- In full:
- Bronwyn Kathleen Bishop
- Born:
- October 19, 1942, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (age 84)
- Political Affiliation:
- Liberal Party of Australia
Bronwyn Bishop
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Who is Bronwyn Bishop?
Bronwyn Bishop, born October 19, 1942, is an Australian Liberal Party politician. She served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016) and was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. Bishop gained prominence on the Senate Estimates Committee, where her criticism of tax officers garnered support.
In 1993, Bishop was a popular choice among conservatives, and despite lacking a leadership position, she won the seat of Mackellar in a 1994 by-election. During John Howard’s premiership, she served as minister for defense industry, science, and personnel (1996–98) and minister for aged care (1998–2001). In 2013, she became speaker of the House but resigned in 2015 due to a travel-expense scandal. In 2016, Bishop lost the preselection vote for her House seat and left the post later that year.
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What roles has Bronwyn Bishop held in Australian politics?
Bronwyn Bishop served as an Australian Liberal Party politician in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016). From 2013 to 2015, she was the speaker of the House.
Earlier in her career, Bishop rose to national prominence on the Senate Estimates Committee, where she openly criticized tax officers. During John Howard's premiership, she was minister for defense industry, science, and personnel from 1996 to 1998, and then minister for aged care from 1998 to 2001.
Bishop's tenure as speaker of the House was controversial, and she resigned in 2015 following a travel-expense scandal. In 2016, she lost the preselection vote for her House seat and left the post.
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Which political party did Bronwyn Bishop belong to?
Bronwyn Bishop is an Australian politician who belonged to the Liberal Party of Australia. She served in the federal Senate from 1987 to 1994 and in the House of Representatives from 1994 to 2016. Bishop was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. The Liberal Party is generally a conservative party that favors private enterprise interests. She rose to national prominence while a member of the Senate Estimates Committee.
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What is Bronwyn Bishop best known for in her political career?
Bronwyn Bishop, born in 1942, is known for her career as an Australian Liberal Party politician. She served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016). Bishop rose to national prominence via the Senate Estimates Committee, where her criticism of tax officers gained her wide popular support. In 2013, she was elected speaker of the House. However, she resigned in August 2015 due to a travel-expense scandal. In 2016, Bishop lost the preselection vote for her House seat, and she left the post later that year.
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What position did Bronwyn Bishop hold in the Australian House of Representatives?
Bronwyn Bishop served in the Australian House of Representatives from 1994 to 2016, representing the seat of Mackellar. Before this, she was a member of the federal Senate from 1987 to 1994. In 2013, Bishop was elected speaker of the House, a position she held until she resigned in 2015 amidst a travel-expense scandal. During John Howard’s premiership, she was the minister for defense industry, science, and personnel from 1996 to 1998 and minister for aged care from 1998 to 2001.
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Why did Bronwyn Bishop step down as Speaker of the House of Representatives?
Bronwyn Bishop resigned as speaker of the Australian House of Representatives in August 2015 following a travel-expense scandal. Criticism arose after revelations that she had used taxpayer funds for a helicopter flight to a fund-raiser. Bishop's tenure as speaker, which began in 2013, was marred by controversy and perceptions of partisanship. She left the House of Representatives in 2016 after losing the preselection vote for her seat.
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Bronwyn Bishop (born October 19, 1942, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia) is an Australian Liberal Party politician who served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016); she was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015.
Bishop was educated at the University of Sydney. She was admitted to practice law in 1967 and was elected 20 years later to represent New South Wales in the Senate, having decided early in her life to be a politician:
I wanted to have a say. Then I thought if I’m going to write the laws of the land, I really ought to understand them. So I decided to do law at university, which was a pretty unusual thing for a girl to do.
Bishop rose to national prominence as a member of the Senate Estimates Committee, where her televised criticism of tax officers, including the head of the tax department, gained her wide popular support.
By 1993 Bishop was the choice of many Australian conservatives as their most popular personality. Following the disastrous and unexpected defeat of the conservative coalition in the March 1993 general election, Liberal Party leaders in Canberra decided to stick for the time being with their losing chieftain, John Hewson. They overlooked the clear call for new blood focused around the personality of the populist Bishop, and, accordingly, throughout 1993 the conservatives were destabilized by continued rumours and suggestions of a possible leadership challenge.
Recognizing her charisma, Hewson tried to win her over to his camp, but he failed. Bishop rejected Hewson’s offer to join the 1993 shadow cabinet in a junior capacity, and almost immediately public opinion polls confirmed the wisdom of her decision by keeping her ahead of Hewson as preferred leader of the Liberal Party. While Bishop’s main target was Hewson, she did not spare Prime Minister Paul Keating. She castigated Keating for his visit to meet Queen Elizabeth II that September. She said it was unconstitutional and that he should cut short his European trip, which she claimed the country could not afford, and return home to attend to the problems of the budget and the economy.
Although Bishop aimed for a leadership position in her party, Australian parliamentary practice demanded that party leaders hold seats in the House of Representatives. In October 1993 a vacancy occurred in the House of Representatives for the safe seat of Mackellar, and immediately Bishop announced her intention to leave the Senate to seek preselection for that seat, which she won in a March 1994 by-election. Her challenge for the Liberal leadership two months later, however, was unsuccessful. Bishop won reelection through the 1990s and early 21st century. During the premiership of John Howard she served as minister for defense industry, science, and personnel (1996–98) and minister for aged care (1998–2001).
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In 2013 Bishop was elected speaker of the House, but her tenure was marred by controversy. She drew criticism for her perceived partisanship, and in July 2015 a travel-expense scandal erupted after it was revealed that she had taken a taxpayer-funded helicopter flight to a fund-raiser. The following month Bishop resigned as speaker. In 2016 she lost the preselection vote for her House seat, and she left the post later that year.