Rod Roberts (Australian politician)

The Honourable Rod Roberts MLC
The Hon. Rod Roberts MLC
Deputy President of the New South Wales Legislative Council
Chair of Committees
Assumed office 9 May 2023
Preceded by	Wes Fang
Assistant President of the New South Wales Legislative Council
In office 17 June 2020 – 8 May 2023
Preceded by	Shaoquett Moselmane
Succeeded by	Peter Primrose
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council
Incumbent
Assumed office 23 March 2019
Personal details
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Independent (2023–present)[1]
Other political affiliations	Pauline Hanson's One Nation (up to 2023)
Occupation	Auctioneer, Farmer, Police Officer and Politician
Profession	Public Servant
Police Career
Allegiance	New South Wales
Department	New South Wales Police Force
Branch	Armed Hold Up Squad Consorting Squad Drug Squad
Service years	~2012
Rank	Detective Incremental Senior Sergeant
Sports career
Country	Australia
Sport	Cycling
Club	GPM Stulz Cycling Team NSW
Sports achievements and titles
National finals	World Duathlon Championships 2015 (competitor), National Road Series (volunteer)
Medal record Men's cycling Representing  Australia World Duathlon Championships National Road Series

Rodney John Roberts is an Australian politician serving as an independent in the NSW Parliament. He was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council on 23 March 2019 as a member of One Nation and currently serves as the Deputy President and Chair of Committees.^{[2] [3]}

Background and early career

Prior to entering NSW Parliament, Roberts was a Detective Sergeant with the New South Wales Police Force for approximately 20 years. He worked in specialist areas such as the Drug Squad, Armed Hold Up Squad, and the Consorting Squad. He was also a Senior Lecturer at the Police Academy on the Detectives Training Course.^[4]

After retiring from the NSW Police Force, Roberts spent approximately 10 years as a licensed real estate agent and auctioneer practising in the Goulburn area.

Political career

Roberts was elected to the Legislative Council at the 2019 New South Wales state election along with his One Nation parliamentary colleague Mark Latham.^[4]

In June 2020 Roberts was elected Assistant President of the Legislative Council.^[5] He has held several roles on Parliamentary Committees including as a Member of the Joint Standing Committee on the Independent Commission Against Corruption [ICAC], Member of the Standing Committee on Law and Justice, Member of the Procedure Committee, and Deputy Chair of the Select Committee on the Proposal to Raise the Warragamba Dam Wall.

In May 2023 Roberts was elected Deputy President and Chair of Committees of the Legislative Council, deputising for the President of the Legislative Council and chairing the 'Committee of the Whole' process in the Legislative Council chamber. ^[6] He also currently sits on the Standing Committee on Law and Justice, Selection of Bills Committee, Procedure Committee, and Privileges Committee.^[7]

In August 2023, federal One Nation leader Pauline Hanson removed Latham as leader of the NSW branch of the party. Roberts supported Latham against Hanson in the ensuing dispute, claiming that Hanson's decision to appoint perennial candidate Steve Mav as NSW party treasurer was misguided.^[8]

Community involvement

In 2015 Rod Roberts represented Australia in the World Duathlon Championships.

In his spare time Rod Roberts enjoys helping out as a soigneur to the NSW based GPM Stulz Cycling Team that competes in the National Road Series.

References

1. Maddison, Max (22 August 2023). "Latham quits One Nation, alleges it misspent taxpayers funds". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
2. "The Hon. (Rod) Rodney John Roberts, MLC". Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
3. "The Deputy President". www.parliament.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
4. Visentin, Lisa. "One Nation wins two upper house seats in the NSW Parliament". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
5. Visentin, Lisa (17 June 2020). "One Nation MP secures role after planned motion around Aboriginal deaths in custody". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
6. Parliament of New South Wales (11 May 2023). "The Opening of the 58th Parliament of New South Wales". Retrieved 21 June 2023.
7. O'Doherty, James (11 May 2023). "NSW crossbenchers to win from selections for committee roles". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
8. Maddison, Max; Smith, Alexandra (15 August 2023). "One Nation MPs divided over loyalties after Latham dumped as leader". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 16 August 2023.