Findings

Note: the dates of postings below may differ slightly from those used on the map, which follow a convention in order to enable annual comparisons. See methodology.

The data tracks the course of Australia’s diplomatic appointments since 1974, when the first reliable written records became available. In that time, ten Australian governments have posted a total of 880 diplomats to lead Australian diplomatic missions in 158 cities around the world. Exploring the identities of those diplomats has uncovered a series of striking insights into the evolution of Australian diplomacy over the past half century.

Political appointments

The data reveals a steady increase in the number of ‘political appointments’ by Australian governments - those in which a government appoints former members of Federal or State parliaments to a role leading an Australian diplomatic mission abroad. In 1974, towards the end of the Whitlam government, there were two former politicians heading missions abroad – John Armstrong (former Federal senator) in London, and Vincent Gair (former Queensland premier) in Dublin. This represented 2.4% of all head-of-mission postings at the time.

Over the next five decades, the proportion of postings awarded to political appointees fluctuated. Under the Hawke government, the number of political postings rose to five (5.2% of posts). The Howard government inherited four political appointments (in London, The Hague, Paris and Zimbabwe). Political appointments rose to six (5.8% of posts) in 1997 (adding New York and Washington DC), before falling back to four (3.9% of posts) at the end of Howard’s government.

At the end of the Labor government of 2007–2013, the number was stable at four, and remained around that point through the Abbott and then Turnbull governments. In April 2017, Malcolm Turnbull appointed Richard Court AC as Ambassador to Japan, the first time the role had been held by a former politician.

The Morrison government has made several political appointments, lifting the total from five in 2018 (4.3% of posts) to ten in 2021 (8.3% of posts). Former politicians now lead diplomatic missions in Washington DC, New York, United Nations (NY), Chicago, London, Dublin, New Delhi, Singapore, Wellington and Auckland.

The rise in the number of political appointments means that politicians are now being appointed not just in roles traditionally held by former politicians, but to diplomatic missions previously led exclusively by career diplomats. For example, the High Commission in London has been led by a former politician for 27 years since 1974, 56% of the time. However, the 2020 appointments of Will Hodgman to Singapore and Barry O’Farrell to New Delhi marked the first time either of these posts were led by former politicians.

Two diplomats have become politicians after serving as Australian heads of mission. Gordon Bilney, High Commissioner to Jamaica (1980–1981), served as a Labor member of the House of Representatives from 1983–1996. Dave Sharma, Ambassador to Israel (2013–2016), is currently a Liberal member of the House of Representatives, assuming office in May 2019.

Women diplomats

The Institute’s research covers all female heads of mission appointed since 1974, from Ruth Dobson’s appointment as Ambassador to Copenhagen in 1974 to the 49 women now serving as heads of mission abroad in 2021. Australia’s first female head of mission was Dame Annabelle Rankin, a former senior cabinet minister appointed in 1971 as Australian High Commissioner to New Zealand.

The data shows the number of women in head-of-mission roles increasing slowly over time up to 2016. Since then, the number of female heads of mission has dramatically increased, doubling from 19% of posts in 2016 to 40% of posts in 2021. Key female heads of mission are now in France, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, UN Geneva, Wellington and Vietnam.

Family backgrounds

The data set reveals several family relationships. While there are frequent incidences of common names such as “Smith” (9), “Miller” (6), “Williams” (6) and “Wilson” (6), fewer have been confirmed to be related in some way.

Robert Cotton, High Commissioner to Sri Lanka (1985–1987), Fiji (1987–1990), Malaysia (1997–1999) and New Zealand (2000–2003), is the son of Sir Robert Cotton, a Liberal senator, Consul-General to New York (1978–1981) and Ambassador to the United States (1983–1984).

The Cotton family is also the second instance of father and son sharing a name and similar diplomatic responsibilities. Just outside of the recorded data, Sir Alexander (Alick) Downer was a Minister for Immigration in the Menzies government and High Commissioner to London (1963–1972). His son, the former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Alexander Downer, was also High Commissioner to London (2014–2018).

Several heads of mission had family connections to Australian politicians. David Borthwick, delegate to the OECD (1991–1992), is the son of William Borthwick (former Liberal Deputy Premier of Victoria). Peter Henderson, Ambassador to the Philippines (1973–1975) was the son-in-law of Robert Menzies (former Liberal Prime Minister).

In a separate but similar category, Dr Harry Alfred Jenkins (Senior), Speaker of the House of Representatives and Ambassador to Spain (1986–1988), was the father of Harry Alfred Jenkins (Junior), also a Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Other demographics

Three Indigenous Australians have been appointed as heads of mission overseas. The first, Damien Miller, was appointed ambassador to Copenhagen in 2013 and was the first Indigenous Australian appointed to head an overseas mission. Julie-Ann Guivarra (Madrid 2018–20) was the first Indigenous woman to serve as an ambassador and the first to serve as a senior executive in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Benson Saulo is the first Indigenous person to be appointed as an Australian consul-general, and took up his role in Houston, Texas, in early 2021.

Australia’s youngest head of mission based on our data was William (Bill) Norman Fisher, who was 29 years of age when appointed as Consul-General in Noumea. Fisher served in Noumea for three years (1975–1978), later serving as High Commissioner in New Hebrides (1978–1979), Chargé d'Affaires to Iran (1982–1983), Consul-General in Honolulu (1983–1987), Ambassador to Israel (1990–1993), Thailand (1997–2000) and France (2000–2004), and High Commissioner to Canada (2005–2008).

A minority of the 880 heads of mission were born outside Australia, based on our data. Several of these were politicians, including David Fairbairn (UK), Christopher Hurford (India), Michael Rann (UK) and Gary Gray (UK).

Diplomats born abroad have come from places as diverse as India and Poland. David Sadleir was born in India in 1936 and migrated to Australia at age 13. He served as Consul-General in Geneva and head of mission at the United Nations (1982–1988), Ambassador to China (1988–1991) and Director General of Security (1992–1996). Peter Wilenski was born in Poland in 1939 and migrated to Australia at age three after his family escaped a Soviet internment camp set up after the outbreak of the Second World War. He served as head of Australia’s mission to the United Nations in New York (1989–1992).

Diplomats’ educational backgrounds also varied widely. Seven heads of mission completed no education after high school because of war. General Sir John Wilton, for example, fought in the Second World War and continued a long and distinguished career in the military. He served in Syria and Papua New Guinea during the war, then went on to command a brigade in the Korean War and oversaw the reintroduction of conscription during the Vietnam War and the Konfrontasi. He was Consul-General in New York (1973–1975).

Some heads of mission completed no education beyond high school. Notably, Leslie Johnson, Labor politician and High Commissioner to New Zealand (1984–1985), left high school aged 14 to help support his family during the Great Depression.