1. Sophie Mirabella is an Australian lawyer and former politician who currently serves as a Commissioner on the Fair Work Commission since 24 May 2021.
34 Facts About Sophie Mirabella
1. 2.
Sophie Mirabella was previously a Liberal Party member of the Australian House of Representatives from 2001 to 2013, representing the Division of Indi, Victoria.
3.
Sophie Mirabella narrowly lost her seat of Indi at the 2013 federal election to independent candidate Cathy McGowan.
4.
Sophie Mirabella resigned from the Coalition frontbench shortly prior to conceding defeat.
5.
Sophie Mirabella subsequently attempted to regain the seat, standing again for the Liberal Party at the 2016 election, but was defeated by McGowan again on an increased margin.
6.
Sophie Mirabella was educated at St Catherine's School, Toorak, while working part-time at her father's milk bar in South Melbourne.
7.
Sophie Mirabella has been a member of the Liberal Party since 1987.
8.
Sophie Mirabella chaired this group with Victorian Senator Mitch Fifield.
9.
Sophie Mirabella was an advocate of voluntary student unionism and strongly supported the legislation proposed by Brendan Nelson.
10.
Sophie Mirabella was one of five Liberal MPs not present in February 2008, when a motion was passed unanimously apologising to the stolen generations of indigenous children between Federation and the 1970s.
11.
Sophie Mirabella explained her decision by asserting that there had never been a formal policy in Victoria of removing children from their families and that there is no evidence for any "truly stolen" children, despite the fact that the first laws passed giving authorities the right to take children from their parents were passed and used in Victoria.
12.
Sophie Mirabella was one of those who pledged their support to Malcolm Turnbull when he challenged Brendan Nelson for leadership of the Liberal Party in September 2008.
13.
Sophie Mirabella was promoted as part of the subsequent reshuffle, becoming the opposition spokeswoman on early childhood education, childcare, women and youth.
14.
Sophie Mirabella's move to the Shadow Cabinet came in 2009 after Tony Abbott defeated Turnbull in a leadership spill.
15.
Sophie Mirabella was promoted to the role of spokeswoman for innovation, industry, science and research.
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Sophie Mirabella had joined Abbott in resigning from the frontbench over Turnbull's climate change policy, and her move to the Shadow Cabinet was seen as part of the rise of the social-conservative right within the party.
17.
Sophie Mirabella's behaviour led her to be ejected from parliament at least twice.
18.
Sophie Mirabella defied parliamentary orders under Standing Order No 94A and thus was removed from the House of Representatives for misconduct.
19.
Abbott refused to condemn Sophie Mirabella, instead terming the comparison "colourful" and not language he would use.
20.
Sophie Mirabella was criticised on Twitter for not physically responding to his situation.
21.
Sophie Mirabella was defeated in Indi by independent candidate Cathy McGowan at the 2013 federal election.
22.
Sophie Mirabella was the only sitting Coalition member to lose her seat.
23.
On 18 September 2013, Sophie Mirabella conceded defeat, the same day Abbott and his government were sworn in.
24.
In May 2015, Sophie Mirabella stated Liberal minister Scott Morrison would be the "next conservative prime minister of Australia", and announced she would be contesting preselection for her former seat.
25.
In June, Sophie Mirabella secured endorsement as the Liberal candidate for the seat of Indi at the 2016 federal election.
26.
Sophie Mirabella went on Twitter to "emphatically reject reports I pushed Cathy McGowan"; the editor of the Benalla Ensign stated that she confirmed the incident with four sources and defended the reporting on the basis of "public interest".
27.
Sophie Mirabella denied the allegations and is reported as examining legal remedies.
28.
Sophie Mirabella alleged that, due to her eventual election loss to independent candidate Cathy McGowan, this funding was scrapped by the newly elected coalition government.
29.
Sophie Mirabella claimed that her own party was the source of a series of damaging leaks to undermine her.
30.
In 2021, Sophie Mirabella was appointed a Commissioner to the Fair Work Commission.
31.
Sophie Mirabella commenced in that role on 24 May 2021.
32.
In 1995, Sophie Mirabella began a live-in relationship with Colin Howard, then dean of law at Melbourne University, who was forty years her senior.
33.
Sophie Mirabella held power of attorney over Howard's affairs from early 2007, and he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in the following year.
34.
Pursuant to his 1997 will, Sophie Mirabella was executor and sole beneficiary of his estate following his death in 2011.