‘Exceptional’: Hundreds grieve for Former Liberal MP Katie Allen in Melbourne memorial service

More than 1000 people gathered to celebrate the life of former Liberal MP Katie Allen, remembering her as politician who “stood up when it mattered” and a global leader in the study of food allergy, during her thanksgiving procession on Thursday morning.

The memorial service was held at St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne’s CBD, with long queues of mourners joining from outside.

Tributes flowed for Dr Allen from significant medical and political figures, family members and close friends. A minute’s silence was also held to give thanks to Dr Allen’s life.

Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson paid their respects, as did former federal treasurers Josh Frydenberg and Peter Costello, former deputy prime minister Michael McCormack and former opposition leader Peter Dutton.

Federal Labor assistant treasurer Daniel Mulino and former federal Liberal minister Alan Tudge also attended, along with senior federal MPs, including Angus Taylor, Michaelia Cash, Tim Wilson, James Paterson and David Southwick.

Victorian state MPs, including Georgie Crozier, John Pesutto, James Newbury, Michael O’Brien, Cindy McLeish and Wendy Lovell were also among the mourners.

Dr Allen died on December 23, 2025 at the age of 59 from a rare form of cancer known as cholangiocarcinoma.

She served as the MP for the now abolished federal seat of Higgins in Melbourne from 2019 to 2022 until she was defeated by Labor’s Michelle Ananda-Rajah.

Before entering politics, Dr Allen worked as a pediatric allergist and gastroenterologist at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.

Murdoch Children’s Research Institute director Kathryn North said Dr Allen was a caring physician and developed a human liver cell bank that paved the way for Australia’s first liver cell transplant.

“(She was) always seeking answers for the insoluble problems that arose in her clinic, and that drove her to a passion in research,” she said.

“She worked on liver cell transplants in mice and developed a human liver cell bank – almost all of it on her own — and she eventually led Australia’s first liver cell transplant.”

Dr Allen was recently awarded a Monash University fellowship – one of the university’s highest honours – and was an enterprise professor at The University of Melbourne in recognition of her sustained contributions and her vast influence on policy and practice.

“It’s so hard to believe that crackling, zesty, intelligent person is gone,” Professor North said.

Dr Allen is also being remembered for her study in food allergy that recruited more than 72,000 participants across five separate National Health and Medical Research Council-funded studies.

The landmark studies established Australia as a global leader in the field of food allergy and her work shaped clinical guidelines and public health policy.

“The infant feeding guidelines are already leading to significant decrease in the presence of food allergy in our community,” Professor North said.

Melbourne Girls Grammar principal Toni Meath reflected on Ds Allen’s pivotal involvement and leadership at the school and her character as a former MGG student – describing her as a “polymath”.

Dr Allen first entered politics in 2018, contesting the Victorian state seat of Prahran that was won by Greens MP Sam Hibbins.

However, in 2019 she was elected as a member of the House of Representatives and in 2022 made headlines when she and four other Liberal MPs crossed the floor to vote against the Coalition’s religious discrimination Bill.

Former politician Gregory Hunt, who was federal health minister between January 2017 and May 2022, paid tribute to Dr Allen’s contribution to public life as a parliamentarian.

“(Katie was) was as a policy maker and, above all else, a person of principle, and courage, real courage,” he said.

He said Ds Allen door knocked on every housing commission flat in Higgins, learnt key phrases in Russian, met and helped the homeless and “loved the challenge of talking with anybody and making a real connection.”

“Once elected, she threw herself into the work of the parliament,” he said, adding from 2019 to 2022 she gave 401 speeches – a record for the 46th parliament led by Scott Morrison.

He emphasised her work to support a group of Afghan women who had been studying with Monash University during the evacuation of Kabul.

“They were alone, frightened and at terrible risk of what might happen under the Taliban. Katie took up their case. She would not rest,” Mr Hunt said.

He said she petitioned to departments, officers and ministers, and as time was running out to help the women, she called then immigration minister Alex Hawke at 2am.

“I’m not quite sure what was said, but the visas were issued, and these women were given safe passage on one of the very last flights out of Kabul. Some months later, when they met in Katie’s office, there were many tears of joy and of thanks.”

Mr Hunt also emphasised Dr Allen’s policy achievements, as she helped design the national allergy strategy and successfully campaigned for $26m in federal government funding.

“None of this would have happened without her. She saved lives, and she is still saving lives,” he said.

“Without Katie, there would have been no Maeve’s Law for mitochondrial donation. Without Katie, Australia would not have had a ban on prejudicial use of genetic testing in life insurance. And because of Katie, we have stronger women’s leadership programs.”

Dr Allen is survived by her husband, Malcolm and their four children Monty, Jemima, Arabella and Archie.