Robert Leslie Brown

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Robert Leslie Brown is an Australian politician. He has been a Shooters Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since May 2006, when he filled a casual vacancy sparked by the retirement of long-time party leader John Tingle. Brown, formerly the party's chairman, is one of only two Shooters Party members currently represented in an Australian parliament.

Brown was born into a working-class family in the Sydney suburb of Leichhardt. He was raised and attended school in the Ryde district, where he took an interest in hunting. He left school in 1966 at the age of 15 to take an apprenticeship as a fitter and turner at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard, rising to become plant superintendent. Brown left the dockyard in 1978 to take up a management position with a subsidiary of Lend Lease, and remained with the group when it was sold to James Hardie Industries in 1985. He was also involved in a partnership operating a game fishing charter business in Fiji from the 1970s until 1982.

Having taken an interest in hunting from an early age, Brown joined the Shooters Party soon after its creation. He was elected to the state committee in 1994, and served in that role until his election as party chairman in 2005. Brown also became involved with a number of shooting lobby groups, serving as state president of the Australian Deer Association from 1995 to 1998 and becoming a life member of the Sporting Shooters Association of Australia. In his most recent role as chairman of the party, he was heavily involved in lobbying for the passage of the Game and Feral Animal Control Act 2002, which saw a reduction in restrictions placed upon hunting of feral animals. His role as chairman meant that he emerged as a leading contender to enter parliament when long-serving MLC and party leader John Tingle announced his intention to retire in late 2005.

Brown was duly confirmed by the party's state conference, and when Tingle formally resigned in May 2006, Brown was appointed to the resulting casual vacancy in the Legislative Council.

Brown is married with two sons.

This article does not cite any references or sources. (May 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.