Australia Lyons 21 Thomas White 22 John Perkins days Page 23 John Lawson Menzies days 24 Robert Menzies days 25 George McLeay days 26 Eric Harrison days Fadden 27 Richard Keane Labor Curtin Forde Chifley 28 John Dedman days 29 James Fraser days 30 Ben Courtice 31 Neil O'Sullivan Liberal Menzies 32 Frederick Osborne Minister for Customs and Excise days 33 Denham Henty 34 Ken Anderson Holt McEwen Gorton 35 Malcolm Scott 36 Don Chipp McMahon 37 Gough Whitlam Labor Whitlam days 38 Lionel Murphy 39 Kep Enderby days Minister for Police and Customs 40 Jim Cavanagh days 41 Ivor Greenwood Liberal Fraser days 42 John Howard Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs 43 Wal Fife 44 Victor Garland days 45 John Moore 46 Neil Brown days 47 Phillip Lynch Minister for Industry and Commerce days 48 Andrew Peacock days 49 John Button Labor Hawke Minister for Industry, Technology and Commerce 50 Barry Jones Minister for Science, Customs and Small Business 51 David Beddall Minister for Small Business and Customs Keating Minister for Small Business, Construction and Customs 52 Alan Griffiths Minister for Industry, Technology and Regional Development days 53 Peter Cook days 54 Chris Schacht Minister for Small Business, Customs and Construction 55 Geoff Prosser Liberal Howard Minister for Small Business and Consumer Affairs 56 Chris Ellison Minister for Customs and Consumer Affairs days 57 Warren Truss Nationals 58 Amanda Vanstone Liberal Minister for Justice and Customs 59 Chris Ellison 60 David Johnston days 61 Bob Debus Labor Rudd Minister for Home Affairs 62 Brendan O'Connor Gillard 63 Jason Clare Rudd 64 Scott Morrison Liberal Abbott Minister for Immigration and Border Protection 65 Peter Dutton Turnbull
Notes Whitlam was one of a two-man ministry consisting of himself and Lance Barnard for two weeks until the full ministry was announced.
Assistant ministers The following individuals have been appointed as Assistant Minister for Home Affairs, or any of its related titles: Order Minister Party Prime Minister Title Term start Term end Term in office 1 Michaelia Cash Liberal Abbott Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Turnbull 21 September 2015 2 James McGrath Liberal Turnbull Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection days 3 Alex Hawke Assistant Minister for Home Affairs 4 Linda Reynolds Morrison 5 Jason Wood Liberal Morrison Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs 6 Julian Hill Labor Albanese Assistant Minister for Citizenship, Customs and Multicultural Affairs incumbent
See also
Department of Home Affairs (1901–16) Department of Home and Territories (1916–1928) Department of Home Affairs (1928–32) Department of the Interior (1932–39) Department of the Interior (1939–72) Department of Home Affairs (1977–80) Department of Home Affairs and Environment (1980–84) Department of Home Affairs (2017–present)
References
External links