Warren Truss

The Honourable  Warren Errol Truss  MP
Leader of the National Party of Australia
Incumbent
Assumed office  3 December 2007
Deputy	Nigel Scullion
Preceded by	Mark Vaile
Constituency	Wide Bay
Majority	8.2%
Minister for Trade
In office 10 August 2006 – 3 December 2007
Preceded by	Mark Vaile
Succeeded by	Simon Crean
Minister for Transport and Regional Services
In office 6 July 2005 – 10 August 2006
Preceded by	John Anderson
Succeeded by	Mark Vaile
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
In office 20 July 1999 – 6 July 2005
Preceded by	Mark Vaile
Succeeded by	Peter McGauran
Member for Wide Bay
Incumbent
Assumed office  24 March 1990
Preceded by	Clarence Millar
Born	8 October 1948 (1948-10-08) (age 61) Kingaroy, Queensland
Political party	National Party of Australia
Spouse(s)	Lyn
Residence	Maryborough, Queensland
Occupation	farmer
Website	warrentruss.com

Warren Errol Truss (born 8 October 1948), is an Australian politician, and leader of the National Party in the Commonwealth Parliament^[1]. He has been a National Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1990, representing the Division of Wide Bay, Queensland.

He was born in Kingaroy, Queensland, and was a farmer before entering politics. He was chair of the Sugar Coast Burnett Regional Tourism Board and a councillor of the Shire of Kingaroy 1976-90.^[2] He was the Nationals candidate in the 1988 by-election for the Queensland Legislative Assembly seat of Barambah, caused by the retirement of former premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen, but lost in an upset to the CEC candidate, Trevor Perrett (who would later join the National Party).^[3] He was elected to the seat of Wide Bay at the 1990 federal election.

Truss was a member of the Opposition Shadow Ministry 1994-96, and was Deputy Leader of the House 1997-98. He was Minister for Customs and Consumer Affairs 1997-98 and Minister for Community Services 1998-99. He was Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, with a seat in the Cabinet, from July 1999 to June 2005.^[2]

In June 2005 John Anderson announced his intention to resign as National Party Leader. Deputy Leader Mark Vaile was elected the new Leader, and Truss was elected Deputy Leader. In the reshuffled ministry following Anderson's resignation Truss became Minister for Transport and Regional Services. In September 2006, following the AWB oil for food scandal, Truss and Vaile swapped portfolios, with Truss becoming Minister for Trade and Vaile taking the Transport and Regional Services portfolio until November 2007.^[2]

In the 2007 Federal Election, Truss was re-elected to the seat of Wide Bay with a 3.87% swing toward the Labor Party.^[4] In light of the Coalition's defeat in the Election, Mark Vaile declined to continue in his role as National Party Leader, and Warren Truss announced his intention to run for the leadership of the Party, seemingly in contrast to Vaile's call for generational change.^[5] Truss was elected leader by the party on 3 December 2007.^[6]

Shadow Minister 2008

On 22 September 2008, Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull announced Truss as Shadow Minister for Trade, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.^[7]

Shadow Minister 2009

"The Leader of the Nationals, the Hon Warren Truss MP, will also continue as Shadow Minister for Trade, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. Warren will ensure that regional Australia has a strong voice. He will also be working hard to ensure that the Rudd Government is made to deliver on the integrated national land transport network commenced by the Coalition under Auslink."
- Tony Abbott 8 December 2009. ^[8]

References