Murray Watt

Murray Patrick Watt (born 20 January 1973) is an Australian politician who has served as Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry in the Albanese government since June 2022. He is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has been a Senator for Queensland since the 2016 federal election. He previously served in the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 2009 to 2012.

Senator the Honourable
Murray Watt
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Assumed office
1 June 2022
Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese
Preceded byDavid Littleproud
Minister for Emergency Management
Assumed office
1 June 2022
Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese
Preceded byBridget McKenzie
Senator for Queensland
Assumed office
2 July 2016
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly
for Everton
In office
21 March 2009 – 24 March 2012
Preceded byRod Welford
Succeeded byTim Mander
Personal details
Born
Murray Patrick Watt

(1973-01-20) 20 January 1973
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Political partyAustralian Labor Party
Other political
affiliations		Focus (1994)
Alma materUniversity of Queensland
OccupationPublic servant
Judge's associate
Political advisor
ProfessionLawyer
Websitewww.murraywatt.com

Early life

Watt was born in Brisbane on 20 January 1973.[1] His parents were both schoolteachers from working-class backgrounds. He grew up in Brisbane's southern suburbs.[2]

Watt was educated at Brisbane State High School where he was school captain in 1989. In 1996, he graduated from the University of Queensland with the degrees of Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws. He practised as a solicitor from 1997 to 2002 and was a judge's associate from 1999 to 2000. He was then a public servant in the Queensland Department of Premier and Cabinet and the Department of State Development from 2007 to 2009, and chief of staff to Anna Bligh from 2002 to 2007, and again in 2008. He had long been active in the Australian Labor Party, serving as president of Queensland Young Labor in 1998 and delegate to various state conferences.[3]

Watt was also a senior associate with the Brisbane office of the legal firm Maurice Blackburn.[4]

State politics

In 2009, Watt was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Queensland for Everton, succeeding Rod Welford, who had retired. He was defeated at the 2012 state election.[3]

When Meaghan Scanlon was preselected as the Labor candidate for Gaven at the 2017 state election, it was claimed that Watt was the deciding factor and that it was against the wishes of the branch members. One member of the branch claimed "factional politics prior to Murray coming to the Gold Coast didn't happen".[5]

Federal politics

Following the retirement of Senator Jan McLucas in 2015, Watt was endorsed by the Labor Party as a Senate candidate for Queensland at the 2016 federal election[6] and was subsequently elected.[7]

After the 2019 election, Watt was included in Anthony Albanese's shadow ministry as Shadow Minister for Northern Australia and Shadow Minister for Disaster and Emergency Management. In 2021 he was also appointed to the role of Shadow Minister for Queensland Resources.[8] He is also Deputy Opposition Whip in the Senate.[1]

Watt is a member of Labor Left.[9]

Re-elected at the 2022 election, Watt became Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and Minister for Emergency Management.[10]

References
  1. "Senator Murray Watt". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  2. "First speech". Hansard. Parliament of Australia. 13 September 2016. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  3. "Former Members". Parliament of Queensland. 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  4. "Murray Watt, Senior Associate". Maurice Blackburn. 2016. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  5. Weston, Paul (17 May 2017). "Inside Labor's bloody factional battle on the Gold Coast in the lead-up to the State election". Gold Coast Bulletin. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  6. "Murray Watt to replace Jan McLucas as Labor candidate for Senate seat". ABC News. Australia. 3 April 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  7. Atfield, Cameron (4 August 2016). "Greens will begrudgingly work with Hanson: Larissa Waters". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  8. "ParlInfo - Basic Search".
  9. "Labor's new-look shadow ministry". SBS News. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  10. "Albanese Government full Ministry | Prime Minister of Australia".

 

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