Richard Amery

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Richard Sanderson Amery (born 31 March 1951), Australian politician, has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since 1983.^[1] He is a member of the New South Wales branch of the Australian Labor Party, having joined the party in 1976.

[edit] Early career

Prior to entering politics, Amery spent several years in the retail industry before becoming a police officer with New South Wales Police, where he served for 13 years. At the time he resigned to take up his political work he was a Senior Constable.^[1]

[edit] Parliamentary career

In 1983 Amery was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the seat of Riverstone. He moved to the seat of Mount Druitt in the election of 1991 which he continues to hold for the Iemma Labor government.

He was the Minister for Agriculture from 1995 to 1997 when he became Minister for Land and Water Conservation. From 1999 to 2003, he was minister for both Agriculture and Land and Water Conservation.^[1]

Amery returned to the backbench following the 2003 election, as part of a larger reshuffle which also saw the departure of Ministers John Aquilina (who became Speaker) and Paul Whelan (who retired from Parliament).