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Ian Malcolm Macphee AO (born 13 July 1938) is an Australian former politician. He held ministerial office in the Fraser government as Minister for Productivity (1976–1979), Immigration and Ethnic Affairs (1979–1982), and Minister for Employment and Youth Affairs (1982–1983). He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1974 to 1990, representing the Liberal Party. He was known for his contributions in developing Australian multiculturalism as immigration minister and for being one of the most prominent "small-l" liberals within the Liberal Party.
Macphee was raised in the Sydney suburb of Neutral Bay, attending Neutral Bay Public School and North Sydney Technical College. After leaving school he worked as a clerk in the state Public Solicitor's Office while studying law part-time. He eventually graduated Bachelor of Laws from the University of Sydney. Macphee subsequently moved to the Territory of Papua and New Guinea and joined the territorial administration's Public Solicitor's Office. In that capacity he represented Papua New Guinean trade unions in local wage-setting negotiations. He also wrote opinion pieces for The Bulletin and Pacific Islands Monthly on local affairs and Australia's role in the lead-up to Papua New Guinea's independence in 1975.
After winning an East–West Center scholarship, Macphee moved to the United States to undertake further studies for two years. He spent time at Yale University and the University of Hawaii, graduating Master of Arts from the latter with a thesis on South-East Asian history and politics. He returned to Australia in 1968 and joined the Business NSW as an assistant director. He later moved to Melbourne and became director of the Victorian Chamber of Manufactures. He also served on the Victorian Committee on Discrimination in Employment and Occupation.
In March 1974, Macphee was preselected as the Liberal candidate for the safe seat of Balaclava, defeating 23 other candidates following the retirement of the incumbent MP Ray Whittorn. He retained Balaclava for the Liberal Party at the 1974 federal election.
Macphee was elevated to the second Fraser ministry following a ministerial reshuffle in November 1976, assuming the new portfolio of Minister for Productivity. He was also appointed Minister Assisting the Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations and replaced Tony Street as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister in Women's Affairs. He received a broad mandate to deal with matters and policy affecting industrial productivity, although the creation of the new Department of Productivity was met with criticism from some who felt its responsibilities overlapped with existing departments. He spoke favourably on the recommendations of the Jackson Committee and said existing protectionism policies would need to be reviewed to produce "an internationally competitive, export-oriented manufacturing industry".
In the 1980 and the 1983 elections, Macphee retained his seat, defeating Labor candidate Chris Kennedy. Macphee helped oversee the introduction of the Special Broadcasting Service. He played an important role in the opening of the Australian Institute of Multicultural Affairs and he worked with the Institute's director, Petro Georgiou, in overseeing government policy in this area.
Macphee later described his time as Immigration Minister as the most "exciting...and absolutely enriching" time during his period in parliament.
Macphee became a Cabinet minister in May 1982 when Fraser promoted him to Minister for Employment and Youth Affairs. Macphee defended the role of compulsory arbitration as a means to protect wages in spite of pressure from the more conservative elements within the party, and held this post until the Fraser Government was defeated in March 1983.Woodward D., Australia Unsettled: The Legacy of 'Neoliberalism', Pearson, Sydney, 2005 p. 72
In 1985 Howard successfully challenged for the leadership. Macphee stood for the deputy leadership that Howard had vacated, finishing runner-up to Neil Brown with 15 votes out of 70. Howard kept Macphee in the Shadow Cabinet, although he became Shadow Minister for Communications rather than retain his more prestigious former portfolio. Macphee kept this position until April 1987 when Howard sacked him.Henderson G., Menzies' Child, The Liberal Party of Australia 1944 - 1994, Allen & Urwin, Sydney, 1994 p. 290
In 1988 Howard commented that immigration from Asia should be slowed down. This position attracted criticism from the Labor Party but also many of his colleagues in the Liberal Party, especially from those who had implemented multicultural policies under Fraser. In order to expose Liberal divisions on the issue, Prime Minister Bob Hawke moved a motion in Parliament that race or ethnic origin should never be a criterion for becoming an immigrant to Australia. Macphee was one of the several Liberals who crossed the floor to support the motion and he received support from prominent Liberal Party politicians such as Nick Greiner and Jeff Kennett for his stand.Henderson (1994), p. 298
With the next election not due until 1990, Macphee briefly returned to Shadow Cabinet under Peacock, again serving as shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs. He returned to the backbench until retiring prior to the 1990 election.
On 26 January 1992, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for "service to the Australian parliament".
He conducted an independent review of a tender evaluation process undertaken by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which reported in December 1992.State Library of New South Wales, Independent review of the Civil Aviation Authority's tender evaluation process for The Australian Advanced Air Traffic System / [report by Independent Review]; Ian Macphee chairman, accessed on 4 August 2025 The CAA's tender process was found to have been "in significant respects unsound and unfair".Australian Government Solicitor, Major Changes in Tendering Law - The Hughes Case, Legal Briefing Number 33, published on 2 July 1997, archived on 21 July 2007, accessed on 4 August 2025
Macphee, given his history with Howard, was critical of the Howard Government, stating that he was "consistently outraged" by the Government's position on refugee policy. He also publicly supported the 2005 "backbench revolt" of Petro Georgiou, Judi Moylan, Bruce Baird and Russell Broadbent, which saw the softening of some aspects of the legislation.Macphee I.M., Liberalism Gets a Hearing Again, The Australian, 20 June 2005
Macphee was also highly critical of the Howard Government's role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Howard's folly: alienating the neighbours The Age, 6 March 2003
In 2017 speaking as a former immigration minister, Macphee criticised the powers held by current Immigration Minister Peter Dutton as "unchecked and unjust." Dutton's powers unchecked and unjust, former Liberal immigration minister says, The Guardian, 4 May 2017
In 2020, in response to a push from a local group, Voices of Goldstein, Macphee endorsed the push for an independent candidate in his old seat of Goldstein, saying "the Liberal party branches are now controlled by the Liberal party head office, which does not listen to ordinary voters... that's the state we've got to in our democracy which has been abused by power hungry people."
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Early political involvement
Macphee unsuccessfully sought Liberal preselection for the New South Wales seat of Berowra prior to the 1969 election, losing to Tom Hughes. He was president of the Liberal Party's Roseville East branch from 1970 to 1971. After moving to Victoria he served as chairman of the state party's manufacturing advisory committee from 1971 to 1973.
Immigration minister
After three years in the productivity portfolio, Macphee replaced Michael MacKellar as the Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs. Fraser and MacKellar had already adopted the recommendations of the Frank Galbally report, which led to a new framework for immigrant settlement. Macphee, with the full support of Fraser, continued the pace of reform, allowing large numbers of Indochinese refugees into Australia and he also introduced a family reunion scheme for these refugees. Macphee was assisted by receiving full bipartisan support from the Shadow Cabinet Immigration Minister Mick Young.Kelly P., "John Malcolm Fraser" in Grattan M. (ed) Australian Prime Ministers, New Holland, Sydney, 2000 p. 369-70.
In opposition
Upon this defeat, the Liberal Party became badly divided between the moderate (wet) and the Conservatism (dry) forces within the party. Macphee, as one of the party's leading moderates, became a strong supporter of Andrew Peacock, who defeated John Howard for the leadership of the party. Macphee remained in Shadow Cabinet, continuing as shadow Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations before he was given the job of shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs after the 1984 election. At this election, Macphee transferred to the newly created Division of Goldstein, essentially a reconfigured version of Balaclava.
Preselection challenge
Early in the following year, Macphee lost Liberal preselection in Goldstein—the real contest in what was then a safe Liberal seat—to academic David Kemp. This challenge was portrayed in the News media as a "wet" versus "dry" battle, although some commentators, such as Gerard Henderson, argued that Macphee had simply lost the support of the Liberal members in his electorate.Henderson (1994), p. 299 Macphee blamed his loss on his decision to oppose Howard's position on Asian immigration. This event further crippled an already divided party and contributed to Howard losing the leadership back to Peacock in May 1989.
After politics
Macphee remained in public life. He served on the board of CARE Australia and from 1994 he served as a director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation for a period of five years. Macphee also worked with fellow former Liberal MP Alan Hunt in reforming the Victorian Legislative Council in a Constitutional Commission set up by the Steve Bracks Labor Government.
Categories: 1938 Births, Living People, Members Of The Cabinet Of Australia, Members Of The Australian House Of Representatives, Members Of The Australian House Of Representatives For Balaclava, Members Of The Australian House Of Representatives For Goldstein, Officers Of The Order Of Australia, Politicians From Melbourne, Politicians From Sydney, Australian People Of Scottish Descent, Women's Ministers Of Australia, Australian Mps 1974–1975, Australian Mps 1975–1977, Australian Mps 1977–1980, Australian Mps 1980–1983, Australian Mps 1983–1984, Australian Mps 1984–1987, Australian Mps 1987–1990
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