Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)


The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is the department of the Government of Australia responsible for foreign policy, foreign relations, foreign aid, consular services, and trade and investment.
The head of the department is the Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, presently Frances Adamson, who reports to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, presently Senator The Hon Marise Payne.

History

The department finds its origins in two of the seven original Commonwealth Departments established following Federation: the Department of Trade and Customs and the Department of External Affairs, headed by Harry Wollaston and Atlee Hunt respectively.
The department was abolished on 14 November 1916 and its responsibilities were undertaken by the Prime Minister's Department and the Department of Home and Territories. It was re-established on 21 December 1921.
Until the Second World War, Australia's status as a dominion of the British Empire in the then British Commonwealth meant its foreign relations were mostly defined by the United Kingdom. During this time, Australia's overseas activities were predominantly related to trade and commercial interests, while its external affairs were concerned mostly with immigration, exploration and publicity. The political and economic changes wrought by the Great Depression and Second World War, and the adoption of the 1931 Statute of Westminster, necessitated the establishment and expansion of Australian representation overseas, independent of the British Foreign Office. Australia began to establish its first overseas missions in 1940, beginning with Washington, D.C., and now has a network of over 80 diplomatic posts.
The Department of External Affairs was renamed the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1970. On 24 July 1987, the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Trade were amalgamated by the Hawke Labor Government to form the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
In 2005, DFAT became embroiled in the Oil-for-Food Programme scandal after it was revealed it had approved the Australian Wheat Board's request allowing it to pay 'trucking charges' to Alia, a Jordanian trucking company with no actual involvement in the trucking of Australian wheat within Iraq. The Cole Inquiry into the AWB was established, however its terms of reference excluded any investigation of the role of DFAT.

Portfolio responsibilities

The functions of the department are broadly classified into the following matters as laid out in an Administrative Arrangements Order issued on 18 September 2013:
Four additional ministers support in administering the Department:
DFAT is administered by a senior executive, comprising a secretary and five deputy secretaries. On the recommendation of the Prime Minister, the Governor-General has appointed the following individuals as Secretary to the department:
OrderOfficialDate appointment
commenced		Date appointment
ceased		Term in officeRef
1Stuart Harris days
2Richard Woolcott
3Peter Wilenski
4Michael Costello
5Philip Flood
6Ashton Calvert
7Michael L'Estrange
8Dennis Richardson
9Peter Varghese
9Frances Adamsonincumbent

Structure

The department is responsible to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, and the Assistant Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment.
The department has around 3,300 employees, of whom 1,300 are foreign staff employed by missions directly, and 1,500 are Australian employees based in Australia, and some 500 are diplomats serving overseas.

Departmental Structure

The department maintains offices in each state and mainland territory to provide consular and passport services, and to perform an important liaison service for business throughout Australia. In addition, it has a Torres Strait Treaty Liaison Office on Thursday Island. Additionally, the department manages a network of over 90 overseas posts, including Australian embassies, high commissions, consulates-general and consulates.

Portfolio agencies

DFAT also manages several agencies within its portfolio, including:
DFAT also manages foundations, councils and institutes including: