Shadow cabinet of Australia

In Australian federal politics, the shadow cabinet is the opposition's equivalent to the federal cabinet. It comprises the most senior figures within the opposition, headed by the leader of the opposition as the counterpart to the prime minister of Australia.

The shadow cabinet is the highest level of the shadow ministry (or "opposition frontbench"), which also includes other less senior shadow ministers (equivalent to the government's "outer ministry") and shadow assistant ministers. The members of the shadow ministry are assigned one or more portfolios, usually though not necessarily corresponding to an existing ministerial portfolio within the government. They serve as the opposition's chief spokespeople on matters within their portfolio, and during parliamentary question time may direct questions at their government equivalent. If the opposition forms government, such as through winning a federal election, it is typical for members of the shadow ministry to retain the same portfolio.

The current shadow cabinet was formed by the Coalition following its defeat at the 2025 federal election, led by Liberal opposition leader Sussan Ley.

Role and functions

According to Bateman (2008), the shadow cabinet exists as a "recognised component of the parliamentary system" but "the functions, roles and practices of the Shadow Cabinet are far less clear than those of the Cabinet".^[1]

The role of the shadow ministry in making opposition policy has varied.^[2]

Meetings of shadow cabinet are less formal than actual cabinet meetings, typically lasting a shorter time.^[3]

History

In May 1965, the Australian Labor Party Caucus voted to establish a formal shadow ministry of 25 members.^[4] This replaced an earlier "opposition executive" consisting of 14 members.^[5]

Since 1987, the shadow ministry has had at least as many members as the ministry, and sometimes more. Shadow parliamentary secretaries (known as shadow assistant ministers since 2016) were first appointed in 1990.^[6]

Current arrangement

Party		Shadow Minister	Portrait	Offices	Ref
	Liberal	Hon Sussan Ley (born 1961) MP for Farrer (NSW) (2001–)		Leader of the Opposition Leader of the Liberal Party	[7]
	Liberal (LNP)	Ted O'Brien (born 1974) MP for Fairfax (Qld.) (2016–)		Deputy Leader of the Opposition Shadow Treasurer Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party	[8]
	National (LNP)	Hon David Littleproud (born 1976) MP for Maranoa (Qld.) (2016–)		Shadow Minister for Agriculture Leader of the National Party	[9]
	Liberal	Hon Michaelia Cash (born 1970) Senator for Western Australia (2008–)		Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Leader of the Opposition in the Senate	[10]
		Hon Anne Ruston (born 1963) Senator for South Australia (2012–)		Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care Shadow Minister for Disability and the National Disability Insurance Scheme Shadow Minister for Sport Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate	[11]
		Hon Angus Taylor (born 1966) MP for Hume (NSW) (2013–)		Shadow Minister for Defence	[12]
		James Paterson (born 1987) Senator for Victoria (2016–)		Shadow Minister for Finance Shadow Minister for the Public Service Shadow Minister for Government Services	[13]
		Hon Dan Tehan (born 1968) MP for Wannon (Vic.) (2010–)		Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction	[14]
		Hon Andrew Hastie (born 1982) MP for Canning (WA) (2015–)		Shadow Minister for Home Affairs	[15]
		Hon Jonathon Duniam (born 1982) Senator for Tasmania (2016–)		Shadow Minister for Education and Early Learning Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate	[16]
		Hon Tim Wilson (born 1980) MP for Goldstein (Vic.) (2016–2022, 2025–)		Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations and Employment Shadow Minister for Small Business	[17]
		Kerrynne Liddle (born 1967) Senator for South Australia (2022–)		Shadow Minister for Social Services Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians	[18]
	National	Hon Bridget McKenzie (born 1969) Senator for Victoria (2011–)		Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Leader of the National Party in the Senate	[19]
	Liberal	Julian Leeser (born 1976) MP for Berowra (NSW) (2016–)		Shadow Attorney-General Shadow Minister for the Arts	[20]
		Melissa McIntosh (born 1977) MP for Lindsay (NSW) (2019–)		Shadow Minister for Communications Shadow Minister for Women	[21]
		Andrew Bragg (born 1984) Senator for New South Wales (2019–)		Shadow Minister for Housing and Homelessness Shadow Minister for Productivity and Deregulation	[22]
	Liberal (LNP)	Angie Bell (born 1968) MP for Moncrieff (Qld.) (2019–)		Shadow Minister for the Environment Shadow Minister for Youth	[23]
	National	Hon Kevin Hogan (born 1963) MP for Page (NSW) (2013–)		Shadow Minister for Trade, Investment and Tourism Deputy Leader of the National Party Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House	[24]
		Hon Darren Chester (born 1967) MP for Gippsland (Vic.) (2008–)		Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs	[25]
	Liberal	Hon Alex Hawke (born 1977) MP for Mitchell (NSW) (2007–)		Shadow Minister for Industry and Innovation Manager of Opposition Business in the House	[26]
	National	Ross Cadell (born 1969) Senator for New South Wales (2022–)		Shadow Minister for Emergency Management Shadow Minister for Water Shadow Minister for Fisheries and Forestry	[27]
	Liberal (LNP)	Hon James McGrath (born 1974) Senator for Queensland (2014–)		Shadow Minister for Urban Infrastructure and Cities Shadow Minister for Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Shadow Special Minister of State	[28]
	National (LNP)	Susan McDonald (born 1970) Senator for Queensland (2019–)		Shadow Minister for Resources and Northern Australia	[29]

This section is an excerpt from Ley shadow ministry § Shadow cabinet.[edit]

Salary and benefits

As of July 2019^[update], ordinary shadow ministers were entitled to either a 20 or 25 percent loading on top of the base parliamentary salary. The loading depends on the number of shadow ministers. Officeholders within the opposition receive higher loadings, up to 87 percent for the leader of the opposition.^[30] Historically, ordinary shadow ministers received no additional salary compared to backbenchers but were granted an additional staffing allowance.^[31]

See also

• Ley shadow ministry - current shadow ministry since May 2025
• Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
• Manager of Opposition Business in the House
• Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate