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Anna Elizabeth Burke (born 1 January 1966) is an Australian former politician who served as the 28th
speaker of the Australian House of Representatives The Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives is the Chairperson, presiding officer of the Australian House of Representatives, the lower house of the Parliament of Australia. The counterpart in the upper house is the President of th ...
from October 2012 to August 2013, and was Acting Speaker from May to October 2012. A member of the
Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...
(ALP), she was the member of parliament (MP) for the division of Chisholm from 1998 to 2016. Burke was a trade union representative before being selected by the Australian Labor Party to stand for the seat of Chisholm in 1998. She served as deputy speaker of the Australian House of Representatives twice from 2008 to 2010 and again from 2011 until the resignation of Speaker Peter Slipper due to allegations of fraud and sexual harassment in 2012. She was the second woman to become Speaker and held the office until the 2013 federal election, in which the
Rudd government Rudd Government may refer to the following Australian governments: * Rudd government (2007–10) * Rudd government (2013) {{Dab ...
was defeated. While in parliament, both as a member of the government and the opposition, Burke campaigned against offshore processing and mandatory detention of refugees, policies all of the major parties supported at the time. Burke retired from politics at the 2016 federal election. She is a current member of the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was an Australian tribunal that conducted independent merits review of administrative decisions made under Commonwealth laws of the Australian Government. The AAT reviewed decisions made by Australian G ...
(AAT) and an
Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
. Since leaving politics, Burke has also served on the boards of several foundations and companies.


Early life and education

Anna Elizabeth Burke was born on 1 January 1966 in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and was one of five children. Her father was an electrician and her mother a was kindergarten teacher. Burke attended Presentation College, Windsor, and was diagnosed with
dyslexia Dyslexia (), previously known as word blindness, is a learning disability that affects either reading or writing. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, reading quickly, wri ...
in grade 5, which led to her taking her high-school exams orally. In 1988, she graduated from
Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...
with a
Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree with
Honours Honour (Commonwealth English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is a quality of a person that is of both social teaching and personal ethos, that manifests itself as a code of conduct, and has various elements such as valo ...
in English Literature, and in 1994, she graduated from the
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
with a
Master of Commerce A Master of Commerce (MCom or M Com) is a postgraduate degree designed to provide knowledge in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. Like the undergraduate Bachelor of Commerce, the degree is mainly offered ...
with Honours in Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management.


Career

Before entering politics, Anna Burke worked as a trade union official and a human resources manager. In these capacities, she worked for
VicRoads VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government an ...
from 1988 to 1993 and for Victoria University (then the Victorian Institute of Technology) from 1993 to 1994. In 1994, Burke joined the Finance Sector Union as National Industrial Officer, and was responsible for coordinating campaigns and being a spokesperson.


Entry into politics

In 1996, Burke joined the Ashwood branch of the
Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...
(ALP) and in 1997, the ALP selected her as an electoral candidate for the Division of Chisholm, which was then held by Liberal Minister for Health and Family Services Michael Wooldridge, who had held it for more that 11 years. Burke was not expected to win the seat but after Wooldridge switched to the Division of Casey, she won the seat at the 1998 federal election against the Liberal Paty candidate Peter Vlahos with a 4.67% swing to Labor ( 2PP). Retrieved 16 October 2015


Time in parliament

In 2005, Anna Burke submitted a
private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in wh ...
to the house that proposed an early form of the subsequently created
Do Not Call Register The Australian national Do Not Call Register scheme was set up in Australia to regulate the activities of telemarketers who make unsolicited telephone calls to private individuals or who send unsolicited faxes. The scheme is free and applies to ...
, which allows people with fixed telephone lines to opt out from
telemarketing Telemarketing (sometimes known as inside sales, or telesales in the UK and Ireland) is a method of direct marketing in which a salesperson solicits prospective customers to buy products, subscriptions or services, either over the phone or throu ...
. After Labor's win at the 2007 federal election, Burke was elected as Deputy
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives The Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives is the Chairperson, presiding officer of the Australian House of Representatives, the lower house of the Parliament of Australia. The counterpart in the upper house is the President of th ...
, who presides over the House in the Speaker's absence. In February 2008, just a few sitting days into the Parliament, Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian diplomat and former politician who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and June to September 2013. He held office as the Leaders of the Australian Labo ...
was absent from the House while he was visiting flood victims in
Mackay, Queensland } Mackay () is a city in the Mackay Region on the eastern or Coral Sea coast of Queensland, Australia. It is located about north of Brisbane, on the Pioneer River. Mackay is described as being in either Central Queensland or North Queensland ...
. To protest Rudd's absence, the Opposition took a cardboard cut-out of Rudd into the chamber. Burke requested the "offensive article" be removed from the House, which caused some laughter from the opposition, along with the Member for Cowper
Luke Hartsuyker Luke Hartsuyker ( ; born 28 April 1959) is a former Australian politician who was a member of the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives from 2001 to 2019, representing the Division of Cowper in New South Wales for the Nat ...
. Hartsuyker refused to leave the house, causing Burke to suspend the sitting of parliament. While Deputy Speaker, Burke argued for the banning of websites that promote
eating disorder An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that adversely affect a person's health, physical or mental health, mental health. These behaviors may include eating too much food or too little food. Types of eatin ...
s but was not successful. Burke continued to advocate for awareness of eating disorders throughout her time in parliament. In 2011, Speaker Harry Jenkins announced his resignation from the Speakership, saying he wanted to be more involved in Labor Party matters as a
backbencher In Westminster system, Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no Minister (government), governmental office and is not a Frontbencher, frontbench spokesperson ...
. The government nominated Peter Slipper, the member for the Division of Fisher, to become Speaker. In response, the Manager of Opposition Business
Christopher Pyne Christopher Maurice Pyne (born 13 August 1967) is a retired Australian politician. As a member of the Liberal Party of Australia, Liberal Party, he held several ministerial positions in the Howard government, Howard, Abbott government, Abbott, ...
nominated a number of government members to become Speaker, starting with Burke. All nominated government members declined their nominations. Slipper accepted his nomination and took the chair as Speaker. On the same day, Burke accepted the Government's nomination for the position of Deputy Speaker and was elected to that position in a ballot. In April 2012, Slipper announced he was standing aside, meaning he would remain Speaker but would not attend sessions of the House until fraud allegations made against him were resolved. The Opposition called for Slipper to stay away from the chamber until sexual harassment charges were resolved as well. In October 2012, Slipper resigned as Speaker of the House. Later that evening, Burke was nominated and elected the new Speaker of the House of Representatives unopposed, becoming the second woman to hold the position after Joan Child. As Speaker, Burke instructed members not to refer to her as "Madam Speaker" but rather as "Speaker". This precedent was not followed by her successor
Bronwyn Bishop Bronwyn Kathleen Bishop (née Setright; born 19 October 1942) is an Australian former politician who served as the 29th speaker of the Australian House of Representatives from 2013 to 2015, during the Abbott ministry, Abbott government. Her se ...
, who requested to be called "Madam Speaker". Burke also gained a reputation as "straight-talking" and for using a "death stare" as Speaker. In May 2012, Labor-turned-independent Member of Parliament Craig Thomson, who was embattled with the Health Services Union expenses affair, unexpectedly sided with the Opposition during a parliamentary division. To avoid accepting the "tainted vote" of Thomson, several Opposition members, including the leader
Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is an Australian former politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and was the member of parli ...
, ran for the doors. Burke had already asked for the doors to be locked so members were prevented from leaving the chamber. While Speaker, Burke unsuccessfully called for a national ban on
child beauty pageant A child beauty pageant is a controversial beauty pageant, beauty contest featuring contestants under 18 years of age. Competition categories may include Aptitude, talent, interview, Sportswear (activewear), sportswear, casual wear, swimwear, west ...
s. In August 2012, Burke invoked Standing Order 94A to eject Abbott from the House for one hour for refusing to withdraw a statement "without qualification". The ejection of an opposition leader was rare and had not occurred since the ejection of
John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. His eleven-year tenure as prime min ...
in 1986, and has not happened again since. In 2013, people in the public gallery interrupted question time several times by calling Prime Minister
Julia Gillard Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. She held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), having previously served as the ...
a liar. This led to Burke stating: "This is Question Time. It is not a football match", and several individuals were removed from the gallery. In August 2013, Burke's Melbourne electorate office was vandalised with graffiti that said "fre icthe refugees" and the windows were smashed in protest of the federal government's policy on asylum seekers. Opposition finance spokesperson Andrew Robb's nearby office was similarly vandalised. In the 2013 federal election, Burke suffered a 4.18% swing (2PP) against her in Chisholm but was re-elected with 51.6% of the 2PP vote. Her tenure as Speaker ended with the defeat of the
Rudd government Rudd Government may refer to the following Australian governments: * Rudd government (2007–10) * Rudd government (2013) {{Dab ...
, after which the incoming
Abbott government The Abbott government was the federal executive government of Australia led by the 28th Prime Minister Tony Abbott. The government was made up of members of the Liberal–National Coalition. The Leader of The Nationals, Warren Truss, served ...
appointed
Bronwyn Bishop Bronwyn Kathleen Bishop (née Setright; born 19 October 1942) is an Australian former politician who served as the 29th speaker of the Australian House of Representatives from 2013 to 2015, during the Abbott ministry, Abbott government. Her se ...
as Speaker. Burke then sought to become chief Opposition
whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...
in the
Bill Shorten William Richard Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian former politician and trade unionist. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Leader of the Opposition (Australia), Leader of the Opposition from 2013 to 2019. He also ...
–led Opposition but was not successful. Burke stated she had been unsuccessful in being appointed to the frontbench because of factional manoeuvring and that Labor had "failed women" by not appointing ministers based on merit, overlooking qualified women. In 2014, Burke appeared on the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...
's (ABC) panel show '' Q+A'', which was disrupted by protesters unfurling a banner and voicing criticism of education minister Christopher Pyne. In 2015, Burke announced she would not re-contest her seat at the 2016 federal election. She was replaced as the Member for Chisholm by Liberal MP Julia Banks, who was the only
Liberal–National Coalition The Liberal–National Coalition, commonly known simply as the Coalition or the LNP, is an alliance of centre-right to right-wing political parties that forms one of the two major groupings in Australian federal politics. Its two members ar ...
candidate to win a seat held by an opposition party in 2016.


Career after politics

Anna Burke's official portrait as Speaker of the House was painted in 2015 by Sydney artist Jude Rae, making it the first portrait in Parliament's Historical Memorials Collection that both depicts and was painted by a woman. The portrait was unveiled at
Parliament House, Canberra Parliament House is the meeting place of the Parliament of Australia, the Legislature, legislative body of Politics of Australia, Australia's federal system of government. The building also houses the core of the Executive (government), execut ...
, in 2017. In the 2019 Australia Day Honours, Burke was made an
Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
for "distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia, particularly as Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to the community". From 2016 to 2018, Burke served as the chair of Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia. , Burke is a board member of the Institute for Breathing and Sleep since 2016, a board member of RedR Australia since 2018, and chair of the
Monash University Accident Research Centre The Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) is a research institute in the injury prevention field. The centre is located at the Clayton Campus of Monash University in Victoria, Australia. The centre was founded in 1987 as a joint vent ...
since 2019. In 2017, Burke was appointed a full-time member of the General, Freedom of Information, and Veterans' Appeals Divisions of the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was an Australian tribunal that conducted independent merits review of administrative decisions made under Commonwealth laws of the Australian Government. The AAT reviewed decisions made by Australian G ...
, where her term is due to end in 2024. In 2024, Burke was the lead decision-maker on a case involving a New Zealand-born man referred to as CHCY, who had his visa cancelled due to being convicted for child sexual abuse. The AAT overturned the cancellation of CHCY's visa, stating that CHCY should be allowed to stay in Australia due to his ties to the community, and that his wife and children would move to New Zealand with him were he to be deported, and that the victim in this case had moved to New Zealand already.


Political beliefs


Refugee policy

Burke is an outspoken critic of Labor policy on
asylum seekers An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country, and makes in that other country a formal application for the right of asylum according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 14. A pers ...
. She is an opponent of offshore detention, a policy that was supported by all major parties during her time in parliament. Burke opposed the Gillard Government's Malaysian Solution, a deal by which Malaysia would accept 800 asylum seekers from Australia. Burke stated she felt "deeply uneasy with the overnment'sapproach" of using
Manus Island Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth-largest island in Papua New Guinea, with an area of , measuring around . Manus Island is covered in rugged jungles w ...
as an offshore detention site, and that she was "not in favour of mandatory detention, particularly of women and children". She added her role as Speaker prevented her from strongly advocating on this matter in parliament. In 2013, in a discussion of refugee policy at a community forum in her electorate, Burke said she "sometimes wondered hy she ran for the Labor party. In 2014, following the death of an asylum seeker in Australian detention on Manus Island, Burke wrote an article for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' to call for a total end to offshore detention. Together with fellow Labor parliamentarian Melissa Parke, Burke tabled a motion at ALP caucus in 2014 to cease the transfer of asylum seekers to Manus Island and
Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...
, and to close the detention centres there. The motion was defeated. In 2016, Burke joined a working group that included Members of Parliament and religious leaders to formulate new policy on asylum seekers. Responding to Burke's announcement of her retirement from parliament in 2016, Opposition Leader
Bill Shorten William Richard Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian former politician and trade unionist. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Leader of the Opposition (Australia), Leader of the Opposition from 2013 to 2019. He also ...
described Burke as a "fearless and tireless advocate for the rights of asylum seekers". In her parliamentary valedictory speech, Burke described offshore detention centres as a "festering wound".


Food allergies

Because her son has a severe
peanut allergy Peanut allergy is a type of food allergy to peanuts. It is different from tree nut allergy, tree nut allergies, because peanuts are legumes and not true Nut (fruit), nuts. Physical symptoms of allergic reaction can include pruritus, itchiness, h ...
, Burke became interested in policy on
food allergies A food allergy is an abnormal immune response to food. The symptoms of the allergic reaction may range from mild to severe. They may include itchiness, swelling of the tongue, vomiting, diarrhea, hives, trouble breathing, or low blood pressu ...
. In 2014, Burke proposed the creation of a National Allergen register, and in 2015, she established the Parliamentary Allergy Alliance in cooperation with
Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly referred to simply as the Greens, are a Left-wing politics, left-wing green party, green Australian List of political parties in Australia, political party. As of 2025, the Greens are the third largest politica ...
leader Richard Di Natale and ALP MP Tony Zappia.


Personal life

In 1994, Burke married Stephen Burgess. The couple have two children; in 1999, when her first child was born, Burke became the second woman to give birth while a sitting Member of the Australian Parliament. Burke had her second child in 2002.


References


External links


Personal website
*
Summary of parliamentary voting for Anna Burke MP on TheyVoteForYou.org.au
  {{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Anna 1966 births Living people Speakers of the Australian House of Representatives Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Labor Right politicians Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Chisholm University of Melbourne alumni Monash University alumni Women members of the Australian House of Representatives 21st-century Australian women politicians Women legislative speakers Officers of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian women politicians Politicians from Melbourne Australian MPs 1998–2001 Australian MPs 2001–2004 Australian MPs 2004–2007 Australian MPs 2007–2010 Australian MPs 2010–2013 Australian MPs 2013–2016