| Peta Murphy | |
| Birth Name: | Peta Jan Murphy |
| Birth Date: | 1973 11, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia |
| Death Place: | Frankston, Victoria, Australia |
| Party: | Labor |
| Profession: | Barrister |
| Office1: | Member of the House of Representatives for Dunkley |
| Predecessor1: | Chris Crewther |
| Successor1: | Jodie Belyea |
| Termstart1: | 18 May 2019 |
| Termend1: | 4 December 2023 |
Peta Jan Murphy (1 November 1973 – 4 December 2023) was an Australian politician. She was a member of the House of Representatives from 2019 until her death in 2023, representing the Victorian seat of Dunkley for the Australian Labor Party (ALP).[1]
Peta Jan Murphy was born in Goulburn, New South Wales, on 1 November 1973.[2] She held Bachelor of Science (Psychology) and Bachelor of Laws degrees from the Australian National University, and a Master of Criminology degree from the University of Melbourne.[3]
Prior to entering parliament, Murphy worked variously as a solicitor, barrister, Senior Public Defender at Victoria Legal Aid, Team Leader at the Victorian Law Reform Commission and as Chief of Staff to Labor Shadow Minister Brendan O'Connor MP.[2] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Murphy first stood for Dunkley at the 2016 election on the retirement of Bruce Billson, gaining a 4.1% swing but losing to Liberal candidate Chris Crewther.[9]
Murphy ran again in the 2019 election and with the benefit of an electoral redistribution that turned Dunkley from a marginal Liberal seat into a notionally marginal Labor seat, along with a further 1.7% swing, was successful, becoming the first ALP member for Dunkley since 1996 and the first woman to represent the seat.[10] [11] She was a member of the House of Representatives Social and Legal Affairs Committee, the House of Representative Economics Committee and the House of Representatives Select Selection Committee.[2]
Murphy was an advocate for breast screening and early diagnosis of cancer[12] [13] [14] and in her maiden speech spoke of her commitment to healthcare and creating employment opportunities in Melbourne's outer suburbs.[15]
Murphy worked with Breast Cancer Network Australia to promote better treatment and understanding of cancer.[16] [17] Along with Lucy Wicks, former Liberal Member for Robertson, Murphy established the Parliamentary Friends of Women's Health in 2021 to provide a bi-partisan platform.[17] [18]
Murphy was re-elected with an increased margin at the 2022 Australian federal election.[19]
Murphy was born in Goulburn, New South Wales.[2] She married Rod Glover in 1999.[20]
Murphy played softball in the National League[21] [22] and represented NSW, ACT, Victoria and the Mornington Peninsula at the junior and senior level for squash. She was a past winner of the Australian 35+y Masters Squash, the US 35+y Masters Squash and the gold medal winner at the World Masters Games for 35+ years squash.[23] [24] [25] [26] She was a previous President of Squash Victoria, Vice President of Squash Australia and member of the World Squash Federation Governance and Audit Committee.[27] [28] Murphy also served on the board of local Community Legal Centres, Peninsula Health and the Peninsula Waves.[29]
Murphy was the Patron of the Frankston City Bowls Club and the Frankston Vietnam Veterans Association.[30]
Murphy was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011, at the age of 37. The cancer recurred around the time of her being sworn in to parliament in July 2019.[31] [32] She died from cancer at her home in Frankston on 4 December 2023, at the age of 50.[33]
In February 2024, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese opened the new "Peta Murphy Breast Imaging Suite" at Frankston Hospital, in honour of Murphy’s contribution to cancer awareness and advocacy.[34]