Tony Bark to take over Ministry of Home Affairs

Tony Bark is set to take over the Super Portfolio of the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration nominated by Anthony Albanese and to create propulsion for the next federal election.

Home Affairs Minister Anthony Albanese has replaced his entire cabinet, replacing Claire O’Neill and Andrew Giles with Tony Burke, in an attempt to reset ahead of the upcoming election.

In making the announcement, Albanese emphasized the “stability” of his cabinet, saying that before the changes “we had the same team in place for two years and two months”. “As members of the team retire, it paves the way for others to take up their roles,” he added.

Following her success in industrial relations, Burke will now focus on home affairs, immigration, and multicultural affairs, in addition to her role as Leader of the House of Commons and Minister for the Arts. “He’s certainly prepared for that. I mean, from a departmental perspective, it means it becomes the responsibility of one person,” Albanese said of Burke’s increased workload.

Burke will take on a new portfolio that puts two of the most politically sensitive areas under the jurisdiction of one minister.

Profile:

Anthony Stephen Burke (born 4 November 1969) is an Australian politician serving as Leader of the House, Minister for Home Affairs, and Minister for the Arts. He is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has served as a member of parliament (MP) for Watson since 2004. He held cabinet positions in the governments of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard from 2007 to 2013.

Burke is a graduate of the University of Sydney and worked as a political staffer, company director, and union organizer before entering politics. He was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council in 2003 but resigned the following year to enter federal politics. He was included in the shadow ministry immediately after winning a seat at the 2004 election.

During the first Rudd government, Burke held the position of Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry, before being given the role of Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, and Population in the Gillard government, after Gillard replaced Rudd as prime minister.

In June 2013, Rudd would in turn replace Gillard as prime minister and appointed Burke as the Minister for the Arts and Minister for Immigration, Multicultural Affairs, and Citizenship in his subsequent government. He held these positions for less than three months, as Labor was defeated in the 2013 federal election.