Nigel Scullion

{{Infobox officeholder

|honorific-prefix = The Honourable

|name = Nigel Scullion

|honorific-suffix =

|image = Nigel_Scullion_Portrait_2010.jpg

|imagesize =

|smallimage =

|caption =

|office = Minister for Indigenous Affairs

|term_start = 18 September 2013

|term_end = 29 May 2019

|primeminister = Tony Abbott
Malcolm Turnbull
Scott Morrison

|predecessor = Jenny Macklin

|successor = Ken Wyatt

|office1 = Deputy Leader of the National Party

|leader1 = Warren Truss

|term_start1 = 3 December 2007

|term_end1 = 13 September 2013

|predecessor1 = Warren Truss

|successor1 = Barnaby Joyce

|office2 = Minister for Community Services

|term_start2 = 30 January 2007

|term_end2 = 3 December 2007

|primeminister2 = John Howard

|predecessor2 = John Cobb

|successor2 = Jenny Macklin

|constituency2 =

|majority2 =

|office3 = Senator for the Northern Territory

|term_start3 = 10 November 2001

|term_end3 = 17 May 2019

|predecessor3 = Grant Tambling

|successor3 = Sam McMahon

|birth_name = Nigel Gregory Scullion

|birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1956|5|4}}

|birth_place = London, England

|death_date =

|death_place =

|restingplace =

|restingplacecoordinates =

|birthname = Nigel Gregory Scullion

|nationality =

|citizenship = Australian
British (1956–2001){{cite news|last1=Crabb|first1=Annabel|title=Section 44 forcing politicians into extraordinary feats of intrepidity|url=http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2017-07-28/section-44-forcing-politicians-into-extraordinary-feats-of-intrepidity/1689612|access-date=5 September 2017|work=Radio Australia|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=29 July 2017|language=en-intl}}

|party = Country Liberal Party

|otherparty = The Nationals (federal caucus)

|spouse = Jenny Scullion (divorced)
Carol Sexton

|partner =

|relations =

|children = 3

|residence =

|alma_mater =

|occupation = Fisherman

|profession =

|cabinet =

|committees =

|portfolio =

|religion =

|signature =

|signature_alt =

|website =

|footnotes =

}}

Nigel Gregory Scullion (born 4 May 1956) is a former Australian politician who served a senator for the Northern Territory from 2001 until 2019. He was a member of the Country Liberal Party (CLP) and sat with the National Party in federal parliament. He held ministerial office under four prime ministers.

Scullion was a professional fisherman prior to entering politics. He was first elected to the Senate at the 2001 federal election, and briefly served as Minister for Community Services in the Howard government in 2007. He was deputy leader of the National Party from 2007 to 2013, the first senator to hold the position, and served two terms as the party's Senate leader (2007–2008 and 2013–2019). In 2013, Scullion was appointed Minister for Indigenous Affairs in the Abbott government. He held the same position in the Turnbull and Morrison governments before retiring from parliament at the 2019 election.

He was the only minister to hold the same portfolio in those three governments.

Early life

Scullion was born in London, England, then lived in Deakin, Canberra, during high school. He is married with three children.{{cite news | url=http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/senators/scullion.htm | title=Senator the Hon Nigel Scullion | publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation | access-date=4 August 2010 }} Before entering the Senate he was a professional fisherman and graduated from the Australian Rural Leadership Program.{{Cite Au Parliament |mpid=00AOM |name=Former Senator Nigel Scullion |access-date=2023-01-17}}

Career

{{see also|Howard government|Abbott government|Turnbull government|Morrison government}}

Scullion received media attention early in his career when questions arose over how his business relationships with government bodies might have affected his eligibility to sit in parliament.{{cite news |first1=John |last1=Loizou |first2=Suellen |last2=Hinde |title=Senator faces spotlight |work=Northern Territory News |date=7 May 2002 }}{{citation |author1=Faulkner, John |work=Hansard |title=Senate Debates |date=14 May 2002 |pages=1393–1398 |publisher=Parliament of Australia |display-authors=etal}} Investigations continued for some time, but in the end did not affect his membership of Parliament.{{cite news |title=Senator probe |work=Northern Territory News |date=25 September 2003 }}{{cite news |first=Rajiv |last=Maharaj |title=Funds inquiry clears Territory senator |work=Northern Territory News |date=17 February 2004 }}

On 30 January 2007, he was appointed Minister for Community Services in the Australian Government. He held office for only 10 months before the Howard government was defeated in an election.

In February 2007, Scullion was elected to the position of deputy Senate leader of the federal National Party and was subsequently promoted to the positions of deputy parliamentary leader of the National Party and leader of the party in the Senate on 3 December 2007, following the coalition's defeat.{{cite news | title=Truss wins Nationals leadership | date=3 December 2007 | url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/03/2107931.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205073820/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/03/2107931.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=5 December 2007 | work =ABC News | access-date = 3 December 2007 }} On 6 December 2007 he was named as Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in the shadow ministry chosen by new Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson.Parliament of Australia, [http://www.aph.gov.au/house/members/shadmin.pdf Shadow Ministry list, 6 December 2007] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091025013248/http://www.aph.gov.au/house/members/shadmin.pdf |date=25 October 2009 }}, retrieved January 2008. In 2008, he was defeated by Barnaby Joyce for the Senate leadership,{{cite web|url=http://news.smh.com.au/national/nationals-wont-toe-libs-line-joyce-20080918-4isw.html|title=Nationals won't toe Libs' line: Joyce|date=17 September 2008 |access-date=15 September 2016}} but retained the deputy leadership of the National Party.[http://qcl.farmonline.com.au/news/nationalrural/agribusiness-and-general/political/barnaby-joyce-promoted-to-nats-senate-leader/1274977.aspx Barnaby Joyce promoted to Nats Senate leader: Fairfax 17/9/2008] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917065428/http://qcl.farmonline.com.au/news/nationalrural/agribusiness-and-general/political/barnaby-joyce-promoted-to-nats-senate-leader/1274977.aspx |date=17 September 2008 }}

Scullion was re-elected at the 2010 election and appointed Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs by Opposition leader, Tony Abbott.{{cite web |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/parl/43/Shadow/index.htm |title=Department of the Parliamentary Library - Shadow Ministry |access-date=2011-05-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100917122739/http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/parl/43/Shadow/index.htm |archive-date=17 September 2010 |df=dmy-all }} In February 2012, Scullion appeared in the second episode of Kitchen Cabinet with Annabel Crabb, when they went into the mud flats for crustaceans, which she has recalled as the most memorable show.{{cite news |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/media/ten-questions/ten-questions-for-annabel-crabb/story-fna103qq-1226708589143 |title=Ten questions for Annabel Crabb |first=Nick |last=Leys |work=The Australian |date=2 September 2013 |access-date=4 September 2013 }} Following Joyce's move to the House of Representatives in 2013, Scullion reclaimed his position of Senate leader but lost the deputy parliamentary leadership to Joyce.

On 11 February 2016 Joyce was elected leader of the Nationals with Fiona Nash as his deputy. As Nash was also a Senator, Scullion had to relinquish the Senate leadership to Senator Nash. In fact, Senator Nash had been Senator Scullion's Senate deputy prior to her election as deputy leader of the parliamentary party.

After the High Court ruled that Joyce and Nash were ineligible during the 2017 Australian parliamentary eligibility crisis, Scullion was appointed interim parliamentary leader of the National Party. Despite this appointment, Scullion did not become Acting Prime Minister during an overseas trip by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.{{cite web|last1=Knaus|first1=Christopher|title=Turnbull: Nationals happy for Julie Bishop to be acting prime minister|url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/oct/28/old-notion-nationals-dismiss-need-for-acting-prime-minister|website=The Guardian|access-date=7 November 2017|date=28 October 2017}}

On 26 January 2019 he announced he would not recontest his Senate seat at the forthcoming election.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-01-26/nigel-scullion-quits-politics-indigenous-affairs-national-clp/10747898|title=Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion to become third minister to quit politics|work=ABC News|date=26 January 2019}}

References

External links

{{cite web |url=http://www.nigelscullion.com/ |title=Nigel Scullion's personal home page |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411210022/http://www.nigelscullion.com/ |archive-date=2019-04-11}}
{{cite web |url=https://theyvoteforyou.org.au/people/senate/nt/nigel_scullion |title=Summary of parliamentary voting for Senator Nigel Scullion |website=TheyVoteForYou.org.au|date=3 April 2019 }}

{{s-ttl|title=Senator for the Northern Territory|years=2001–2019}}

{{Succession box| title= Minister for Community Services | before=John Cobb| after= Jenny Macklin| years=2007}}

{{s-bef|before= Jenny Macklin
as Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs }}

{{s-ttl|title= Minister for Indigenous Affairs | years=2013–2019}}

{{s-ttl|title=Deputy Leader of the National Party in the Senate | years=2007}}

{{s-ttl|title=Leader of the National Party in the Senate | years=2007–2008}}

{{s-ttl|title=Deputy Leader of the National Party | years=2007–2013}}

{{s-ttl|title=Leader of the National Party in the Senate | years=2013–2019}}

Category:1956 births

Category:Living people

Category:Abbott government

Category:Members of the Australian Senate