The following lists events that happened during 2008 in Australia.
Incumbents
Monarch – Elizabeth II Governor-General – Michael Jeffery (until 5 September), then Quentin Bryce Prime Minister – Kevin Rudd Deputy Prime Minister – Julia Gillard Opposition Leader – Brendan Nelson (until 16 September), then Malcolm Turnbull Chief Justice – Murray Gleeson (until 29 August), then Robert French
State and territory leaders Premier of New South Wales – Morris Iemma (until 5 September), then Nathan Rees Opposition Leader – Barry O'Farrell Premier of Queensland – Anna Bligh Opposition Leader – Jeff Seeney (until 29 January), then Lawrence Springborg Premier of South Australia – Mike Rann Opposition Leader – Martin Hamilton-Smith Premier of Tasmania – Paul Lennon (until 26 May), then David Bartlett Opposition Leader – Will Hodgman Premier of Victoria – John Brumby Opposition Leader – Ted Baillieu Premier of Western Australia – Alan Carpenter (until 23 September), then Colin Barnett Opposition Leader – Paul Omodei (until 17 January), then Troy Buswell (until 4 August), then Colin Barnett (until 23 September), then Eric Ripper Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory – Jon Stanhope Opposition Leader – Zed Seselja Chief Minister of the Northern Territory – Paul Henderson Opposition Leader – Jodeen Carney (until 29 January), then Terry Mills Chief Minister of Norfolk Island – Andre Nobbs
Governors and administrators Governor of New South Wales – Marie Bashir Governor of Queensland – Quentin Bryce (until 29 July), then Penelope Wensley Governor of South Australia – Kevin Scarce Governor of Tasmania – William Cox (until 2 April), then Peter Underwood Governor of Victoria – David de Kretser Governor of Western Australia – Ken Michael Administrator of the Australian Indian Ocean Territories – Neil Lucas (until 22 February) Administrator of Norfolk Island – Owen Walsh Administrator of the Northern Territory – Tom Pauling
Events
Entire year Year of the Scout.2008 – Year of the Scout , Scouts Australia. Year of Physical Activity.
January 1 January onwards – Torrential rain causes widespread flooding and damage to parts of South East Queensland and the North Coast of New South Wales. 11 January – An Airbus A319 lands at the new Wilkins Runway in the Australian Antarctic Territory, becoming the first passenger flight from Australia to Antarctica.Historic flight lands in Antarctica , Sydney Morning Herald, 11 January 2008. 15 January – An Australian Sea Shepherd Conservation Society activist, Benjamin Potts, and his British colleague, Giles Lane, are detained on board the Japanese whaling vessel Yushin Maru No. 2 after boarding the ship which was inside the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary near Antarctica.Darby, Andrew: Whale activists 'captured' , The Age, 16 January 2008. 15 January – Victoria Police officers use capsicum spray to subdue unruly Greek spectators at the 2008 Australian Open, during a match between Konstantinos Economidis and Fernando González.Police Use Pepper Spray on Fans at Australian Open After Racial Slur Allegations , Fox News Channel, 16 January 2008. 17 January – An explosion in a wine processing shed at Drayton's Winery in the New South Wales Hunter Valley kills two men including winery owner Trevor Drayton, and injures one.Winery owner killed in blast , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 17 January 2008. 23 January – After 128 years, the final edition of The Bulletin is published. Its demise was announced on 20 January.ACP Magazines announces closure of The Bulletin magazine , The Bulletin (via ninemsn), 24 January 2008.
February 8 February – A controversial plan to deepen Melbourne's shipping channels by dredging Port Phillip Bay begins.Shanahan, Leo: Paddling protesters challenge dredger , The Age, 8 February 2008. 12 February – Federal Parliament was opened with a Welcome to Country, the first time in its history that this has occurred. 13 February – An apology containing the word "sorry" is made by Kevin Rudd to Indigenous Australians for the stolen generation as the first order of business of the new Parliament. 22 February – Parliament descends into chaos with opposition frontbenchers ejected, question time suspended and speakers unable to control the house. A cardboard cut-out of the Prime Minister is brought into the parliament by opposition members angry about sitting time on a Friday.
March 12 March – Adelaide experiences a national record heat wave for an Australian capital city, recording over ten straight days of temperatures over 35 degrees Celsius.Record heatwave in SA, Sky News, 12 March 2008. 14 March – Former New South Wales government minister Milton Orkopoulos is found guilty of 28 charges of child sex offences and the supply of drugs.Dart, Jonathan: Orkopoulos found guilty, The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 March 2008. 16 March – The South Australian heat wave continues with Adelaide experiencing its 14th straight day of temperatures above 35 degrees. 16 March – The Finding Sydney Foundation announces it has located the wrecks of the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney and the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran, which both sunk after a battle in 1941.Sydney located: report , The Age, 17 March 2008. 26 March – At the Council of Australian Governments meeting, the Victorian government agrees to take part in a A$10 billion rescue plan for the Murray-Darling Basin, after 15 months of negotiations.$1bn Murray breakthrough , The Age, 27 March 2008. 27 March – The Opes Prime stockbroking firm collapses, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission announces it is conducting an investigation into the firm's activities.Authorities probe Opes Prime collapse , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 31 March 2008. 28 March – Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited closes its Clovelly Park manufacturing facility, ending more than 40 years of manufacturing at the site.Mitsubishi to close SA plant in March , Australian Associated Press (via Yahoo!7), 5 February 2008 30 March – The extension of daylight saving time by a week to standardise time in New South Wales, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania and South Australia causes a "mini-Y2K problem" as computer systems, mobile phones and even the "time man" incorrectly adjust the time back one hour.Schneiders, Ben: At the third stroke it will be one hour ago , The Age, 31 March 2008. 30 March – The gag order applied to David Hicks by the Guantanamo military commission is lifted, allowing him to discuss his detainment at Guantanamo Bay detention camp.David Hicks free to talk, The Age, 30 March 2008.
April 18 April – Nick D'Arcy has his Beijing ticket terminated following an incident at a nightclub involving former swimmer Simon Cowley. 19 April – The Australia 2020 Summit begins in Canberra. 30 April – The Victorian government agrees to implement safety measures for Melbourne taxi drivers, after dozens of taxis blockade the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets following the stabbing of a driver the previous day.Melbourne taxi drivers end blockade , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 30 April 2008.
May 1 May – Five people are killed when a runabout collides with a fishing boat on Sydney Harbour.Five killed in late-night Sydney Harbour boat crash , The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 May 2008. 17 May – Fugitive gangster Tony Mokbel arrives in Australia following his extradition from Greece.Mokbel lands in Melbourne , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 17 May 2008. 22 May Revolutionary Australian forum television programme Q&A broadcasts its first episode. Colin Campbell Ross, hanged in 1922 for the Gun Alley Murder, is granted an official pardon.Kevin Morgan (2012) Gun Alley: Murder, Lies and Failure of Justice (2nd Ed., updated). Hardie Grant Books (Australia) Melbourne. 26 May – Paul Lennon announces his resignation as Premier of Tasmania. His deputy, David Bartlett, is sworn in as the new Premier later in the day.Darby, Andrew: Tasmanian premier Lennon announces resignation, The Age, 26 May 2008. 26 May – Camden Council in Sydney votes unanimously to reject a proposal to build a 1,200 student Islamic school in the area.Camden Council opposes Islamic school development , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 27 May 2008.
June 1 June – Australia ends its combat operations in Iraq, withdrawing approximately 550 troops from the region., Reuters, 1 June 2008. 3 June – A gas explosion at a plant on Varanus Island in Western Australia severely disrupts gas supplies to the state.Gas plant explosion exposes State's vulnerability, The West Australian, 4 June 2008. 8 June – It is revealed that New South Wales Education Minister John Della Bosca and his wife, federal Member for Robertson Belinda Neal, were allegedly involved in an altercation at a nightclub in Gosford, New South Wales. 28 June – A by-election is held in the federal seat of Gippsland following the resignation of the sitting MP, Peter McGauran. Darren Chester wins the by-election, retaining the seat for the National Party.
July 1 July – 36 State Senators elected in the 2007 election take their seats in the Australian Senate. For the first time in 31 years, the Australian Democrats have no Senators in the parliament., Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 26 June 2008. 11 July – The Apple iPhone is officially released in Australia.Hard-core Apple fans get their fix , The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 July 2008. 13 July – Pope Benedict XVI arrives for his first papal visit to Australia, ahead of World Youth Day 2008.Pope arrives in Australia, ITV, 13 July 2008. 15 to 20 July – World Youth Day 2008, the Catholic Church's youth festival is held in Sydney. 26 July – The Queensland divisions of the Liberal Party and the National Party merge to form the Liberal National Party. 29 July – Chris Evans, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, announces that the Australian government will reform the policy regarding mandatory detention of asylum seekers.Sweeping changes to mandatory detention announced , ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), 29 June 2008.
August 8 August – The Australian Federal Police conduct what is claimed to be the world's biggest ecstasy drugs bust, seizing A$440 million worth of the drug.World's biggest ecstasy bust , The Sydney Morning Herald, 9 August 2008. 9 August – A general election is held in the Northern Territory with the Australian Labor Party retaining government.
September 5 September – Morris Iemma retires as Premier of New South Wales, and his replacement is Nathan Rees. 5 September – Quentin Bryce is sworn in as the first female Governor-General of Australia. 6 September – A general election is held in Western Australia. 6 September – By-elections are held in the federal electorates of Mayo and Lyne, following the resignation of MPs Alexander Downer and Mark Vaile respectively. The Liberal Party retains Mayo, but the National Party loses Lyne to an independent candidate, Rob Oakeshott. 14 September – The National Party agrees to support the Liberal Party to form a minority government in Western Australia. Premier Alan Carpenter announces he will resign following Labor's defeat in the 2008 WA election – the first defeat of a state Labor government in Australia in over thirteen years.Labor's clean sweep broken, The Australian, 14 September 2008. 16 September – Malcolm Turnbull becomes Leader of the Opposition when he defeats Brendan Nelson in a ballot for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Australia.Malcolm Turnbull wins Liberal leadership , The Age, 16 September 2008. 23 September – Colin Barnett is sworn in as Premier of Western Australia. 30 September – Professor Ross Garnaut releases his final report in the Garnaut Climate Change Review.
October