Wayne Swan

Infobox Deputy Prime Minister
honorific-prefix = The Honourable

name =Wayne Swan

honorific-suffix =BA MP


imagesize =
caption =
office =36th Treasurer of Australia
term_start =3 December 2007
term_end =
primeminister =Kevin Rudd
predecessor =Peter Costello
successor =
constituency_MP2 =Lilley
parliament2 =Australian
majority2 =
term_start2 =3 October 1998
term_end2 =
predecessor2 =Elizabeth Grace
successor2 =
constituency_MP3 =Lilley
parliament3 =Australian
majority3 =
term_start3 =13 March 1993
term_end3 =2 March 1996
predecessor3 =Elaine Darling
successor3 =Elizabeth Grace
birth_date =Birth date and age|1954|6|30|df=y
birth_place =Nambour, Queensland, Australia
death_date =
death_place =
party =Australian Labor Party
spouse =Kim Swan
relations =
children =Erinn, Libbi, Matthew
residence =
alma_mater =University of Queensland
occupation =Treasurer of Australia
profession =
religion =


website = [http://www.swanmp.org/ SwanMP.org]
footnotes =

Wayne Maxwell Swan (born 30 June 1954) is an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party (ALP) member of the Australian House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996, and again since 1998, representing the Division of Lilley, Queensland. Following Labor's win at the 2007 election, he became Treasurer of Australia in the Rudd Cabinet.

Background

Swan was born and educated in Nambour, Queensland. He won a Commonwealth scholarship to study public administration [cite web
last = Atkins
first = Dennis
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Wayne Swan and Kevin Rudd seek government reform
work = Courier Mail
publisher = Queensland Newspapers
date = 2008-08-02
url = http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,24112099-5016424,00.html
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-08-21 ] at the University of Queensland, becoming a lecturer in the Department of Management at the Queensland Institute of Technology before entering politics. [cite web
last = Oakes
first = Laurie
authorlink = Laurie Oakes
coauthors =
title = Interview: Wayne Swan
work = ninemsn
publisher = PBL Media
date = 2007-08-21
url = http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/political_transcripts/article_2335.asp?s=1
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-08-21 ]

From 1978 to 1980 Swan was an adviser to the Leader of the Opposition Bill Hayden, and from 1983 to 1984 was an adviser to federal Labor ministers Mick Young and Kim Beazley. He was State Secretary of the Queensland branch of the Australian Labor Party 1991-93.

Political career

He was elected as the Member for Lilley in the March 1993 election, but was defeated in 1996. In 1996, Swan donated $1,400 to the Australian Democrats campaign manager in his seat of Lilley. [ [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22241106-11949,00.html 'Kick Swan out' for Democrats donation | The Australian ] ] At the time speculation surrounded the nature of the donation. [ [http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/stories/s217353.htm 7.30 Report - 27/11/2000: Preferential treatment ] ] [ [http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/stories/s218264.htm 7.30 Report - 29/11/2000: Tracking the money path of the Swan donation ] ] The matter was referred to the Australian Federal Police, who chose to take no further action. [ [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/07/22/1026898972144.html Why Wayne Swan will not realise the ALP leadership - theage.com.au ] ] [ [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,24897,22236658-601,00.html Swan targeted over Democrats money | The Australian ] ] Following his election loss he was an adviser to Opposition Leader Kim Beazley. He was re-elected at the October 1998 election.

Shortly afterwards, he was elected a member of the Opposition Shadow Ministry. He was Shadow Minister for Family and Community Services from 1998 and Manager of Opposition Business in the House from November 2001. During the 2003 Labor leadership contests he was a close confidante and supporter of Kim Beazley, but retained his positions under the new leader, Mark Latham. After the 2004 election loss, Swan was appointed Shadow Treasurer. This came as a surprise, since it was rumoured that Latham wished to appoint then Shadow Health Minister, Julia Gillard to the position. However, after strong opposition from Labor's Right Faction, Latham was put under pressure to appoint either Swan or Shadow Industrial Relations Minister Stephen Smith as Treasurer. [cite news | first=Paul | last=Toohey | coauthors= | title=Swan's Song | date=17 April 2007 | publisher= | url =http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=260154 | work =The Bulletin | pages =17-23 | accessdate = 2008-01-10 | language = ]

Swan worked with Beazley and Industrial Relations spokesperson Stephen Smith to devise Labor's response to the Howard government's 2005-06 budget and tax cuts. The ALP proposed tax relief for low and middle income earners earned mixed responses in the business community. Swan launched his book during the same month, "".

In early November 2007 Wayne Swan and then Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd revisited their old school, Nambour State High School. Rudd gave a speech to students in which he said that, at school, "Wayne was very, very cool; and I was very, very not". [cite news
title=Labor says Coalition spending will raise inflation
work=PM
publisher=ABC
date=13 November 2007
url=http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2007/s2089825.htm
accessdate=2007-12-05]

Following the 2007 federal election of the Rudd government, Swan was appointed Treasurer of Australia in Kevin Rudd's cabinet on 3 December 2007. [ [http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/29/2105169.htm Rudd hands out portfolios] , Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 29 November 2007.]

On 13 May 2008, Wayne Swan delivered the first Federal Labor Budget in 13 years. Fighting inflation with spending cuts was a key theme. [cite news
title= Wayne Swan, 7.30 report interview
work=ABC Website
publisher=ABC
date=13 May 2008]
url=http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2007/s2243607.htm
accessdate=2008-22-05] The Newspoll after the budget showed Swan leading Shadow Treasurer Malcolm Turnbull as preferred Treasurer for the first time, with a margin of 40 to 26 percent. [cite news
title= Turnbull puts credibility on the line
work=The Australian
publisher=The Australian
date=22 May 2008
url=http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23738483-5013404,00.html
accessdate=2008-23-05] Commentators have attributed this result to leadership tensions in the Liberal party, mixed messages on a fuel excise cut from the opposition and general unpopularity of the opposition leadership of Brendan Nelson. [cite news
title= Visionless leader floundering
work=The Australian
publisher=The Australian
date=21 May 2008
url=http://blogs.theaustralian.news.com.au/janetalbrechtsen/index.php/theaustralian/comments/visionless_leader_floundering
accessdate=2008-23-05]

Family and other

Swan is married to his second wife Kim and has three children: Erinn, Libbi, and Matthew. They married when Kim was 4 months pregnant. [cite news
title= Treasurer Wayne Swan's first marriage 'no secret'
work=Sydney Morning Herald
publisher=Sydney Morning Herald
date=02 March 2008
url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/treasurer-wayne-swans-first-marriage-no-secret/2008/03/01/1204227062073.html
accessdate=2008-23-05] An earlier marriage, when he was 21, lasted only a year. [cite news
title= Treasurer Wayne Swan's first marriage 'no secret'
work=Sydney Morning Herald
publisher=Sydney Morning Herald
date=02 March 2008
url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/treasurer-wayne-swans-first-marriage-no-secret/2008/03/01/1204227062073.html
accessdate=2008-23-05]

At age 48, Swan was diagnosed with prostate cancer but has since fully recovered. He has become an advocate for the prostate cancer public awareness campaign. [ [http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2003/s796549.htm The prostate debate: ABC 7:30 Report 27/2/2003] ]

References

ee also

* First Rudd Ministry

External links

* [http://www.swanmp.org/ Personal website]

Persondata
NAME=Swan, Wayne Maxwell
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Australian politician
DATE OF BIRTH=30 June 1954
PLACE OF BIRTH=Nambour, Queensland, Australia
DATE OF DEATH=Living person
PLACE OF DEATH=