Peter Phelps

He was Government whip in the Legislative Council for five years, before resigning in March 2016 to protest new legislation regarding the sale of E10 ethanol fuel, which he called "an egregious breach" of Liberal Party core values.

In 2013, on the 40th anniversary of the military coup in Chile, Phelps, in a speech in the NSW Parliament, said that he supported the overthrow of Salvador Allende. Phelps' comments were controversial, with the Labor Party and Greens calling for Premier Barry O'Farrell to reprimand or sack Phelps for his comments. He was neither sacked nor reprimanded.

In 2011, Phelps made a speech in which he compared scientists who believe in global warming to those who worked for totalitarian regimes. He said it should not be forgotten that "some of the strongest supporters of totalitarian regimes in the last century have been scientists... We should not be so surprised that the contemporary science debate has become so debased," he said. "At the heart of many scientists – but not all scientists – lies the heart of a totalitarian planner." This was reported as "Upper house whip under fire for Nazi slur on scientists," although Phelps did not use the word "Nazi."

Phelps was Nairn's chief of staff during the 2007 federal election, at which Nairn lost his seat of Eden-Monaro to the Labor candidate, Dr Mike Kelly. During the campaign he attended a Kelly campaign meeting in Queanbeyan. From the audience he asked Kelly, a former Army officer, why he had served in the Iraq War when Labor had opposed that war. Kelly replied "I was a soldier, and I did what I was ordered to do." Phelps then said: "Oh, like the guards at Belsen, perhaps? Are you using the Nuremberg Defence?"

Before entering Parliament, Phelps worked as an adviser to various Liberal politicians: Ian McLachlan (1998), John Moore (1998–99), Senator Chris Ellison (1999–2000), Senator Eric Abetz (2001–06), Gary Nairn (2006–07), Senator Michael Ronaldson (2009–10) and Bronwyn Bishop (2010–11).

Phelps was born at Camden District Hospital to Robert and Gwen Phelps. He spent his early years in Bradbury, New South Wales, and attending the Bradbury Infants School. Later his family moved to the Sydney inner-western suburbs of Camperdown and then Dulwich Hill. He attended Camperdown Demonstration School, opportunity classes at Summer Hill Public School, Fort Street High School and the University of Sydney, where he resided at St Paul's College. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in History in 1990 and a PhD in Australian History in 1997.

Peter Robert Phelps (born 7 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He was a Liberal Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 2011 to 2019. He contested the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Drummoyne in the 1999 New South Wales State election.