Amanda Vanstone facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Amanda Vanstone
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Official portrait, 2007
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| Minister for Education Minister for Employment |
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| In office 11 March 1996 – 9 October 1997 |
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| Prime Minister | John Howard |
| Preceded by | Simon Crean |
| Succeeded by | David Kemp |
| Minister for Justice | |
| In office 9 October 1997 – 30 January 2001 |
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| Prime Minister | John Howard |
| Preceded by | Daryl Williams |
| Succeeded by | Chris Ellison |
| Minister for Family and Community Services | |
| In office 10 November 2001 – 7 October 2003 |
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| Prime Minister | John Howard |
| Preceded by | Jocelyn Newman |
| Succeeded by | Kay Patterson |
| Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs | |
| In office 7 October 2003 – 30 January 2007 |
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| Prime Minister | John Howard |
| Preceded by | Phillip Ruddock |
| Succeeded by | Kevin Andrews |
| Senator for South Australia | |
| In office 1 December 1984 – 26 April 2007 |
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| Succeeded by | Mary Jo Fisher |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 December 1952 Adelaide, South Australia |
| Political party | Liberal Party of Australia |
| Alma mater | University of Adelaide |
Amanda Eloise Vanstone AO (born 7 December 1952) is an Australian former politician. She also served as Australia's Ambassador to Italy.
Amanda Vanstone was a member of the Liberal Party of Australia. She was a Senator for South Australia from 1984 to 2007. During her time in government, she held several important jobs called ministerial portfolios in the Howard government. After leaving the Senate in 2007, she became the Australian Ambassador to Italy. She held this role until July 2010.
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Early Life and Education
Amanda Eloise O'Brien was born on 7 December 1952 in Adelaide, South Australia. She was the youngest of four children.
She went to St Peter's Collegiate Girls' School. Later, she studied at the University of Adelaide. There, she earned degrees in Arts and Law. She also received a special diploma in legal practice.
Before becoming a politician, Amanda Vanstone worked in a large department store. She also had her own business. She sold prints and picture frames. She also worked as a lawyer. In the late 1980s, she married Tony Vanstone and took his last name.
Political Career
In December 1984, Amanda Vanstone was elected to the Australian Senate. She was 31 years old and became the youngest Senator from South Australia. She was one of 27 Senators elected for the Liberal Party of Australia that year.
Her first speech in the Senate was on 27 March 1985. She talked about issues important to young Australians.
Roles in Government
From 1987 to 1996, Vanstone was part of the Opposition Shadow Ministry. This means she was a spokesperson for her party on different topics. She was the Shadow Attorney-General and Shadow Minister for Justice from 1994 to 1996.
In March 1996, John Howard became Prime Minister. Amanda Vanstone was appointed Minister for Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs. She was one of two women in his first cabinet.
In October 1997, she became the Minister for Justice. This role was later changed to Minister for Justice and Customs in 1998.
In January 2001, she returned to the Cabinet. She became the Minister for Family and Community Services. She also helped the Prime Minister with issues affecting women. In this role, she oversaw Australia's social security programs, like Centrelink.
In October 2003, Prime Minister Howard gave her a new role. She became the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs. This was a very challenging job. One of her big decisions was to end the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC).
During 2005, her department faced some challenges. These included cases where people were wrongly held or deported. An investigation found problems in how the Immigration Department handled some cases.
In January 2006, her job title changed to Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. In January 2007, she left the cabinet. Kevin Andrews took over her role.
Leaving Politics
On 26 April 2007, Amanda Vanstone announced she was leaving politics. She said it was time for her to move on to the next part of her life. Soon after, it was announced that she would become Australia's Ambassador to Italy.
Life After Politics
After her time as Ambassador, Amanda Vanstone continued to be active.
- In October 2012, she joined the board of the Port Adelaide Football Club.
- In 2012, she became a guest presenter for the ABC Radio National program Counterpoint. By 2013, she became its full-time presenter.
- In 2013 and 2014, she was part of the Abbott government's National Commission of Audit. This group worked to improve the Australian government's budget.
- She is also the Chairwoman of Vision 20/20 Australia.
Political Views
Amanda Vanstone was a member of the Liberal Party of Australia. She was known as a "liberal" rather than a "conservative" within the party. She was a leading member of the party's moderate group. She also helped guide younger moderate Liberal politicians, like Christopher Pyne.
