Richard Sanderson Amery MP (born 31 March 1951 in Liverpool

Liverpool, New South Wales

Liverpool is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Liverpool is located 32 km south-west of the Sydney central business district, and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Liverpool...

, New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

), an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n politician, is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly

New South Wales Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...

 representing Mount Druitt

Electoral district of Mount Druitt

Mount Druitt is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is a 89.01 km² urban electorate in Sydney's outer west, taking in the suburbs of Mount Druitt, Marsden Park, and Arndell Park. There were 45,408 voters enrolled in time for the 2003...

 for the Australian Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

 since 1991. Amery was elected to Parliament in 1983, representing Riverstone

Electoral district of Riverstone

Riverstone is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales.It is a 94.30 km² urban and semi-rural electorate in Sydney's north west, taking in the suburbs of Stanhope Gardens, Rouse Hill, Quakers Hill and Riverstone...

, however moved to contest Mount Druitt following an electoral re-distribution.

Early career

Prior to entering politics, Amery spent several years in the retail

Retail

Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...

 industry before becoming a police officer with New South Wales Police

New South Wales Police

The New South Wales Police Force is the primary law enforcement agency in the State of New South Wales, Australia. It is an agency of the Government of New South Wales within the New South Wales Ministry for Police...

, where he served for 13 years. At the time he resigned to take up his political work he was a Senior Constable.

Parliamentary career

Amery was the Minister for Agriculture from 1995 to 1997, when he was allocated additional responsibilities as Minister for Land and Water Conservation. He served as minister in both portfolios until 2001, when the Land and Water Conservation was allocated to another minister and Amery took on Corrective Services.

Amery returned to the backbench following the 2003 election

New South Wales state election, 2003

Elections to the 53rd Parliament of New South Wales were held on Saturday 22 March 2003. All seats in the Legislative Assembly and half the seats in the Legislative Council were up for election...

, as part of a larger reshuffle which also saw the departure of Ministers John Aquilina

John Aquilina

John Joseph Aquilina , an Australian politician, is a former member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Blacktown between 1981 and 1991 and the electorate of Riverstone between 1991 and 2011 for the Australian Labor Party.Between 1986 and 1988 and again...

 (who became Speaker) and Paul Whelan

Paul Whelan

The Hon. Paul Francis Patrick Whelan is the former New South Wales State Police minister.-Early years and background:...

 (who retired from Parliament).

As the longest-serving member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, Amery is bestowed a colloquial title, Father of the House.