Tony Crook (politician)
Encyclopedia
Anthony John "Tony" Crook (born 23 June 1959) is an Australian politician. He has been the member of the Australian House of Representatives
seat of O'Connor
for the National Party of Western Australia
since the 2010 federal election. Crook served as chairman of the Western Division of the Royal Flying Doctor Service for 10 years until his retirement in 2009.
in the wheatbelt
region, where his family were pioneer farmers in the area.
Crook once owned Woolibar station, a 140000 hectares (345,947.2 acre) sheep station
approximately 45 km south of Kalgoorlie
and sold the business in 2006 to become part of an agricultural consultancy in Kalgoorlie with his brother Brett.
at the 2008 state election
, losing to independent John Bowler
.
Following the redistribution of O'Connor, where the seat lost the Mid West region and gained the Goldfields-Esperance region, Crook ran against Liberal
incumbent Wilson Tuckey
at the 2010 election where a hung parliament
resulted. The Nationals campaigned in Western Australia as an independent party which would not "report, answer and take direction from Warren Truss
".
Crook won with 28.85 percent of the primary vote, a swing to the WA Nationals of 19.68 percent, finishing with 53.56 percent of the two-party preferred vote. Crook campaigned on a platform of a Royalties for Regions policy
on a national level, is against the Mineral Resource Rent Tax, and sought these interests in his discussions with the major parties over who would get Crook's confidence and supply
vote to form government.
Crook stated he would sit as a crossbencher advocating the interests of Western Australia. "I'm clearly an independent", he stated to reporters. "I can sit on the crossbenches quite comfortably". "Tony Abbott
urged me to consider my position and said to consider that I am a member of the Nationals. But I highlighted to him that although we are a federated body, the WA Nationals are an autonomous political organisation". Crook said he had been disappointed by media coverage of the hung parliament, which has included his seat of O'Connor in the number of seats won by the Coalition. "In every news report and press report we see, my number is being allocated in with the Coalition and it shouldn't be" he said. Crook's separation from the Coalition puts him at odds with Nationals MPs from the eastern states. The National Party of Western Australia prior to and subsequent to the election are in no federal Coalition agreement, Crook has stated he is a crossbencher, and he and the WA Nationals are open to negotiating with either side to form government. On 6 September Crook declared his support for the Coalition on confidence and supply, but would otherwise sit on the crossbench. On 27 September Crook announced he would not be attending federal National Party of Australia party room meetings. Since his election, Crook at times has voted for federal Labor government policies in parliament contrary to the official position of the National Party of Australia.
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
seat of O'Connor
Division of O'Connor
The Division of O'Connor is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Western Australia. It is one of Western Australia's three rural seats....
for the National Party of Western Australia
National Party of Western Australia
The National Party of Western Australia is a political party in Western Australia. It is affiliated with the National Party of Australia but maintains a separate structure and identity....
since the 2010 federal election. Crook served as chairman of the Western Division of the Royal Flying Doctor Service for 10 years until his retirement in 2009.
Early life
Crook was born and raised in MerredinMerredin, Western Australia
-Economy:The agricultural land around Merredin produces 40% of Western Australia’s wheat quota. As a focal point for the region, Merredin’s local bulk handling co-operative receives and processes in excess of a million tonnes of grain every year...
in the wheatbelt
Wheatbelt region of Western Australia
The Wheatbelt region is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. It partially surrounds the Perth metropolitan area, extending north from Perth to the Mid West region, and east to the Goldfields-Esperance region. It is bordered to the south by the South West and Great Southern regions, and...
region, where his family were pioneer farmers in the area.
Crook once owned Woolibar station, a 140000 hectares (345,947.2 acre) sheep station
Sheep station
A sheep station is a large property in Australia or New Zealand whose main activity is the raising of sheep for their wool and meat. In Australia, sheep stations are usually in the south-east or south-west of the country. In New Zealand the Merinos are usually in the high country of the South...
approximately 45 km south of Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Kalgoorlie, known as Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, and is located east-northeast of state capital Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway...
and sold the business in 2006 to become part of an agricultural consultancy in Kalgoorlie with his brother Brett.
Politics
In the 2007 federal election, Crook stood for the WA Nationals for a Senate seat but was unsuccessful. He also stood for the seat of KalgoorlieElectoral district of Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia.The district includes not only the town of Kalgoorlie, but significant parts of the outback in central and eastern Western Australia....
at the 2008 state election
Western Australian state election, 2008
A general election was held in the state of Western Australia on Saturday 6 September 2008 to elect 59 members to the Legislative Assembly and 36 members to the Legislative Council...
, losing to independent John Bowler
John Bowler
John Bowler may refer to:*John Bowler , English actor in The Bill*John Bowler , Western Australian politician*John Bowler , Chairman of English football club Crewe Alexandra...
.
Following the redistribution of O'Connor, where the seat lost the Mid West region and gained the Goldfields-Esperance region, Crook ran against Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
incumbent Wilson Tuckey
Wilson Tuckey
Charles Wilson Tuckey , a former Australian federal politician, was a Member of the Australian House of Representatives representing the seat of O'Connor in Western Australia for the Liberal Party from 1980 until 2010.-Biography:...
at the 2010 election where a hung parliament
Hung parliament
In a two-party parliamentary system of government, a hung parliament occurs when neither major political party has an absolute majority of seats in the parliament . It is also less commonly known as a balanced parliament or a legislature under no overall control...
resulted. The Nationals campaigned in Western Australia as an independent party which would not "report, answer and take direction from Warren Truss
Warren Truss
Warren Errol Truss , Australian politician, is the current leader of the National Party of Australia in the Parliament of Australia. He has held the House of Representatives seat of Wide Bay since the 1990 election...
".
Crook won with 28.85 percent of the primary vote, a swing to the WA Nationals of 19.68 percent, finishing with 53.56 percent of the two-party preferred vote. Crook campaigned on a platform of a Royalties for Regions policy
Royalties for Regions policy
Royalties for Regions is a political policy formulated by the National Party of Western Australia in 2008 which involves the redirection of government spending from the major population centres, particularly Perth, into the rural areas of the state...
on a national level, is against the Mineral Resource Rent Tax, and sought these interests in his discussions with the major parties over who would get Crook's confidence and supply
Confidence and supply
In a parliamentary democracy confidence and supply are required for a government to hold power. A confidence and supply agreement is an agreement that a minor party or independent member of parliament will support the government in motions of confidence and appropriation votes by voting in favour...
vote to form government.
Crook stated he would sit as a crossbencher advocating the interests of Western Australia. "I'm clearly an independent", he stated to reporters. "I can sit on the crossbenches quite comfortably". "Tony Abbott
Tony Abbott
Anthony John "Tony" Abbott is the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian House of Representatives and federal leader of the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott has represented the seat of Warringah since the 1994 by-election...
urged me to consider my position and said to consider that I am a member of the Nationals. But I highlighted to him that although we are a federated body, the WA Nationals are an autonomous political organisation". Crook said he had been disappointed by media coverage of the hung parliament, which has included his seat of O'Connor in the number of seats won by the Coalition. "In every news report and press report we see, my number is being allocated in with the Coalition and it shouldn't be" he said. Crook's separation from the Coalition puts him at odds with Nationals MPs from the eastern states. The National Party of Western Australia prior to and subsequent to the election are in no federal Coalition agreement, Crook has stated he is a crossbencher, and he and the WA Nationals are open to negotiating with either side to form government. On 6 September Crook declared his support for the Coalition on confidence and supply, but would otherwise sit on the crossbench. On 27 September Crook announced he would not be attending federal National Party of Australia party room meetings. Since his election, Crook at times has voted for federal Labor government policies in parliament contrary to the official position of the National Party of Australia.