Minister for Foreign Affairs (Australia)

The minister for Foreign Affairs, also known as the Foreign minister, is the minister of state of the Commonwealth of Australia charged with overseeing the creation and implementation of international diplomacy, relations and foreign affairs policy, as the head of the foreign affairs section of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The current Foreign minister is Senator Penny Wong, who was appointed by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in May 2022 following the 2022 federal election.

Minister for Foreign Affairs
Commonwealth Coat of Arms
Flag of Australia
Incumbent Penny Wong since 23 May 2022 (2022-05-23)
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Style	The Honourable
Appointer	Governor-General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Australia
Inaugural holder	Edmund Barton (as Minister for External Affairs)
Formation	1 January 1901 (1901-01-01)
Website	www.foreignminister.gov.au

Wong is the first female foreign minister from the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and the third female foreign minister in a row, following Julie Bishop and Marise Payne. The position is one of two cabinet-level portfolio ministers under the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the other being the minister for Trade and Tourism. The Foreign minister is vested with several subordinate positions including the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, currently held by Pat Conroy, and the Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs, currently held by Tim Watts.

Scope

 

R. G. Casey House, the headquarters of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The minister is usually one of the most senior members of Cabinet – the position is equivalent to that of Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in Britain or Secretary of State in the United States – as shown by the fact that eleven Prime Ministers of Australia have also worked as the Minister for Foreign Affairs. The minister is seen as one of the people most responsible for formulating Australia's foreign policy, as they along with other relevant ministers advise the Prime Minister in developing and implementing foreign policy, and also acts as the government's main spokesperson on international affairs issues. In recent times, the minister also undertakes numerous international trips to meet with foreign representatives and Heads of State or Government.

List of ministers for foreign affairs

The portfolio has existed continuously since 1901, except for the period 14 November 1916 to 21 December 1921. Prior to 6 November 1970, the office was known as the Minister for External Affairs. Between 24 July 1987 and 24 March 1993 it was known as the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade. Starting with the Keating government, the Trade portfolio has been administered separately by the Minister for Trade.

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Foreign Affairs, or any of its precedent titles:^[1]

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	Edmund Barton^1 ^2		Protectionist	Barton	Minister for External Affairs	1 January 1901 (1901-01-01)	24 September 1903 (1903-09-24)	2 years, 266 days
2	Alfred Deakin^1			Deakin		24 September 1903 (1903-09-24)	27 April 1904 (1904-04-27)	216 days
3	Billy Hughes		Labor	Watson		27 April 1904 (1904-04-27)	17 August 1904 (1904-08-17)	112 days
4	George Reid^1		Free Trade	Reid		18 August 1904 (1904-08-18)	5 July 1905 (1905-07-05)	321 days
n/a	Alfred Deakin^1		Protectionist	Deakin		5 July 1905 (1905-07-05)	13 November 1908 (1908-11-13)	3 years, 131 days
5	Lee Batchelor		Labor	Fisher		13 November 1908 (1908-11-13)	2 June 1909 (1909-06-02)	201 days
6	Littleton Groom		Liberal	Deakin		2 June 1909 (1909-06-02)	29 April 1910 (1910-04-29)	331 days
n/a	Lee Batchelor		Labor	Fisher		29 April 1910 (1910-04-29)	8 October 1911 (1911-10-08)	1 year, 162 days
7	Josiah Thomas					14 October 1911 (1911-10-14)	24 June 1913 (1913-06-24)	1 year, 253 days
8	Paddy Glynn		Liberal	Cook		24 June 1913 (1913-06-24)	17 September 1914 (1914-09-17)	1 year, 85 days
9	John Arthur		Labor	Fisher		17 September 1914 (1914-09-17)	9 December 1914 (1914-12-09)	83 days
10	Hugh Mahon					9 December 1914 (1914-12-09)	27 October 1915 (1915-10-27)	322 days
				Hughes		27 October 1915 (1915-10-27)	14 November 1916 (1916-11-14)	1 year, 18 days
n/a	Billy Hughes^1		Nationalist	Hughes	Minister for External Affairs	21 December 1921 (1921-12-21)	9 February 1923 (1923-02-09)	1 year, 50 days
11	Stanley Bruce^1			Bruce		9 February 1923 (1923-02-09)	22 October 1929 (1929-10-22)	6 years, 255 days
12	James Scullin^1		Labor	Scullin		22 October 1929 (1929-10-22)	6 January 1932 (1932-01-06)	2 years, 76 days
13	John Latham		United Australia	Lyons		6 January 1932 (1932-01-06)	12 October 1934 (1934-10-12)	2 years, 279 days
14	Sir George Pearce					12 October 1934 (1934-10-12)	29 November 1937 (1937-11-29)	3 years, 48 days
n/a	Billy Hughes					29 November 1937 (1937-11-29)	7 April 1939 (1939-04-07)	1 year, 129 days
				Page		7 April 1939 (1939-04-07)	26 April 1939 (1939-04-26)	19 days
15	Sir Henry Somer Gullett			Menzies		26 April 1939 (1939-04-26)	14 March 1940 (1940-03-14)	323 days
16	John McEwen		Country			14 March 1940 (1940-03-14)	28 October 1940 (1940-10-28)	228 days
17	Frederick Stewart		United Australia			28 October 1940 (1940-10-28)	29 August 1941 (1941-08-29)	305 days
				Fadden		29 August 1941 (1941-08-29)	7 October 1941 (1941-10-07)	39 days
18	H. V. Evatt		Labor	Curtin		7 October 1941 (1941-10-07)	6 July 1945 (1945-07-06)	8 years, 73 days
				Forde		6 July 1945 (1945-07-06)	13 July 1945 (1945-07-13)
				Chifley		13 July 1945 (1945-07-13)	19 December 1949 (1949-12-19)
19	Percy Spender		Liberal	Menzies		19 December 1949 (1949-12-19)	26 April 1951 (1951-04-26)	1 year, 128 days
20	Richard Casey					27 April 1951 (1951-04-27)	4 February 1960 (1960-02-04)	8 years, 283 days
21	Robert Menzies^1					4 February 1960 (1960-02-04)	22 December 1961 (1961-12-22)	1 year, 321 days
22	Sir Garfield Barwick					22 December 1961 (1961-12-22)	24 April 1964 (1964-04-24)	2 years, 124 days
23	Paul Hasluck					24 April 1964 (1964-04-24)	26 January 1966 (1966-01-26)	4 years, 293 days
				Holt		26 January 1966 (1966-01-26)	19 December 1967 (1967-12-19)
				McEwen		19 December 1967 (1967-12-19)	10 January 1968 (1968-01-10)
				Gorton		10 January 1968 (1968-01-10)	11 February 1969 (1969-02-11)
24	Gordon Freeth					11 February 1969 (1969-02-11)	12 November 1969 (1969-11-12)	274 days
25	William McMahon					12 November 1969 (1969-11-12)	6 November 1970 (1970-11-06)	1 year, 130 days
					Minister for Foreign Affairs	6 November 1970 (1970-11-06)	10 March 1971 (1971-03-10)
				McMahon		10 March 1971 (1971-03-10)	22 March 1971 (1971-03-22)
26	Leslie Bury					22 March 1971 (1971-03-22)	2 August 1971 (1971-08-02)	133 days
27	Nigel Bowen					2 August 1971 (1971-08-02)	5 December 1972 (1972-12-05)	1 year, 125 days
28	Gough Whitlam^1		Labor	Whitlam		5 December 1972 (1972-12-05)	6 November 1973 (1973-11-06)	336 days
29	Don Willesee					6 November 1973 (1973-11-06)	11 November 1975 (1975-11-11)	2 years, 5 days
30	Andrew Peacock		Liberal	Fraser		12 November 1975 (1975-11-12)	3 November 1980 (1980-11-03)	4 years, 358 days
31	Tony Street					3 November 1980 (1980-11-03)	11 March 1983 (1983-03-11)	2 years, 128 days
32	Bill Hayden		Labor	Hawke		11 March 1983 (1983-03-11)	24 July 1987 (1987-07-24)	5 years, 159 days
					Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade	24 July 1987 (1987-07-24)	17 August 1988 (1988-08-17)
33	Gareth Evans					2 September 1988 (1988-09-02)	20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	7 years, 191 days
				Keating		20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)
					Minister for Foreign Affairs	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)
34	Alexander Downer		Liberal	Howard		11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)	3 December 2007 (2007-12-03)	11 years, 267 days
35	Stephen Smith		Labor	Rudd		3 December 2007 (2007-12-03)	24 June 2010 (2010-06-24)	2 years, 285 days
				Gillard		24 June 2010 (2010-06-24)	14 September 2010 (2010-09-14)
36	Kevin Rudd					14 September 2010 (2010-09-14)	22 February 2012 (2012-02-22)	1 year, 161 days
37	Bob Carr					13 March 2012 (2012-03-13)	27 June 2013 (2013-06-27)	1 year, 189 days
				Rudd		27 June 2013 (2013-06-27)	18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)
38	Julie Bishop		Liberal	Abbott		18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)	15 September 2015 (2015-09-15)	4 years, 344 days
				Turnbull		15 September 2015 (2015-09-15)	24 August 2018 (2018-08-24)
				Morrison		24 August 2018 (2018-08-24)	28 August 2018 (2018-08-28)
39	Marise Payne					28 August 2018 (2018-08-28)	23 May 2022 (2022-05-23)	3 years, 268 days
40	Penny Wong		Labor	Albanese		23 May 2022 (2022-05-23)	Incumbent	1 year, 156 days

Notes

¹ Also served as Prime Minister for some or all of their term.

² Barton was knighted in 1902, while serving as Minister.

List of ministers for international development and the Pacific

The Minister for International Development was responsible, in the Rudd Cabinet, for the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and the international development and humanitarian aid policies of the Commonwealth of Australia, administered through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).^[2][3][4] AusAID was abolished by the incoming prime minister, Tony Abbott, in September 2013 and under the operations of the Abbott Cabinet its functions were absorbed into DFAT.

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for International Development and the Pacific, or any precedent title:

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Ministerial title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	Bill Morrison		Labor	Whitlam	Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs in matters relating to Papua New Guinea	30 November 1973	6 June 1975	1 year, 346 days
					Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs in matters relating to the Islands of the Pacific	6 June 1975	11 November 1975
2	Neal Blewett		Labor	Hawke	Minister for Trade and Overseas Development	1 February 1991 (1991-02-01)	20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	329 days
				Keating		20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	27 December 1991 (1991-12-27)
3	John Kerin					27 December 1991 (1991-12-27)	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	1 year, 87 days
4	Gordon Bilney				Minister for Development Cooperation and Pacific Island Affairs	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)	2 years, 353 days
5	Melissa Parke		Labor	Rudd	Minister for International Development	1 July 2013 (2013-07-01)	18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)	79 days
6	Steven Ciobo		Liberal	Turnbull	Minister for International Development and the Pacific	21 September 2015 (2015-09-21)	18 February 2016 (2016-02-18)	150 days
7	Concetta Fierravanti-Wells					18 February 2016 (2016-02-18)	21 August 2018 (2018-08-21)	2 years, 184 days
8	Alex Hawke		Liberal	Morrison	Minister for International Development and the Pacific	29 May 2019 (2019-05-29)	22 December 2020 (2020-12-22)	1 year, 207 days
9	Zed Seselja					22 December 2020 (2020-12-22)	23 May 2022 (2022-05-23)	1 year, 152 days
10	Pat Conroy		Labor	Albanese		1 June 2022	Incumbent	1 year, 147 days

List of ministers assisting the minister for foreign affairs

The following individuals have been appointed as Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs or any of its precedent titles:

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Ministerial title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	John Gorton		Liberal	Menzies	Minister Assisting the Minister for External Affairs	23 March 1960 (1960-03-23)	18 December 1963 (1963-12-18)	3 years, 270 days
2	Don Willesee		Labor	Whitlam	Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs	19 December 1972	6 November 1973	322 days
3	Bill Morrison				Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs in matters relating to Papua New Guinea	30 November 1973	6 June 1975	1 year, 346 days
					Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs in matters relating to the Islands of the Pacific	6 June 1975	11 November 1975
4	Gareth Evans		Labor	Hawke	Minister assisting the Minister for Foreign Affairs	13 December 1984	24 July 1987	2 years, 223 days

List of parliamentary secretaries and assistant ministers for foreign affairs

The following individuals have been appointed as parliamentary secretaries and assistant ministers for Foreign Affairs or any of its precedent titles:

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Ministerial title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	Stephen Martin		Labor	Keating	Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade	27 December 1991 (1991-12-27)	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	1 year, 87 days
2	Andrew Thomson		Liberal	Howard	Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs	11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)	9 October 1997 (1997-10-09)	1 year, 212 days
3	Kathy Sullivan					9 October 1997 (1997-10-09)	16 February 2000 (2000-02-16)	2 years, 130 days
4	Kay Patterson					16 February 2000 (2000-02-16)	26 November 2001 (2001-11-26)	1 year, 283 days
5	Chris Gallus					26 November 2001 (2001-11-26)	18 July 2004 (2004-07-18)	2 years, 235 days
6	Bruce Billson					18 July 2004 (2004-07-18)	26 October 2004 (2004-10-26)	1 year, 193 days
					Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Trade	26 October 2004 (2004-10-26)	6 July 2005 (2005-07-06)
					Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs	6 July 2005 (2005-07-06)	27 January 2006 (2006-01-27)
7	Teresa Gambaro					27 January 2006 (2006-01-27)	30 January 2007 (2007-01-30)	1 year, 3 days
8	Greg Hunt					30 January 2007 (2007-01-30)	3 December 2007 (2007-12-03)	307 days
9	Richard Marles		Labor	Gillard	Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs	5 March 2012 (2012-03-05)	22 March 2013 (2013-03-22)	362 days
10	Brett Mason		Liberal	Abbott	Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs	18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)	23 December 2014 (2014-12-23)	1 year, 96 days
11	Steven Ciobo					23 December 2014 (2014-12-23)	21 September 2015 (2015-09-21)	272 days
12	Tim Watts		Labor	Albanese	Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs	1 June 2022	Incumbent	1 year, 147 days

List of parliamentary secretaries and assistant ministers for international development and the pacific

The following individuals have been appointed as parliamentary secretaries and assistant ministers for Foreign Affairs or any of its precedent titles:

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Ministerial title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	Richard Marles		Labor	Gillard	Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs	27 September 2009 (2009-09-27)	22 March 2013 (2013-03-22)	3 years, 176 days
2	Matt Thistlethwaite					22 March 2013 (2013-03-22)	27 June 2013 (2013-06-27)	180 days
				Rudd		22 June 2013 (2013-06-22)	18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)
3	Anne Ruston		Liberal	Morrison	Assistant Minister for International Development and the Pacific	28 August 2018 (2018-08-28)	29 May 2019 (2019-05-29)	273 days

Former ministerial titles

List of ministers for tourism

Since 1966, Australia had ministers responsible for tourism under various titles. The following individuals have been appointed as Minister for Tourism, or any of its precedent titles:^[1]

Order	Minister	Party		Prime Minister	Ministerial title	Term start	Term end	Term in office
1	Don Chipp		Liberal	Holt	Minister in charge of Tourist Activities	14 December 1966 (1966-12-14)	19 December 1967 (1967-12-19)	1 year, 76 days
				McEwen		19 December 1967 (1967-12-19)	10 January 1968 (1968-01-10)
				Gorton		10 January 1968 (1968-01-10)	28 February 1968 (1968-02-28)
2	Reg Wright					28 February 1968 (1968-02-28)	10 March 1971 (1971-03-10)	3 years, 92 days
				McMahon		10 March 1971 (1971-03-10)	31 May 1971 (1971-05-31)
3	Peter Howson					31 May 1971 (1971-05-31)	5 December 1972 (1972-12-05)	1 year, 188 days
4	Frank Stewart		Labor	Whitlam	Minister for Tourism and Recreation	19 December 1972 (1972-12-19)	11 November 1975 (1975-11-11)	2 years, 327 days
5	Reg Withers		Liberal	Fraser		11 November 1975 (1975-11-11)	22 December 1975 (1975-12-22)	41 days
6	John Brown		Labor	Hawke	Minister for Sport, Recreation and Tourism	11 March 1983 (1983-03-11)	24 July 1987 (1987-07-24)	4 years, 282 days
					Minister for Arts, Sport, the Environment, Tourism and Territories	24 July 1987 (1987-07-24)	18 December 1987 (1987-12-18)
7	Graham Richardson		Labor	Hawke	Minister for Arts, Sport, the Environment, Tourism and Territories	19 January 1988 (1988-01-19)	4 April 1990 (1990-04-04)	2 years, 75 days
8	Ros Kelly					4 April 1990 (1990-04-04)	20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	1 year, 267 days
				Keating		20 December 1991 (1991-12-20)	27 December 1991 (1991-12-27)
9	Alan Griffiths				Minister for Tourism	27 December 1991 (1991-12-27)	24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	1 year, 87 days
10	Michael Lee					24 March 1993 (1993-03-24)	11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)	2 years, 353 days
11	John Moore		Liberal	Howard	Minister for Industry, Science and Tourism	11 March 1996 (1996-03-11)	9 October 1997 (1997-10-09)	1 year, 212 days
12	Andrew Thomson				Minister for Sport and Tourism	9 October 1997 (1997-10-09)	21 October 1998 (1998-10-21)	1 year, 12 days
13	Jackie Kelly					21 October 1998 (1998-10-21)	26 November 2001 (2001-11-26)	3 years, 36 days
14	Joe Hockey				Minister for Small Business and Tourism	26 November 2001 (2001-11-26)	26 October 2004 (2004-10-26)	2 years, 335 days
15	Fran Bailey					26 October 2004 (2004-10-26)	3 December 2007 (2007-12-03)	3 years, 38 days
16	Martin Ferguson		Labor	Rudd	Minister for Tourism	3 December 2007 (2007-12-03)	24 June 2010 (2010-06-24)	5 years, 112 days
				Gillard		24 June 2010 (2010-06-24)	25 March 2013 (2013-03-25)
17	Gary Gray					25 March 2013 (2013-03-25)	27 June 2013 (2013-06-27)	177 days
				Rudd		27 June 2013 (2013-06-27)	18 September 2013 (2013-09-18)
18	Richard Colbeck		Liberal	Turnbull	Minister for Tourism and International Education	21 September 2015 (2015-09-21)	19 July 2016 (2016-07-19)	302 days
For subsequent appointments, see the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment

See also

• List of ambassadors and high commissioners of Australia

References

1. . 43rd Parliamentary Handbook: Historical information on the Australian Parliament. Parliament of Australia. 2010. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2013.
2. "Melissa Parke appointed Minister for International Development". Australian Agency for International Development (Press release). Australian Government. 1 July 2013. Archived from the original on 5 July 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
3. "Oxfam welcomes new Minister for International Development" (Press release). Oxfam Australia. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
4. Betteridge, Ashlee (1 July 2013). "Rudd appoints Minister for International Development". DevPolicy Blog. Australia: Development Policy Centre. Retrieved 28 July 2013.

External links

 

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