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Andrew Robb

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For the murder victim, see Murders of Andrew Robb and David McIlwaine.

The Honourable
Andrew Robb
AO
Official portrait, 2014
Minister for Trade and Investment
In office
18 September 2013 – 18 February 2016
Prime MinisterTony Abbott
Malcolm Turnbull
Preceded byRichard Marles
Succeeded bySteven Ciobo
Minister for Vocational and Further Education
In office
23 January 2007 – 3 December 2007
Prime MinisterJohn Howard
Preceded byGary Hardgrave
Succeeded byOffice abolished
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Goldstein
In office
9 October 2004 – 9 May 2016
Preceded byDavid Kemp
Succeeded byTim Wilson
Personal details
Born
Andrew John Robb

(1951-08-20) 20 August 1951 (age 73)
Epping, Victoria, Australia
Political partyLiberal Party of Australia
SpouseMaureen Mullane
Children3
Alma materLa Trobe University
ProfessionEconomist, politician
Websiteandrewrobb.com.au

Andrew John Robb AO (born 20 August 1951) is an Australian former politician. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 2004 to 2016, representing the Liberal Party. He served as Minister for Trade and Investment (2013–2016) in the Abbott and Turnbull governments, and also briefly as Minister for Vocational and Further Education in the Howard government in 2007. Before entering parliament, he was the federal director of the Liberal Party and oversaw the party's return to government at the 1996 federal election.

While he was Minister for Trade and Investment, Robb approved Chinese company Shandong Landbridge Group to lease Port Darwin for 99 years. As soon as he left politics, Robb was hired by Shandong Landbridge on a $880,000 per year salary.[1] In 2019, Robb left the position, shortly before a new foreign-interference law took effect.[2]

Background

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Robb, one of nine children, was born to Frank and Marie Robb, on a dairy farm in Epping which lies 18 kilometres (11 mi) north of Melbourne. He was educated at Dookie Agricultural College, Parade College and La Trobe University, and has qualifications in economics and agricultural science. He was an agricultural economist with the Victorian Department of Agriculture and a tutor in economics at La Trobe University before being an economist for the National Farmers' Federation, and later executive director of both the National Farmers' Federation and the Cattle Council of Australia.

Liberal Party federal director

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Robb became deputy director of the Liberal Party before being appointed chief of staff to Andrew Peacock, then Leader of the Opposition, in 1989. In 1990, after Andrew Peacock's resignation after his election defeat, Robb was appointed federal director of the Liberal Party.

In this capacity Robb worked with the next Leader of the Liberal Party, John Hewson, in the unsuccessful 1993 federal election campaign. Robb claimed in 1991 that Peter Reith and Hewson were spooked into releasing their policies too early.[3] Robb was still federal director when internal Liberal party negative polling was leaked to Kerry O'Brien on Lateline in May 1994 who embarrassed John Hewson with it and lead to Hewson's calling a leadership spill where he lost the leadership to Alexander Downer. Robb and Hewson were not on good terms following this.[4] Robb was still Federal Director and campaign manager in 1996 when John Howard after he replaced Downer as leader in 1995, won the 1996 federal election campaign, which defeated the Keating government and brought the Liberals to power after 13 years in Opposition. Howard had to be talked out of dumping Andrew in 1995 from his position as Federal director.[5]

Professional career

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Robb resigned in 1997 (he was replaced by Lynton Crosby) and became a business consultant based in Sydney. He was Honorary Finance Director for the NSW Division of the Liberal Party and a member of the NSW State Executive. In that time Robb also sat on the boards of numerous Australian companies including Australia's largest consulting engineering company, Sinclair Knight Merz. Robb was also a board member of community organisations including the Garvan Medical Research Foundation and the 'Big Brothers Big Sisters' organisation. In 2003, Robb was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to politics, agriculture and the community.[6]

Parliamentary career

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Howard government

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See also: Howard government
Robb in May 2005

In 2004, he was comfortably elected to the safe Liberal seat of Goldstein in Melbourne and was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs on 27 January 2006. His time in this portfolio was marked by introducing a Citizenship discussion paper which encouraged public debate about whether Australia required a formal citizenship test. Robb argued that a formal citizenship test would be a clear incentive for aspiring citizens to have basic English language skills and understanding of their community.[7] Robb also focused on dealing with settlement issues for refugees and the challenges of multi-faith relations in Australia.

In 2007, Robb was elevated to the Ministry and took on the role as Minister for Vocational and Further Education. Following the Liberal Party's defeat at the 2007 federal election, Robb put himself forward as a candidate for Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party. In a ballot of Liberal caucus members, Julie Bishop prevailed with 44 votes, ahead of Robb who won 25 votes and Christopher Pyne with 18 votes.[8] The then leader of the Liberal Party, former Defence Minister, Brendan Nelson, announced that Robb would be Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs in the new Coalition Shadow Cabinet.

Following a front-bench re-shuffle in March 2010, Robb was appointed Shadow Minister for Finance, Deregulation and Debt Reduction, a post previously held by Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce, and chairman of the Coalition Policy Development Committee.[9] He was re-elected at the 2010 election and was appointed Shadow Minister for Finance, Deregulation and Debt Reduction and retained his position as chairman of the Coalition Policy Development Committee.[10]

Robb is a republican;[11] he is against abortion except where the health and state of the mother are in serious threat.[12]

Robb is also the co-publisher of The Party Room alongside Senator Mitch Fifield,[citation needed] a journal designed to promote new policy discussion within the Federal Coalition.

Abbott and Turnbull governments

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See also: Abbott government and Turnbull government
Robb in October 2013 with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
Robb in January 2015 with Indian tourism minister Mahesh Sharma during Australian Business in India Week

Following the election of the Abbott government in 2013, Robb was appointed Minister for Trade and Investment.[13] He had carriage of final negotiations for the Australia–Korea Free Trade Agreement (KAFTA), Japan–Australia Economic Partnership Agreement, China–Australia Free Trade Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership which have concluded by the federal government.

Robb announced his retirement from politics on 10 February 2016. He was succeeded by Steven Ciobo as Minister of Trade and Investment on 18 February 2016.[14]

Career after politics

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Robb is a board member of the Kidman cattle enterprise and the Network Ten television station. He is the Chairman of Asialink and CNSDose, and a strategic advisor to Beef Innovations Australia, as well as a range of national and international businesses.[15]

In October 2016, it was announced that Robb had joined the Landbridge Group,[16][17] a Chinese company which had been granted a 99-year lease on Port Darwin in October 2015, as a "high-level economic consultant".[18] It was reported that Robb had accepted the $73,000 per month position before leaving Parliament.[19][20] Landbridge Group is chaired by Ye Cheng, a billionaire with links to the Chinese Communist Party.[20][21] Robb's employment with Landbridge Group ended in 2018. Robb attributed his departure to an atmosphere increasingly critical of the Chinese government;[22] it was also noted that had he remained in the position he would have had to register as a foreign agent, due to changes in legislation enacted in 2019.[2]

Robb is part owner of The Boathouse Group, which operates a number of Sydney restaurants and other venues. Another Robb entity is facing (in mid 2019) a wind-up motion from the Commissioner of Taxation over unpaid taxes.[23]

As of 2020, Robb serves as a director on the board of Mind Medicine Australia,[24] a not-for-profit organisation which promotes the introduction of psychedelic treatments for mental illnesses.[25]

Personal life

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During 2009 Laurie Oakes's column in The Australian, Robb disclosed that he was stepping down from the opposition front bench for three months to address a form of depression brought on by diurnal variation, which is typically experienced as positive mood variation (mood being worse upon waking and better in the evening).[26] Robb disclosed that, since adolescence, he had suffered depression for several hours each day in the morning.[27]

The following week, Robb said in an interview with 3AW's Neil Mitchell that he had found "doing things increasingly more difficult, I could be taking on more responsibilities especially in a public sense and decided to confront it a few weeks ago. Rang Jeff Kennett and within three days he had me in front one of the best professionals in the state and this guy said you know you've had a problem for fifty years, you've had it for fifty years but he said it was fixable, which was fantastic."[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Liberal Andrew Robb takes $880k China job as soon as he finishes in parliament". Australian Financial Review. 5 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Andrew Robb quits China-linked form before foreign interference law kicks in". Sydney Morning Herald. 19 February 2019.
  3. ^ Wright, Jessica (11 November 2012). "With memories of '93, the opposition readies the troops never to lose an unlosable election again". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  4. ^ Onselen, Peter Van; Errington, Wayne (2008). John Winston Howard: The Definitive Biography. Melbourne Univ. ISBN 9780522855227.
  5. ^ "A tale of two seats – The Poll Bludger".
  6. ^ "ROBB: Andrew: Officer of the Order of Australia". It's an Honour. Commonwealth of Australia. 2003. Archived from the original on 25 July 2020.
  7. ^ "In support of formal citizenship test". Andrew Robb. 25 October 2006. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  8. ^ "Nelson's victory puts Turnbull on deck". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 November 2007. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
  9. ^ [1] Archived 18 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ [2] Archived 17 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Donovan, David (18 August 2010). "Liberals quietly go monarchist under Abbott". Crikey. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  12. ^ "MPs clarify abortion views". The Age. 9 November 2004. Archived from the original on 4 November 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  13. ^ The Hon Andrew Robb AO, MP Archived 5 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Parliament of Australia; online 30 November 2014
  14. ^ "Tony Abbott's cabinet and outer ministry". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australian Associated Press. 16 September 2013. Archived from the original on 6 August 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
  15. ^ Robb, Andrew. "Biography". Archived from the original on 28 February 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  16. ^ "Andrew Robb's secret China contract: money for nothing". 6 December 2017. Archived from the original on 5 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  17. ^ "Andrew Robb unleashes over being targeted in foreign probe". 5 December 2017.
  18. ^ "Robb joins Chinese company with control of Darwin Port". ABC News. 30 October 2016. Archived from the original on 6 November 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  19. ^ Chan, Gabrielle (6 June 2017). "Coalition defends Andrew Robb after revelation he started job while an MP". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 June 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  20. ^ a b "ASIO warned politicians about taking cash from Huang Xiangmo, Chau Chak Wing". Australian Financial Review. 15 June 2017. Archived from the original on 11 April 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  21. ^ "China's 'invisible billionaire' – the Port of Darwin's new owner". Australian Financial Review. 22 November 2015. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  22. ^ Borrello, Eliza (12 March 2019). "Robb says work on a project in China was 'put in the bin' over toxic relations". ABC News. Archived from the original on 4 November 2019. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
  23. ^ White, Andrew (2 August 2019). "Investors keep The Boathouse Group afloat". The Australian.
  24. ^ "Board- Mind Medicine Australia". Mind Medicine Australia. Archived from the original on 28 April 2020. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  25. ^ Nguyen, Kevin; Cockburn, Paige (14 April 2020). "Coronavirus pandemic could trigger a spike in mental illness – this organisation thinks psychedelic drugs will help". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  26. ^ "Home". beyondblue. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  27. ^ a b "Interview with Neil Mitchell, 3AW 693am: Andrew Robb MP - Federal Member for Goldstein". Andrew Robb. 21 September 2009. Archived from the original on 19 June 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
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Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Goldstein
2004–2016 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Minister for Vocational and Further Education
2007 		Position abolished
Preceded byas Minister for Trade Minister for Trade and Investment
2013–2016 		Succeeded by
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