Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs
The Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs is a ministerial post of the Australian Government and is currently held by Andrew Giles, since the swearing in of the full Albanese ministry on 1 June 2022, following the Australian federal election in 2022.[1]
Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs
Governor-General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Australia
Arthur Calwell (as Minister for Immigration)
19 December 1949
The post was created in 1945 and its inaugural officeholder was Arthur Calwell as the Minister for Immigration. On 20 December 2017, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull introduced a new major portfolio responsible for national security: Home Affairs.[2] The Hon Peter Dutton MP retained the duties of Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, with additional responsibilities awarded as the Minister for Home Affairs.[3] Following the appointment of Prime Minister Scott Morrison in August 2018, Morrison re-appointed Peter Dutton to the Home Affairs Ministry, previously introduced to the 'super-Ministry' under the Turnbull government in December 2017, and appointed David Coleman as Immigration Minister.
Scope[edit]
The portfolio and department were created in July 1945, during the last months of World War II. Previously, immigration affairs were handled by the Minister for Home Affairs (1901–1932) and the Minister for the Interior (1932–1945), except that between January 1925 and January 1928 Victor Wilson and Thomas Paterson were Ministers for Markets and Migration.[4]
The Minister for Immigration, Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship was usually one of the senior members of Cabinet, although between the Tenth Menzies Ministry and the Third Fraser Ministry, the post was downgraded to that of a junior minister. The minister and department have on several occasions been responsible for another portfolio in addition to immigration, such as ethnic/multicultural affairs, local government[5] or border protection.