ParliamentPapers

House of Representatives

Bob Katter

Bob Katter is the Katter's Australian Party MP for Kennedy. First elected 13 March 1993.

1993 Won Kennedy, entered parliament
2001 Left Nationals, became independent
2001 Won as independent
2011 Joined Katter’s party, became leader
2013 Won narrow re-election
2020 Handed party leadership to son
1993 May 2026
  1. 1993 Won Kennedy, entered parliament
  2. 2001 Left Nationals, became independent
  3. 2001 Won as independent
  4. 2011 Joined Katter’s party, became leader
  5. 2013 Won narrow re-election
  6. 2020 Handed party leadership to son
  • National Party of Australia
  • Independent
  • Katter's Australian Party

What do they focus on?

Among his 22 tracked speeches, regional services appear in Doctors for the Bush. Domestic industry and import dependence appear in Future Made in Australia and Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount).

Other speeches address privacy and cash: he opposed Digital ID and supported Keeping Cash Transactions in Australia. His votes also cover environmental law in Nature Positive (Environment Protection Australia), agricultural biosecurity levies in Agriculture (Biosecurity Protection) Levies, and migration removal rules in Migration Amendment (Removal and Other Measures).

  • Government & democracy 5
  • Work & employment 5
  • Budget, tax & economy 3
  • Health, care & disability 3
  • Climate, energy & environment 2

Bars show tracked speeches and amendments by policy area.

How do they vote?

Share of recorded votes on the same side as each party's majority.

  • Coalition 57%
  • Greens 56%
  • Labor 48%

137 tracked votes across their party affiliations.

How do they compare?

  • Years in parliament i Total time served across every stint in either chamber, up to the end of the tracked record. 33.3 yrs 0.2 avg 8.5 yrs 33.3
  • Votes against their party i Recorded votes cast against their own party's majority side. The average is across party members only. 0 avg 0.6 26
  • Bills introduced i Bills they introduced to Parliament, counted across the tracked record. 1 avg 2.8 46
  • Amendments sponsored i Amendments to bills they put forward during debate, counted across the tracked record. 7 avg 7.9 226
Where their votes sit, left to right i Built from votes alone: party members sit at their party's mark and move only by votes cast against their own party toward a neighbouring one. Independents are placed by their side on the votes where the parties disagreed.
Bob Greens Labor Coalition One Nation
Economic 41 votes
Social 9 votes
Climate & environment 13 votes

His socially conservative regional-populism places him to the right, but his protectionist economics and hostility to government orthodoxy pull his votes toward Labor. Topic strips exclude accountability and process votes; read small counts loosely.

What have they done lately?

Since January, Bob Katter’s parliamentary activity was fairly focused: he made four speeches, moved one amendment himself, and recorded one vote. He opposed a new commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people and the transitional arrangements for that commission, arguing that another body would not fix the crisis facing Aboriginal people.

He also moved a proposal to automatically revoke guns from people on an ASIO watchlist in firearms and customs law changes, but it was defeated. In February, he voted against a trial before nurses could prescribe pharmaceutical benefits, a proposal that was also defeated.

When do they vote against their party?

Bob recorded no votes against their party of the day across 137 recorded votes.

What do they say in debate?

22 tracked speeches across 20 bills.

  • 11 backing a bill
  • 2 with reservations
  • 8 against
  • 1 no clear position

About these numbers

Based on 766 tracked bills from the 47th and 48th Parliaments, current to 6 July 2026. This is a sample of parliamentary activity, not the complete record.

Career markers come from dated public records. Voting figures use division lists only. For party members, the left-to-right marker begins at the party position. It moves only when the member votes against that party and on the same side as a neighbouring party; other cross-party combinations do not affect it. Independents and minor-party members are placed by their votes in divisions where the Greens and the Coalition took opposite sides. If this position differs from a member’s broader public politics, a note appears below the strip.