He joined the Liberal Party in 1987, and in the 1990 federal election ran for the safe Labor seat of Scullin.
[1] In 1992, Phillips was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly as the member for the new seat of Eltham, which had a notional Labor majority.
[1] In 2005 Phillips was elected to Banyule City Council, representing Beale Ward.
[2] In February 2014, Phillips was the subject of a cruelty complaint to the RSPCA and the Victorian Department of Environment and Primary Industries regarding the condition of a herd of 6,000 goats on his property in Wollert, north of Melbourne.
The Department of Environment and Primary Industries attended the property and were satisfied with changes Cr Phillips had put in place and the welfare of the goats.