Personal Biography

Senator Andrew Murray is married with two grown children. Born in England, raised in Zimbabwe, he has been a resident of Western Australia since 1989. Andrew is a Rhodes Scholar.

Andrew brings to politics a wide experience of life. At the age of four, he was sent as a Fairbridge child migrant to Zimbabwe (then Southern Rhodesia) and attended a number of schools before going to University in South Africa. Thereafter, Andrew won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford University.

Andrew's business career has included that of an executive in large corporations and owning and managing his own businesses. He has been involved in manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing and service industries. Andrew has experience as a consultant, lecturer and industry journalist. He is also a published author and writer.

Andrew has served in the armed forces, travelled extensively and lived and worked in four countries on three continents. These countries featured environments affected by war, economic sanctions and major political, social, environmental and economic problems.

Andrew was deported from South Africa in 1968 for opposing the Apartheid policies of the National Party. The deportation order was withdrawn in 1977 by the same, then slowly liberalising government.

Andrew has always been heavily involved in social justice and business issues. He has wide experience of interacting and negotiating with government and other participants in the political arena. He is best known in politics for his work on economic business and tax issues, on trade practices and corporations law, accountability, social justice issues and industrial relations.

Andrew is the Australian Democrats spokesperson for Accountability, Electoral Matters, Taxation, Finance & Corporate Affairs, and Workplace Relations.