Amanda Vanstone

The Honourable Amanda Vanstone AO
Official portrait, 2007
Minister for Education Minister for Employment
In office 11 March 1996 – 9 October 1997
Prime Minister	John Howard
Preceded by	Simon Crean
Succeeded by	David Kemp
Minister for Justice
In office 9 October 1997 – 30 January 2001
Prime Minister	John Howard
Preceded by	Daryl Williams
Succeeded by	Chris Ellison
Minister for Family and Community Services
In office 10 November 2001 – 7 October 2003
Prime Minister	John Howard
Preceded by	Jocelyn Newman
Succeeded by	Kay Patterson
Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs
In office 7 October 2003 – 30 January 2007
Prime Minister	John Howard
Preceded by	Phillip Ruddock
Succeeded by	Kevin Andrews
Senator for South Australia
In office 1 December 1984 – 26 April 2007
Succeeded by	Mary Jo Fisher
Personal details
Born	(1952-12-07) 7 December 1952 (age 72) Adelaide, South Australia
Political party	Liberal Party of Australia
Alma mater	University of Adelaide

Amanda Eloise Vanstone AO (née O'Brien; born 7 December 1952) is an Australian former politician and a former Ambassador to Italy. She was a Liberal Senator for South Australia from 1984 to 2007, and held several ministerial portfolios in the Howard government. After her resignation from the Senate in 2007, she then served as the Australian Ambassador to Italy until July 2010. Her time as Minister for Immigration was marked by controversies within the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.^[1]