Biography

Parliamentary service

• Elected to the Senate for Queensland 1998. Re-elected 2004 and 2010. Resigned 15.4.2015.

Ministerial appointments

• Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing from 21.3.2007 to 3.12.2007.
• Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 18.9.2013 to 23.12.2014.

Committee service

• Joint Standing: Electoral Matters served from 1.7.1999 to 26.2.2007; Treaties served from 1.7.1999 to 23.3.2007
• Joint Statutory: Native Title and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Land Fund served from 8.2.2001 to 1.7.2002; Corporations and Financial Services served from 15.10.2008 to 16.10.2008; Corporations and Financial Services served as Deputy Chair from 17.10.2008 to 19.7.2010; Australian Crime Commission served from 25.10.2010 to 25.10.2010; Australian Crime Commission served as Deputy Chair from 26.10.2010 to 25.11.2010; Law Enforcement served as Deputy Chair from 25.11.2010 to 16.3.2012
• Senate Legislative and General Purpose Standing: Community Affairs: Legislation served from 1.7.1999 to 8.6.2000; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: Legislation served from 1.7.1999 to 10.9.2006; Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: References served as Substitute member from 22.9.1999 to 29.6.2000; Finance and Public Administration: Legislation served as Substitute member from 7.2.2000 to 8.2.2000; Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade: Legislation served as Substitute member from 9.2.2000 to 10.2.2000; Finance and Public Administration: Legislation served as Chair from 17.2.2000 to 10.9.2006; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: References served as Substitute member from 17.2.2000 to 17.2.2000; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 3.5.2000 to 3.5.2000; Environment, Communications, Information Technology and the Arts: Legislation served as Substitute member from 3.5.2000 to 3.5.2000; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 2.6.2000 to 2.6.2000; Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade: Legislation served as Substitute member from 21.2.2001 to 22.2.2001; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 4.6.2001 to 6.6.2001; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: References served as Substitute member from 19.9.2001 to 26.9.2001; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 21.2.2002 to 22.2.2002; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 11.3.2002 to 8.4.2002; Community Affairs: Legislation served as Substitute member from 17.9.2002 to 17.9.2002; Education, Employment and Workplace Relations: Legislation served as Substitute member from 2.6.2003 to 4.6.2003; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: References served as Substitute member from 21.4.2005 to 22.4.2005; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: References served as Substitute member from 19.5.2005 to 20.5.2005; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: References served as Substitute member from 15.6.2005 to 23.6.2005; Finance and Public Administration served from 11.9.2006 to 11.9.2006; Finance and Public Administration served as Chair from 12.9.2006 to 21.3.2007; Finance and Public Administration served from 22.3.2007 to 23.3.2007; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: Legislation served as Substitute member from 17.10.2011 to 18.10.2011; Education and Employment: Legislation served from 3.3.2015 to 15.4.2015
• Senate Select: A Certain Maritime Incident served from 11.3.2002 to 23.10.2002
• Senate Standing: Regulations and Ordinances served from 1.7.1999 to 23.3.2007; Scrutiny of Bills served from 31.8.1999 to 23.3.2007; Publications served from 13.2.2008 to 11.11.2013

Conferences, delegations and visits

• Member, Parliamentary Delegation to Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia, November 2003.
• Parliamentary Adviser, United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), New York, September-December 2006.

Parliamentary party positions

• Liberal Party of Australia. Served: 01.07.1999 to 15.04.2015
• Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Education from 6.12.2007 to 8.12.2009.
• Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Education and School Curriculum Standards from 8.12.2009 to 14.9.2010.
• Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research from 8.12.2009 to 14.9.2010.
• Shadow Minister for Universities and Research from 14.9.2010 to 18.9.2013.

Party positions

• Member of the Liberal Party State Executive (Qld) from 1995 to 1998.
• Chair of the Liberal Party Brisbane Federal Electorate Council (Qld) from 1995 to 1997.
• Vice-Chair of the Liberal Party Standing Committee on Policy (Qld) from 1997 to 1998.

Personal

• Born: 5.3.1962, Canberra, Australia
• Gender: Male

Qualifications and occupation before entering Federal Parliament

• PhD (Griffith University).
• BA (Australian National University).
• LLB(Hons) (Australian National University).
• MPhil (University of Cambridge).
• Barrister.
• Lecturer in Criminology, Queensland University of Technology.

Honours

• Awarded the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal, 2003.

Publications

• Privacy without principle: the use and abuse of privacy in Australian law and public policy, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne: 2006.
• Future proofing Australia: the right answers for our future (ed. with D Wood), Melbourne University Press, Carlton, Vic.: 2013.
• Wizards of Oz: how Oliphant and Florey helped win the war and shape the modern world, NewSouth Publishing, Sydney: 2022.