Michael Duffy

Michael John Duffy (born 2 March 1938) is a former Australian politician and lawyer. He was a senior minister in the Australian Labor Party (ALP) governments from 1983 to 1993, serving as Minister for Communications (1983–1987), Minister for Trade Negotiations (1987–1990), and Attorney-General (1990–1993). He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1980 to 1996, representing the Victorian seat of Holt.

Early life Duffy was born on 2 March 1938 in Mildura, Victoria.

Duffy spent his early years in Mildura and in Albury, New South Wales, where he attended the Christian Brothers' College. Prior to entering politics he worked as a solicitor in Dandenong, Melbourne. However, he was later identified as factionally unaligned but part of the informal "Victorian Independents" group within the ALP, along with John Button, Barry Jones and Jim Kennan.

Communications minister, 1983–1987 Duffy was appointed Minister for Communications following the ALP's victory at the 1983 federal election. In 1990 he was also awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.

Attorney-General, 1990–1993 Duffy was appointed Attorney-General in a reshuffle of the Hawke ministry following the 1990 election.

In 1992, Duffy played a key role in overturning the Australian Defence Force's ban on openly gay members. Although defence minister Robert Ray had initially announced the ban would continue, Duffy brought the matter before the cabinet as a whole, arguing that Australia was in breach of its obligations under international law. A majority of cabinet sided with his view and the ban was overturned in November 1992.

Later activities Duffy later served as the chairman of the board of directors for Racing Victoria.