Politics has been called a dangerous game; to excel in this game one must be armed with intelligence, wit and the necessary skills in strategic planning. The position of President or, in the case of a constitutional monarchy as practiced in Australia, is one of the most important points in politics, that of Prime Minister. Tony Abbott is one of those men who had the opportunity to take the seat of power as Prime Minister of Australia. For obvious reasons, this has made him a man of interest to Australians and people around the world. Learn more about Tony Abbott’s life and political accomplishments below.
Tony Abbott Biography
On November 4, 1957 and in the district of Lambeth, London, England, Anthony John Abbott was born to Fay Peters and Richard Henry Abbott. Abbott is the first child of his parents; he has three younger sisters, one of whom is the politician, Christine Forester.
Four years after he was born, his parents moved to Australia from the UK. There, his father established an orthodontic practice. After Tony completed his primary and secondary education, he decided to go further and went to the University of Sydney where he completed two degrees in economics and law. He obtained the first in 1979 and the second in 1981. The degrees apparently not being enough for Tony, he chose another from Queen’s College, Oxford, in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE). He would later earn a Masters of Art in 1989, six years after graduating from PPE.
Abbott’s foray into politics began while he was in college, with his organizing rallies against student leadership. He was once beaten for his actions and compared to an aggressive terrier in his approach to political issues by a newspaper.
When he returned from Britain after traveling for educational purposes, he joined a seminary to which he attributed a desire to become a man who gave his life in the service of others. Until now, Tony Abbott has worked in a concrete factory and held a position as a journalist. when he stood for election, he renounced his British citizenship.
Abbott became a Member of Australian Parliament in 1994, a member of the Liberal Party and representing Warringah constituency. Since then, his career as a politician has progressed. He rose from parliament to cabinet and also held cabinet posts until his eventual victory as prime minister in 2013. He held the post for two years and served as the country’s 28th prime minister.
Tony Abbott lost the party’s 2015 election to Malcolm Turnbull. When he was in power, he held very conservative views on issues such as same-sex marriage, climate change, renewable energy and how people were chosen to join the party. Some of these opinions affected his popularity. Despite his loss, he chose to remain in parliament.
His net worth
It has been reported that of all politicians Tony Abbott is one of the highest paid in the world. Meanwhile, politics is not his only source of income as he invests in many lucrative businesses including some in the stock market.
The man got with some business. Also, he owns Fat Abbott Burger, a large fast food chain, and has a company that produces a special brand of vodka in Australia, Pure Wonderabbott. His business is not limited to food and drink, he also owns a clothing line and manufactures perfumes. The fashion line is called Tony Abbott Seduction while the fragrances are With Love by Tony. He has also published four books, all of which contribute to his net worth of $145 million.
Daughters, wife and family life
As mentioned earlier, Tony Abbott was once part of a seminary which he dropped out. After leaving the seminary in 1987, he met Margie Aitken, who would become his wife. For both, it was love at first sight and a year later they got married. Their first child was born in 1989, two more arrived in 1991 and 1993. His three daughters are called Louise, Frances and Bridget.
For most of his life, Abbott believed he had a child with a woman he dated when he was twenty. She had become pregnant and told him the child was hers. Due to their age and inability to care for the child, the baby was given up for adoption. However, Abbott met the child twenty-seven years later and a DNA test proved he was not the man’s father.