Slade Brockman

Senator Slade Brockman
President of the Australian Senate
In office 18 October 2021 – 26 July 2022
Preceded by	Scott Ryan
Succeeded by	Sue Lines
Senator for Western Australia
Incumbent
Assumed office 16 August 2017
Preceded by	Chris Back
Personal details
Born	William Edward Slade Brockman (1970-03-27) 27 March 1970 (age 54) Manjimup, Western Australia, Australia
Political party	Liberal Party
Residence(s)	Perth, Western Australia
Alma mater	Murdoch University University of New England

William Edward Slade Brockman (born 27 March 1970) is an Australian politician who has served as a Senator for Western Australia since 2017, representing the Liberal Party. He was elected President of the Australian Senate in October 2021 following the resignation of Scott Ryan.^[1]

Prior to his appointment to the Senate, Brockman was an adviser and chief of staff for Senator Mathias Cormann,^[2] and a policy director for the Pastoralists and Graziers Association.^[3] His policy interests include agriculture, mining, trade, oil and gas, infrastructure and regional development.

Early life and career

Brockman was born in 1970 in Manjimup, Western Australia, and grew up on a family farm in the South West region of Western Australia.^[4]

He has a Bachelor of Laws from the University of New England and a first-class Honours Degree in Political History from Murdoch University.^[4]

His work background includes running a family farm, management roles in business and working for industry associations. ^{[citation needed]}

Senate

Brockman in 2022

On 16 August 2017, Brockman was appointed as a Senator for Western Australia by a joint sitting of the Parliament of Western Australia to fill the casual vacancy resulting from the resignation of Chris Back.^[5]

Brockman is a member of the National Right faction of the Liberal Party.^[6][7]

Brockman has served in a range of parliamentary and committee roles, including as Government Deputy Whip of the Senate, Chair of the Economics Legislation Committee, and Chair of the Select Committee on Multi-Jurisdictional Management and Execution of the Murray Darling Basin Plan.^[8]

At the time of the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, Brockman said that he would vote against the bill in parliament, in line with his personal beliefs.^[9] He voted against the Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Bill on 29 November 2017.^[10]

President of the Senate

Following the resignation of Scott Ryan from the role, Brockman was chosen as the Liberal Party's candidate for President of the Senate.^[11]

In the ensuing Senate ballot, Brockman stood against Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi and won the position 45 votes to 7 on 18 October 2021.^[1]

References

1. "WA's Brockman sworn in as Senate president". 7News. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
2. Bettles, Colin (23 July 2017). "Slade Brockman maintains WA Libs' farm focus". Farm Online. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
3. "Liberal Senate hopeful will be a GST rebel". The West Australian. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
4. "Senator Slade Brockman". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
5. "Joint Sitting of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly" (PDF). Hansard. Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
6. Massola, James (20 March 2021). "Who's who in the Liberals' left, right and centre factions?". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
7. Massola, James. "How Morrison's shattering defeat gave Dutton a seismic shift in factional power". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
8. Parliament House, Canberra. "Senator Slade Brockman". www.aph.gov.au. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
9. "How your MP will vote if Australia says Yes to same-sex marriage". ABC News. 14 November 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
10. "Slade Brockman on They Vote For You".
11. "Brockman wins West Aussie battle for Senate presidency". The West Australian. 1 October 2021. Retrieved 19 October 2021.

Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Scott Ryan	President of the Australian Senate 2021–2022	Succeeded by Sue Lines