88 Facts About Peter Dutton

Peter Dutton previously served as the minister for Defence from 2021 to 2022 and the minister for Home Affairs from 2017 to 2021.

Peter Dutton has been a member of Parliament for the Queensland seat of Dickson since 2001 and has held ministerial portfolios in the federal governments of Howard, Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison.

Peter Dutton worked as a police officer in the Queensland Police for nearly a decade upon leaving school, and later ran a construction business with his father.

Peter Dutton joined the Liberal Party as a teenager and was elected to the House of Representatives at the 2001 election, aged 30.

Peter Dutton was moved to the role of Minister for Immigration and Border Protection in December 2014, where he played a key role in overseeing Operation Sovereign Borders.

Peter Dutton was kept in that position after Malcolm Turnbull replaced Tony Abbott as Prime Minister in September 2015.

Peter Dutton then was defeated by Scott Morrison in a second leadership ballot days later after Turnbull chose to resign.

Peter Dutton was retained as Minister for Home Affairs by Morrison, later becoming Minister for Defence and Leader of the House in March 2021.

Peter Dutton went on to succeed Morrison as party leader unopposed after the Coalition's defeat at the 2022 election, becoming leader of the opposition.

Peter Dutton is the first Liberal leader to come from Queensland, and the first leader since Alexander Downer to represent a seat outside of New South Wales.

Peter Dutton was born on 18 November 1970 in the northern Brisbane suburb of Boondall.

Peter Dutton is the eldest of five children, with one brother and three sisters.

Peter Dutton's mother Ailsa Leitch worked in childcare and his father Bruce Dutton was a builder.

Peter Dutton finished high school at the Anglican St Paul's School, Bald Hills.

Peter Dutton is the great-great-grandson of the pastoralist squatter and politician Charles Boydell Dutton.

Peter Dutton is a descendant of Captain Richard James Coley, who was Queensland's first Sergeant-at-Arms, who built Brisbane's first private dwelling and who gave evidence confirming the mass poisonings of Aboriginal Australians at Kilcoy in 1842.

Peter Dutton became the policy vice-chair of the Bayside Young Liberals the following year and chair of the branch in 1990.

At the 1989 Queensland state election, the 19-year-old Peter Dutton ran unsuccessfully as the Liberal candidate against Tom Burns, a former state Labor leader, in the safe Labor seat of Lytton.

Peter Dutton served as a Queensland Police officer for nearly a decade, working in the drug squad in Brisbane in the early 1990s.

In 1999, Peter Dutton left the Queensland Police, having achieved the rank of detective senior constable.

Peter Dutton was driving an unmarked Mazda 626 during a covert surveillance operation, before rolling his car while in pursuit of an escaped prisoner who was driving erratically.

Peter Dutton suffered numerous physical injuries during the accident, and as a result, was hospitalised briefly and bedridden for a week.

Peter Dutton had sought damages of $250,000 from the escaped prisoner's insurance company but dropped the claim in 2005.

On leaving the police, Peter Dutton completed a Bachelor of Business at the Queensland University of Technology.

Peter Dutton bought, renovated, and converted buildings into childcare centres, and in 2002 it sold three childcare centres to the now defunct ABC Learning.

Peter Dutton was elected to the Division of Dickson at the 2001 election, defeating Labor's Cheryl Kernot.

Peter Dutton was elevated to the ministry after the 2004 election as Minister for Workforce Participation, a position he held until January 2006.

Peter Dutton was then appointed Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Revenue.

Peter Dutton successfully retained Dickson at the 2007 election, which saw the government lose office.

Peter Dutton retained that position when Tony Abbott succeeded Turnbull as leader in December 2009.

In June 2010, Peter Dutton released the Coalition's mental health policy.

Peter Dutton retained his seat with a positive swing at the 2010 federal election, despite an unfavourable redistribution.

Peter Dutton lost the McPherson pre-selection to Karen Andrews, reportedly due to misgivings from former Nationals in the area.

Peter Dutton was appointed to the new ministry by Prime Minister Tony Abbott as Minister for Health and Minister for Sport.

On 23 December 2014, Peter Dutton was sworn in as the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection after a cabinet reshuffle.

In September 2015, Peter Dutton cancelled the visa of anti-abortion activist Troy Newman, over remarks in his 2000 book Their Blood Cries Out.

Turnbull defended Peter Dutton by stating he is an "outstanding Immigration Minister".

Against a statewide swing against the government of 2.9 points, Peter Dutton's margin fell from 6.7 to 1.6 points, leaving him with a margin of fewer than 3,000 votes against Labor candidate Linda Lavarch.

On 5 June 2015, Peter Dutton denied claims made by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young that she was spied on during a visit to Nauru.

Peter Dutton gets her facts wrong most of the time.

Peter Dutton loves the camera and she loves to see her own name in the paper.

On 11 September 2015, Peter Dutton was overheard on an open microphone, before a community meeting on Syrian refugees, joking about rising sea levels in the Pacific Islands, saying "Time doesn't mean anything when you're about to have water lapping at your door".

Peter Dutton initially refused to apologise, saying it was a private conversation, but later apologised.

The Foreign Minister of the Marshall Islands at the time, Tony deBrum, responded by writing "insensitivity knows no bounds in the big polluting island down [south]" and the "Next time waves are battering my home [and] my kids are scared, I will ask Peter Dutton to come over, and he is still probably laughing,".

In November 2016, Peter Dutton said it was a mistake by the Malcolm Fraser administration to have admitted Lebanese Muslim immigrants.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Peter Dutton was making a specific point about those charged with terrorism offences.

Peter Dutton said "It's a total separate incident altogether" The Greens senator Nick McKim said Dutton had been caught telling an outrageous lie.

Peter Dutton defended the closure of the processing centre and asserted that the Papuan authorities had given notice of the camp's impending closure in May 2017.

Peter Dutton rejected Australian Greens Senator Nick McKim's report that there was no safe alternative accommodation available as false and claimed McKim was inciting trouble.

In mid-November 2017, Peter Dutton rejected an offer by the newly-elected New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to resettle 150 asylum seekers from the Manus Island detention centre in New Zealand and warned that it would have repercussions for the two countries' bilateral relations.

Peter Dutton claimed that New Zealand's offer would encourage people smugglers.

On 20 December 2017, Peter Dutton was appointed the Minister for Home Affairs with responsibilities of overseeing the Department of Home Affairs which was established on 20 December 2017 by Administrative Arrangement Order.

In March 2018, Peter Dutton made calls to treat white South African farmers as refugees, stating that "they need help from a civilised country".

Peter Dutton's proposal got support from some of his party's backbenchers and Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm with Leyonhjelm later clarifying that he thought that South African farmers should be admitted under existing visa programmes, and could not be regarded as refugees.

In February 2018, Peter Dutton used his discretionary powers as Minister of Home Affairs to deport New Zealander Caleb Maraku on the grounds that he breached the "character test" provision of the Migration Act 1958.

In early July 2018, Peter Dutton ordered the deportation of controversial New Zealand Baptist Pastor Logan Robertson, who had disrupted services at two mosques in Kuraby and Darra in Brisbane.

In mid-July 2019, Peter Dutton defended Australia's right to deport criminal non-citizens in response to concerns raised by the visiting New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, stating:.

In October and November 2019, Peter Dutton expressed his views on protesters and police response.

In November 2019, Peter Dutton said that the States should make protesters pay for the cost of police response to demonstrations.

In December 2019, Peter Dutton announced that airport security measures were to be increased to detect, deter and respond to potential threats to aviation safety.

Peter Dutton appeared in a video alongside police personnel to announce the policy, sparking criticism of the potential use of police for political purposes.

On 21 August 2018, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called a snap ballot of the leadership of the Liberal Party following several days of feverish leadership speculation, of which Peter Dutton was at the centre.

Peter Dutton responded to Turnbull's ballot call by formally challenging for the leadership of the party and won 35 of 83 votes available, 7 short of a majority.

Peter Dutton then resigned from the Ministry despite being offered by Turnbull to retain his position of Minister for Home Affairs, and the media speculated that Peter Dutton and his conservative backers in the party were likely to challenge for the leadership again in the near future.

Three days later, Peter Dutton called for another leadership spill, and Malcolm Turnbull tendered his resignation to the Governor-General.

Peter Dutton was defeated by Treasurer and Acting Home Affairs Minister Scott Morrison by 45 votes to 40.

Peter Dutton was reappointed to his former Home Affairs portfolio by Scott Morrison in the Morrison Ministry; however, responsibility for Immigration was stripped from the role and was assigned to David Coleman.

On 21 May 2021, Peter Dutton directed the department and serving military personnel to stop pursuing a "woke agenda", and cease holding events to mark the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia where staff wore rainbow clothing.

On 11 July 2021, Peter Dutton announced the end of Australia's military presence in Afghanistan.

In October 2021, Peter Dutton said Australia will back up any US effort to defend Taiwan if China attacks.

The Coalition was defeated at the 2022 federal election, with Peter Dutton retaining his seat despite a swing against him.

Peter Dutton following a shadow cabinet reshuffle announced that Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price will be appointed as the shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians on 18th April 2023.

Peter Dutton is aligned with the "National Right" faction of the Liberal Party, which he leads.

In December 2018, Peter Dutton told Sky News that for the prior seventeen years he had regarded "parliament as a disadvantage for sitting governments".

In January 2018, Peter Dutton said that people in Melbourne are scared of going out because of "gang violence" involving African Australians, but was "ridiculed" for it by people who live in Melbourne.

Peter Dutton opposes any changes to negative gearing which offers tax breaks to property investors, saying in May 2017 that changing it would harm the economy.

Peter Dutton owns six properties with his wife, including a shopping centre in Townsville.

In 2018, Peter Dutton said he supports Australian school kids taking the Oath of Allegiance in schools, as is done by new Australian citizens.

Peter Dutton is against the legalisation of cannabis, and has described it as a "gateway drug" in June 2021.

In March 2017, it was reported in The Sydney Morning Herald that Peter Dutton "said privately it was inevitable that same-sex marriage would become law in Australia so it would be better for the Coalition, rather than Labor, to control the process".

Peter Dutton's comments were heavily criticised as an attempt to censor expressions of support for same-sex marriage, with some commenters accusing him of hypocrisy given his support for changing Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975.

Peter Dutton had singled out Joyce in his criticism of pro-same-sex marriage CEOs, leading some LGBTI advocates to hold him partially responsible for the attack.

On 28 September 2017, following the news that US rapper Macklemore would sing a pro-marriage equality song at the NRL Grand Final, Peter Dutton said in the name of free speech that "two songs should be played, one for gay marriage and one against gay marriage".

Peter Dutton said that it would restore a semblance of policy similar to that enacted under the White Australia Policy.

Peter Dutton married his first wife when he was 22 years of age; the marriage ended after a few months.

Peter Dutton's eldest child, a daughter, was born in 2002 to another partner, and split time between her parents in a shared parenting arrangement.

In 2003, Peter Dutton married his second wife, Kirilly, with whom he has two sons.

On 13 March 2020, Peter Dutton announced that he had tested positive for COVID-19, becoming one of the first high-profile cases of the pandemic in Australia.