1. Anna Elizabeth Burke was born on 1 January 1966 and is an Australian former politician who served as the 28th speaker of the Australian House of Representatives from October 2012 to August 2013, and was Acting Speaker from May to October 2012.
32 Facts About Anna Burke
1. 2.
Anna Burke was the second woman to become Speaker and held the office until the 2013 federal election, in which the Rudd government was defeated.
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Anna Burke is a current member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and an Officer of the Order of Australia.
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Since leaving politics, Anna Burke has served on the boards of several foundations and companies.
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Anna Elizabeth Burke was born on 1 January 1966 in Melbourne and was one of five children.
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Anna Burke's father was an electrician and her mother a was kindergarten teacher.
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Anna Burke attended Presentation College, Windsor, and was diagnosed with dyslexia in grade 5, which led to her taking her high-school exams orally.
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In 1994, Anna Burke joined the Finance Sector Union as National Industrial Officer, and was responsible for coordinating campaigns and being a spokesperson.
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In 1996, Anna Burke joined the Ashwood branch of the Australian Labor Party 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.
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In 2005, Anna Burke submitted a private member's bill to the house that proposed an early form of the subsequently created Do Not Call Register, which allows people with fixed telephone lines to opt out from telemarketing.
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Anna 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.
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Hartsuyker refused to leave the house, causing Anna Burke to suspend the sitting of parliament.
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Anna Burke continued to advocate for awareness of eating disorders throughout her time in parliament.
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Later that evening, Anna 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.
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Anna Burke gained a reputation as "straight-talking" and for using a "death stare" as Speaker.
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Anna Burke had already asked for the doors to be locked so members were prevented from leaving the chamber.
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Anna 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.
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In 2014, Anna Burke appeared on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's panel show Q+A, which was disrupted by protesters unfurling a banner and voicing criticism of education minister Christopher Pyne.
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In 2015, Anna Burke announced she would not re-contest her seat at the 2016 federal election.
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From 2016 to 2018, Anna Burke served as the chair of Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia.
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In 2017, Anna Burke was appointed a full-time member of the General, Freedom of Information, and Veterans' Appeals Divisions of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, where her term is due to end in 2024.
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Anna Burke is an outspoken critic of Labor policy on asylum seekers.
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Anna Burke is an opponent of offshore detention, a policy that was supported by all major parties during her time in parliament.
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Anna Burke opposed the Gillard Government's Malaysian Solution, a deal by which Malaysia would accept 800 asylum seekers from Australia.
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Anna Burke stated she felt "deeply uneasy with the [government's] approach" of using Manus Island as an offshore detention site, and that she was "not in favour of mandatory detention, particularly of women and children".
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Anna Burke added her role as Speaker prevented her from strongly advocating on this matter in parliament.
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In 2013, in a discussion of refugee policy at a community forum in her electorate, Anna Burke said she "sometimes wondered [why she ran for the Labor party]".
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In 2014, following the death of an asylum seeker in Australian detention on Manus Island, Anna Burke wrote an article for The Guardian to call for a total end to offshore detention.
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Together with fellow Labor parliamentarian Melissa Parke, Anna Burke tabled a motion at ALP caucus in 2014 to cease the transfer of asylum seekers to Manus Island and Nauru, and to close the detention centres there.
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In 2016, Anna Burke joined a working group that included Members of Parliament and religious leaders to formulate new policy on asylum seekers.
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In 2014, Anna Burke proposed the creation of a National Allergen register, and in 2015, she established the Parliamentary Allergy Alliance in cooperation with Australian Greens leader Richard Di Natale and ALP MP Tony Zappia.
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The couple have two children; in 1999, when her first child was born, Anna Burke became the second woman to give birth while a sitting Member of the Australian Parliament.