Gary Gray (Australian politician)

Infobox MLA | name =Gary Gray
nationality =Australian, British


order =
office = Member for Brand
term_start =24 November 2007
term_end =
deputy =
predecessor =Kim Beazley
successor =
birth_date = birth date and age|1958|4|30
birth_place =Rotherham, Yorkshire, England
death_date =
death_place =
constituency =Brand
party =Australian Labor Party
spouse = Deborah Gray
profession =


footnotes =

Gary Gray AO (born 30 April 1958), Australian politician, is the Australian Labor Party representative for the Division of Brand in Western Australia in the Australian House of Representatives.

He was born in Rotherham, Yorkshire, England, and emigrated to Australia with his family in 1966, settling in state housing in Whyalla, South Australia. After finishing high school in 1976 at Whyalla High School, Gray worked at the local BHP steelworks, and then at the Savings Bank of South Australia.cite web|url=http://www.alp.org.au/people/wa/gray_gary.php|title=Gary Gray - Member for Brand|author=Australian Labor Party|accessdate=2008-02-12] He joined the Labor Party in 1974,cite news|title=Gary Gray|work=Labor Voice (Vol 15, No.2)|author=Australian Labor Party (WA Division)|page=15|date=May-June 1993] and in May 1983, after graduating from the Australian National University with a degree in economics, he moved to Darwin. From then until May 1985 he was the assistant to Northern Territory opposition leader Bob Collins. He became a national organiser in March 1986, in which capacity he worked on every state Labor campaign between 1986 and 1993 and initiated the National Marginal Seats Campaign. During this time he met and married his wife Deborah, the daughter of former Labor finance minister Peter Walsh. [cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/natint/stories/s66088.htm|title=The National Interest|last=Lane|first=Terry|date=14 November 1999|work=Radio National (ABC)|accessdate=2008-04-10]

On 30 April 1993, just after Paul Keating won the 1993 election, he became National Secretary of the Australian Labor Party.cite news|last=Ramsey|first=Alan|url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/08/09/1028158016922.html|title= Two decades on, a party stalwart finds karma waters|work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=10 August 2002|accessdate=2008-02-12] He resigned after seven years on 10 November 1999, citing personal and family reasons, and moved to Perth, Western Australia. [cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/stories/s65499.htm|title=Gary Gray resigns as ALP national secretary|work=The World Today (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)|date=10 November 1999|accessdate=2008-02-12] In April 2000, he quit working for the party hierarchy entirely, and took up a role with Wesfarmers as the Executive Director of the Western Australian Institute of Medical Research. Within a year, he was engaged by Woodside Petroleum as an adviser on their ultimately successful bid to repel the takeover of the company by the Shell Oil Company, after which he was promoted to corporate affairs director.

He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day honours of 2003, for service to the Australian Labor Party and to politics through the introduction of modern campaign techniques, fundraising protocols for all political parties, affirmative action guidelines, and by strengthening the party's organisational and financial structure. [ [http://itsanhonour.gov.au/honours/honour_roll/search.cfm?aus_award_id=1041319&search_type=quick&showInd=true Gary Gray AO] , "It's an Honour" (Australian Government).]

Gray left Woodside to contest the 2007 federal election for the seat of Brand in Western Australia, replacing retiring MP Kim Beazley. He won the seat on a 0.97% swing (1.17% less than the state average), [cite web|url=http://results.aec.gov.au/13745/website/HouseDivisionFirstPrefs-13745-235.htm|title=Virtual Tally Room - WA Division - Brand|author=Australian Electoral Commission|date=14 December 2007|accessdate-2008-02-12] and was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Infrastructure with Responsibility for Northern and Regional Australia in the First Rudd Ministry. [cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/29/2105169.htm|title=Rudd hands out portfolios|work=ABC Online|date=29 November 2007|accessdate=2008-02-12]

References

External links

* [http://www.garygray.com.au/ Personal homepage]
*OpenAustralia|Gary Gray