Peter Dutton seems to be a competitive runner for the position of Prime Minister. As the man in line for the leadership of the Liberal Party, he’s faced all sorts of issues and concerns from both Liberals and Opposition members alike.
Within the Liberal faction, the consensus about Mr. Dutton is quite diverse. Some say that he’s too much of a ‘dangerous’ option for the role. Others are concerned that he’ll be an extremist and conservative with his approaches to domestic and foreign policy. However, he also seems to have support behind him as a strong man to rally behind.
Knowing more about the man is as important as seeing what policies he’s willing to commit to. That’s why so many are now posing the question, “What Did Peter Dutton Do Before Politics?” We’ll be looking into his past positions and his career within the country’s political sphere.
What Did Peter Dutton Do Before Politics?
Before his expected appointment as leader of the opposition, Peter Dutton served in the Queensland Police Department as a member of their drug squad. Serving until 1999, Dutton also worked for the National Crime Authority as a member of its sex offenders squad for around the same time.
However, his resignation came about due to what he described as a loss in his driving confidence. An accident involving an escaped prisoner left Dutton injured from rolling his car over, resulting in hospitalization. He officially achieved the rank of Senior Detective Constable before his resignation from the force.
Mr. Dutton also has experience in Business Administration with a Bachelor of Business degree from the Queensland University of Technology. He founded Dutton Holdings with his father back in 2000 and focused on converting buildings into childcare centres. Up to this day, the company still exists as Dutton Building & Development.
His political career would soon start off as he was elected into the Division of Dickson. In 2004, he saw his position elevated as he became the new Minister for Workspace Participation. After that, the Howard Government saw to him as the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Revenue.
Further on to his career, he would become a consistent Cabinet Member for the Abbott and Turnbull Governments. In 2013, he became the Minister for Health as well as the Minister for Sport. He also became the Minister for Immigration, a position that landed him in hot water due to issues regarding comments he’d made and several unpopular decisions.
Peter Dutton also became the Minister for Home Affairs until 2021. From there, he became the Minister for Defence where he made several reforms that focused on not pursuing a ‘woke agenda’. This was met with mixed responses such as Brooke Muscat, Deputy National President for CPSU, who expressed that national defense would be having a ‘real problem’ if special morning teas affected national security efforts.
As he now stands as the new leader of the Liberal Party, many members of the opposition are divided and even heavily against his unopposed election. Whether this will be a boon or a bust for the party remains to be seen.
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