Michaelia Cash

Michaelia Clare Cash (born 19 July 1970) is an Australian politician. She has been a Liberal Party member of the Australian Senate since July 2008, representing the state of Western Australia. She has been the Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection and the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women in the Abbott Government since 18 September 2013.^[1]

Background and early career

Cash was born in the Perth suburb of Subiaco. She holds a Bachelor of Arts with a triple major in public relations, politics and journalism from Curtin University, a Bachelor of Laws from the University of London, and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the University of Western Australia.

In the 1990s she was a staffer to Liberal senator Ross Lightfoot, whom she later succeeded in the Senate.^[2]

Before becoming a senator for Western Australia, Cash was a solicitor at the law firm Freehills, where she worked from 1999 to 2008. She practised in all areas of employment and industrial law including industrial relations, employee relations, occupational health and safety, equal opportunity, executive employment and unfair dismissal.^{[citation needed]}

Political career

Cash was first elected to parliament at the 2007 federal election. She contested the election as the number three candidate of the Liberal Senate ticket in Western Australia.

Since entering Federal Parliament Cash has been elected to the Senate Standing Committee on Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties and the Regulations and Ordinances Committee. In September 2010 Cash was made the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Status of Women and the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration.

Cash is a long-standing member of the Liberal Party. She was an executive member of the Curtin University Young Liberals from 1988 to 1990 and then the Western Australian Young Liberal Movement, where she held numerous positions including state vice-president.

She is a member of the state council and was the president of the Moore Division. She also served on the party's state executive.

Personal

She is married to Richard Price, a barrister and the brother of late political journalist Matt Price. She is the daughter of Western Australian state MP George Cash.^[3]

References

External links

• Parliamentary biography
• Senator Cash's first speech