Anthony Byrne

During the 2016 federal election, Byrne began distributing flyers promoting law-and-order and an anti-terrorism platform; the first politician of the campaign to inject law-and-order into the national debate. Byrne said that he was prompted to distribute the flyers after many people in his electorate were too afraid to open their doors and talk to him while he was door-knocking due to recent gang activity and fear of violent Ice users, something which Byrne call "completely unacceptable" and promised that, if re-elected, one of his first orders of business would be to work with authorities to crush the Apex gang in his region and to ensure ice manufacturers and dealers are put out of business.

After the 2016 election, Crikey reported that Byrne was likely to be departing PJCIS, however later the same publication reported that Byrne would be remaining on the Committee after being prevailed on to reverse his decision to leave.

In the wake of another terror attack on police in 2015, Byrne questioned why national leaders were reaching out to the Islamic community but weren't doing the same with police; arguing for greater attention to be given to police facing the ongoing threat of street-side executions. After Muslim constituents with relatives affected by fighting in the Middle East had asked him why the coalition was taking so long to defeat IS, with an absence of a substantial victory and the appearance that the conflict was being lost despite claims that the coalition were gaining some advantages over IS, Byrne told ABC News that Australia required "a complete, cohesive, clear strategy, a cogent strategy..with some form of timeframe to how to deal with these people."

Byrne has been named as 'one of the few MPs at either federal or state level to have voiced support for licence-holders.' At a taxi rally in Narre Warren on 18 October 2015, attended by more than 300 people, Byrne heavily criticised the then technically illegal and unregulated ride-sharing service for undercutting the taxi industry. Byrne was reported to have said that "behind every taxi is a family", and that "In contrast to taxi and hire car operators, Uber has not been complying with a number of State and Federal government laws, regulations and taxes." Byrne rejected the idea that Uber provided a ride-sharing service and argued the company needed to be governed by the same rules as taxis. Additionally, Byrne said that "If Uber does become properly regulated and the value of taxi licences and plates are reduced then the taxi industry should be appropriately compensated." Concluding, Byrne said that "Our community needs to understand that behind every taxi is a family. We can't just stand by and wait as an industry that employs nearly 200,000 people goes to the wall."

In the wake of Labor's loss in the 2013 election, Byrne penned an opinion piece in The Daily Telegraph in which he argued that the election result rested squarely on the shoulders of the ALP, and that the road to re-election would need to begin with the Labor Party getting back to its core constituency, focusing on creating opportunities, and pitching the ALP's message to aspirational voters.

During the Rudd-Gillard years, Byrne was described as 'a key Rudd backer' and Rudd's 'loyal lieutenant'. On the day of Rudd's February 2012 challenge for the leadership of the Labor Party against Julia Gillard, the Herald Sun published an article by Bryne in which he detailed his reasons for supporting Kevin Rudd to be re-installed as Prime Minister. In a show of solidarity within the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party, Byrne appeared alongside fellow Labor MP Richard Marles in an interview on the Australian breakfast television program Sunrise following Rudd's unsuccessful challenge against Gillard to call for an end to divisions within the Labor Caucus and a renewed concentration on governing the country.

Byrne was the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister from November 2007 until 14 September 2010. Byrne was one of just half of the 40-strong cabinet, outer minister and parliamentary secretaries who chose to swear the oath of office on the Bible rather than the affirmation of office. He was Parliamentary Secretary for Trade from February 2009 until 14 September 2010.

Following the 2010 election, Byrne was appointed chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, and was made deputy chair after the 2013 election.

Byrne has served on the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security since 2005 and has been described as 'one of the best brains on intelligence and national security' in the Australian parliament. As chair of PJCIS in 2013, Byrne along with Deputy Chair Philip Ruddock, warned of the effect of the government's efficiency dividend on the operations of Australia's intelligence and security agencies after tabling a PJCIS report in May 2013 covering the administration and finances of Australia's six intelligence and security agencies in 2010–2011. Byrne likened the cuts to the US austerity measures which prompted warnings from US intelligence agencies, in the wake of the Boston bombings, that their ability to combat terrorism was at risk. Of the government's efficiency dividend, Byrne said "I find it frankly astonishing that these agencies would have been effectively sequestered from funding to perform their tasks" and that cuts to the agencies' funding was "disgraceful and it should be addressed."

Byrne is the Federal Member for the Holt electorate in the House of Representatives in the Australian Parliament; he was elected in a by-election in 1999, and re-elected in 2001, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. Byrne made his maiden speech to the Australian House of Representatives as the new member for Holt on 16 February 2000.

Anthony Michael Byrne (born 1 December 1962) is an Australian politician and an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since November 1999, representing the Division of Holt, Victoria.

Byrne has continued as the Deputy Chair for the PJCIS in the 46th Parliament of Australia. Along with his ALP colleagues on the committee, Mike Kelly and Kimberley Kitching Byrne has been a strong advocate to shift political attention to "focusing on national resilience as much as military threats."