Party Leadership


Leader of the Liberal Party
In office 30 January 1995 – 29 November 2007
Deputy	Peter Costello
Preceded by	Alexander Downer
Succeeded by	Brendan Nelson
In office 5 September 1985 – 9 May 1989
Deputy	Neil Brown Andrew Peacock
Preceded by	Andrew Peacock
Succeeded by	Andrew Peacock
Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party
In office 8 April 1982 – 5 September 1985
Leader	Malcolm Fraser Andrew Peacock
Preceded by	Phillip Lynch
Succeeded by	Neil Brown

Ministerial Offices

Manager of Opposition Business
In office 7 April 1993 – 31 January 1995
Leader	John Hewson
Preceded by	Warwick Smith
Succeeded by	Peter Reith
Treasurer of Australia
In office 19 November 1977 – 11 March 1983
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Phillip Lynch
Succeeded by	Paul Keating
Minister for Special Trade Negotiations
In office 17 July 1977 – 20 December 1977
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Victor Garland
Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs
In office 22 December 1975 – 17 July 1977
Prime Minister	Malcolm Fraser
Preceded by	Sir Bob Cotton
Succeeded by	Wal Fife

Member of the Australian Parliament for Bennelong

In office
18 May 1974 – 24 November 2007

Preceded by

John Cramer

Succeeded by

Maxine McKew

Chair of the International Democrat Union

In office
10 June 2002 – 21 November 2014

Preceded by

William Hague

Succeeded by

John Key

Personal details

Born

John Winston Howard

26 July 1939 (age 85)
Earlwood, New South Wales, Australia

Political party

Liberal

Other political
affiliations

Coalition

Spouse

Janette Parker

(m. 1971)

Children

Parents

Lyall Howard (father)
Mona McKell (mother)

Relatives

Bob Howard (brother)

Residences

Wollstonecraft, New South Wales

Education

Canterbury Boys' High School

Alma mater

University of Sydney (LLB)

Occupation

Lawyer
Politician
Author

Signature

John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian politician who used to be the 25th Prime Minister of Australia. He served in this important role from 1996 to 2007. This means he was prime minister for eleven years, which is the second-longest time anyone has held the job in Australia's history, after Sir Robert Menzies. John Howard has also been the oldest living former Australian prime minister since May 2019.

Howard was born in Sydney and studied law at the University of Sydney. Before becoming a politician, he worked as a lawyer. He was first elected to the Australian Parliament in 1974, representing the area of Bennelong. He became a government minister in 1977 and later served as Treasurer of Australia, which is like being the country's chief financial officer. He became the leader of the Liberal Party for the first time in 1985, making him the Leader of the Opposition.

After losing an election in 1987, he was replaced as leader in 1989. However, he became leader again in 1995 and led the Liberal–National Coalition to a big victory in the 1996 election. As prime minister, he brought in new gun laws and a nationwide tax called the GST. His government was re-elected in 1998, 2001, and 2004. During his time, Australia sent troops to the War in Afghanistan and the Iraq War. In 2007, his government lost the election, and he also lost his own seat in Parliament. After this, he retired from politics.

John Howard's time as prime minister saw a long period of economic growth in Australia. He is remembered for his ability to connect with many different types of voters. Experts and the public often rank him as one of Australia's most important prime ministers.

Early Life and Family
Starting in Politics
Becoming Treasurer
Leading the Opposition
Prime Minister: First Term
Prime Minister: Second Term
Prime Minister: Third Term
Prime Minister: Fourth Term
After Being Prime Minister
Awards and Honours
Images for kids
See also

Early Life and Family

Howard as a boy, 1940s

John Howard was born on 26 July 1939, in Earlwood, a suburb of Sydney. He was the fourth son of Mona and Lyall Howard. His father and grandfather both fought in World War I. They also owned two petrol stations where John worked when he was young. His father passed away when John was 16 years old.

When he was young, John had a hearing problem, which caused a slight speech impediment. He still uses a hearing aid today. This challenge helped him develop a very good memory.

John went to Earlwood Primary School and Canterbury Boys' High School. He enjoyed playing cricket and rugby union. After school, he studied law at the University of Sydney and became a lawyer in 1962.

In 1971, John Howard married Janette Parker, who was also a member of the Liberal Party. They have three children: Melanie, Tim, and Richard. The Howard family are Christians.

Starting in Politics

John Howard joined the Liberal Party in 1957. He was involved in the party's youth group, the Young Liberals, from 1962 to 1964. He supported Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War.

In 1974, Howard was successfully elected as a member of parliament (MP) for the area of Bennelong in Sydney. This was during the time of the Gough Whitlam-led Labor government. When Malcolm Fraser became Prime Minister in 1975, Howard was appointed as the Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs.

Becoming Treasurer

Howard in 1974, the year of his first election to parliament

In December 1977, at 38 years old, John Howard became the Treasurer of Australia. This made him the youngest Treasurer since 1904. As Treasurer, he became a strong supporter of free-market economics. This meant he believed in less government control over the economy. He wanted to change the tax system and make it easier for businesses to operate.

Howard supported changes to the financial system, which included allowing the Australian dollar to float freely in 1983. He also tried to introduce a broad-based tax, similar to the GST, but it was not accepted by the government at that time.

The Australian economy faced challenges in the early 1980s. The Fraser government, with Howard as Treasurer, lost the 1983 election to the Labor Party, led by Bob Hawke.

Leading the Opposition

After the 1983 election loss, John Howard became the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party. In 1985, he was elected as the leader of the Liberal Party, making him the Leader of the Opposition. He wanted to change the Liberal Party's policies to be more focused on free markets.

In 1987, Howard led the Liberal–National coalition in a federal election, but they lost to Bob Hawke's Labor government. During this time, Howard also spoke about immigration, suggesting that the rate of Asian immigration should be "slowed down a little" to support "social cohesion." These comments caused debate within his own party and were later seen as a reason for him losing the leadership.

In 1989, John Howard was replaced as Liberal leader by Andrew Peacock. He later tried to become leader again in 1993 and 1994 but was unsuccessful. However, in January 1995, the Liberal leader, Alexander Downer, resigned, and John Howard was elected unopposed to lead the party once more.

As Leader of the Opposition again, Howard changed some of his earlier views, for example, on Medicare and Asian immigration. He focused on the economy and the long time the Labor government had been in power. He also promised that the GST would not be introduced by the Liberal Party.

Prime Minister: First Term

Howard in June 1997, just over a year after becoming prime minister

In the 1996 federal election, John Howard and the Liberal-National Coalition won a huge victory. They gained 29 seats from the Labor Party. This was one of the biggest wins in Australian history. Howard became prime minister on 11 March 1996, ending 13 years of the Coalition being in opposition.

Soon after becoming prime minister, Howard introduced strict new gun laws. This was in response to the Port Arthur massacre, where 35 people were killed. Even though there was a lot of opposition, he managed to get these laws passed. This greatly increased his standing as prime minister.

In 1997, Howard pushed for the introduction of a Goods and Services Tax (GST). This was a big change, as he had previously said it would "never ever" be part of Coalition policy. The 1998 election was largely about the GST. The Coalition won the election, but with a much smaller majority. The GST was then put into place during his second term.

Prime Minister: Second Term

In 1998, Howard held a meeting to discuss whether Australia should become a republic. While he personally supported keeping the Australian constitutional monarchy, he allowed a vote on the issue. In a 1999 referendum, Australians voted to keep the monarchy.

In 1999, Howard organized an Australian-led international peacekeeping force for East Timor (INTERFET). This happened after violence broke out following a vote for independence in East Timor. This mission was very popular with Australians.

Howard refused to give a formal "apology" in Parliament to Indigenous Australians for past injustices, as recommended by a 1997 report. Instead, he expressed "deep and sincere regret" for past mistreatment.

In 2001, the government was not doing well in opinion polls. However, rising petrol prices and a strong stance on "border protection" (stopping asylum seekers from entering the country) helped improve their popularity. After the 11 September 2001 attacks in the United States, national security became a major focus. Howard led the government to victory in the 2001 federal election with an increased majority.

Prime Minister: Third Term

Howard was in Washington D.C. when the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks happened. In response, he committed Australian military personnel to the War in Afghanistan. He developed a close relationship with US President George W. Bush.

Howard maintained a strong friendship with US President George W. Bush

In March 2003, Australia joined the US-led forces in the invasion of Iraq. This decision led to large protests in Australian cities. Despite the protests, Howard remained popular as prime minister.

In 2004, Howard called an election. Even though his government was behind in opinion polls, Howard himself was much more popular than the Labor leader, Mark Latham. The election resulted in the Coalition gaining more seats, giving them a majority almost as big as in 1996. On 21 December 2004, Howard became the second longest-serving Australian prime minister, after Sir Robert Menzies.

Prime Minister: Fourth Term

Howard with Russian president Vladimir Putin at the 2007 APEC Summit

In 2006, with the government controlling both houses of parliament, new industrial relations laws called "WorkChoices" were introduced. These laws aimed to change how employers and employees worked together. However, WorkChoices was very unpopular with the public and trade unions. Many people believe it was a main reason for the government losing the 2007 election.

By April 2006, the government announced that it had paid off all the national debt that it had inherited in 1996. During Howard's time as prime minister, Australia had 11 years of continuous economic growth. Unemployment fell, and average wages increased. Most people believed his government was better at managing the economy than the opposition.

Howard in 2006

In 2007, Howard chaired the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Sydney. Leading up to the 24 November 2007 election, the Coalition was behind Labor in opinion polls. Howard and his government were defeated, losing 23 seats to Labor. Howard also lost his own seat of Bennelong to Maxine McKew. This made him only the second Australian prime minister to lose his own seat in an election. He remained as caretaker prime minister until the new government was sworn in on 3 December.

After Being Prime Minister

After leaving politics, John Howard continued to be involved in public life. In 2008, he started giving speeches around the world. He was also the chairman of the International Democrat Union (IDU), a group of conservative political parties, from 2002 to 2014.

He has written books and given interviews about his time in politics. In 2017, he supported a "No" vote in the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey against same-sex marriage. In 2023, he made comments about Australia's history, saying that being colonized by the British was "the luckiest thing that happened to this country."

Awards and Honours

Bust of John Howard by political cartoonist, caricaturist and sculptor Peter Nicholson located in the Prime Minister's Avenue in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens

John Howard has received many awards and honours for his service to Australia and internationally:

In 2008, he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), which is a very high honour in Australia.
In 2012, Queen Elizabeth II made him a Member of the Order of Merit (OM).
In 2005, he received the Star of the Solomon Islands (SSI) from the Solomon Islands.
Howard (left) being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President George W. Bush
In 2009, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President George W. Bush, which is the highest civilian award in the United States.
In 2013, he received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun from the Japanese Government.
He also received the Australian Father of the Year award in 1997.
In 2003, he received the IOC Gold Olympic Order from the IOC.
He has also received honorary doctorates from several universities in Australia and Israel.

Images for kids

Electioneering balloons from the Liberal and Labor parties in Bennelong during the 2007 federal election

John Howard facts for kids

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