Biography

Parliamentary service

• Elected to the House of Representatives for Rankin, Queensland, 1998. Re-elected 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010. Retired prior to general elections 2013.

Ministerial appointments

• Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors and the Service Economy from 3.12.2007 to 14.9.2010.
• Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation from 3.12.2007 to 14.9.2010.
• Minister for Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs from 9.6.2009 to 14.9.2010.
• Minister for Trade from 14.9.2010 to 5.3.2012.
• Cabinet Minister from 14.9.2010 to 1.7.2013.
• Minister for Trade and Competitiveness from 5.3.2012 to 1.7.2013.
• Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Asian Century Policy from 28.10.2012 to 1.7.2013.
• Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research from 25.3.2013 to 1.7.2013.

Committee service

• House of Representatives Standing: Employment, Education and Workplace Relations served from 8.12.1998 to 8.10.2001; Economics, Finance and Public Administration served as Deputy Chair from 7.12.2005 to 1.3.2007; Economics, Finance and Public Administration served from 2.3.2007 to 17.10.2007
• Joint Statutory: Public Accounts and Audit served from 12.9.2005 to 17.10.2007

Conferences, delegations and visits

• Member, Official Committee Exchange Visit by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Employment, Education and Workplace Relations, New Zealand, June 2001.
• Official visits to New Zealand, May 2008.
• Official visits to USA, September 2010.
• Official visits to Republic of Korea, China and Singapore, October-November 2010.
• Official visits to Japan, November 2010.
• Official visits to India and Switzerland, January 2011.
• Official visits to New Zealand, April 2011.
• Official visits to China and Indonesia, April 2011.
• Official visits to USA, France and China, May-June 2011.
• Official visits to China and Indonesia, August 2011.
• Official visits to France, August-September 2011.
• Official visits to Canada, September 2011.
• Official visits to Japan, September-October 2011.
• Official visits to USA, November 2011.
• Official visits to Indonesia, November 2011.
• Official visits to Vietnam and Switzerland, December 2011.
• Official visits to Switzerland and Malaysia, January-February 2012.
• Official visits to Indonesia, March 2012.
• Official visits to Malaysia, March 2012.
• Official visits to Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, April 2012.
• Official visits to Malaysia, France, Republic of Korea, China, Japan, Germany and Russia, May-June 2012.

Parliamentary party positions

• Australian Labor Party. Served: 03.10.1998 to 05.08.2013
• Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry, Trade and Tourism from 25.11.2001 to 23.8.2002.
• Shadow Cabinet Minister from 25.11.2001 to 22.10.2004.
• Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Trade from 23.8.2002 to 2.7.2003.
• Shadow Minister for Workplace Relations from 2.7.2003 to 22.10.2004.
• Shadow Minister for Workplace Relations and the Public Service from 8.12.2003 to 22.10.2004.
• Shadow Minister for Service Economy, Small Business and Independent Contractors from 10.12.2006 to 3.12.2007.
• Shadow Cabinet Minister from 10.12.2006 to 3.12.2007.
• Chair of the Australian Labor Party Living Standards and Economic Development Caucus Committee from 1998.
• Chair of the Australian Labor Party Economic Caucus Committee from 2004.

Party positions

• Convener of the Australian Labor Party Transport and Communications Policy Committee (Qld) from 1996.
• Member of the Australian Labor Party National Infrastructure, Rural and Regional Development Policy Committee from 1996.

Personal

• Born: 15.11.1954, Baradine, Australia
• Gender: Male

Qualifications and occupation before entering Federal Parliament

• PhD (Australian National University).
• MEd (University of Sydney).
• BEc(Hons) (University of Sydney).
• Economic analyst for the United Nations from 1978 to 1980.
• Economic Adviser to the Minister for Resources and Energy and the Minister for Finance from 1984 to 1986.
• Assistant Secretary, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, 1986.
• Economic and Environmental Adviser to the Prime Minister, the Hon. R Hawke, MP from 1986 to 1990.
• Director-General of the Department of Environment (Qld) from 1990 to 1995.
• Chief Executive Officer of the South East Queensland Transit Authority from 1995 to 1996.
• Director of Eco Managers from 1996 to 1998.

Electorate

• Name: Rankin
• Location: outer southern Brisbane; it includes the suburbs of Algester, Berrinba, Browns Plains, Calamvale, Crestmead, Daisy Hill, Drewvale, Heritage Park, Hillcrest, Kingston, Logan Central, Marsden, Parkinson, Priestdale, Regents Park, Rochedale South, Slacks Creek, Springwood, Underwood and Woodridge.
• Area: 131 Sq km
• Electors enrolled: 94,602 (at 21.8.2010)
• Industries: retail and service industries.
• Includes: Rankin includes the Queensland Legislative Assembly electorate of Woodridge, and parts of Algester, Logan, Springwood, Stretton and Waterford.

Publications

• Natural resource taxation in Australia: the case for the resource rent tax, Economic Society of Australia and New Zealand, Sydney: 1978.
• Taxing natural resource projects, University of Sydney, Sydney: 1979.
• Improving mineral taxation policy in Australia, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Canberra: 1981.
• Economic evaluation of minerals processing projects: a case study of copper smelting in the Philippines, ANU Press, Canberra: 1982.
• Mining taxation in ASEAN, Australia and Papua New Guinea, ASEAN-Australia Joint Research Project, Canberra: 1984.
• Twenty Twenty Vision: Australia's Future, Griffith University, Brisbane: 1998.
• Vital signs, vibrant society: securing Australia's economic and social wellbeing, UNSW Press, Sydney: 2006.
• The boy from Baradine, Scribe Publications, Brunswick, Vic.: 2018.