Jaala Pulford (born 14 February 1974) is a former Australian politician. She was a
Labor Party member of the
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative C ...
between 2006 and 2022, representing the
Western Victoria Region.
Pulford was Minister for Agriculture, Minister for Regional Development and Deputy Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council between 4 December 2014 and 30 November 2018 following the election of the
Andrews Labor Government. She was appointed Minister for Roads, Road Safety and the TAC, and Fishing and Boating on 30 November 2018. In June 2020, Pulford was appointed Minister for Small Business; Minister for Employment; and Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy and in August 2021, she was additionally appointed Minister for Resources.
Early life
Pulford grew up in Castlemaine and attended
Bendigo Senior Secondary College
Bendigo Senior Secondary College (BSSC), is an Australian government-funded co-educational secondary school for Year 11 and Year 12 students located in the centre of Bendigo, Victoria. It is the largest provider of VCE, VET and VCAL in the stat ...
.
She worked as an Organiser for the
National Union of Workers Victorian Branch between 1994 and 2006.
[
Pulford has a Bachelor of Applied Management from ]University of Ballarat
The University of Ballarat, Australia was a dual-sector university with multiple campuses in Victoria, Australia, including its main Ballarat campus, Melbourne, Sydney, and Adelaide that were authorized by the university to provide diploma, unde ...
[ and has since completed a Masters of Public Policy at ]Deakin University
Deakin University is a public university in Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1974, the university was named after Alfred Deakin, the second Prime Minister of Australia.
Its main campuses are in Melbourne's Burwood suburb, Geelong Waurn Ponds, ...
.
Political career
Pulford has held a number of roles within the ALP, including State and National Conference delegate, Junior Vice-president of the Victorian Branch, National Labor Women's Network secretary, and President of the ALP Women's Policy Committee.[
In November 2006, she was elected, at the age of 32, as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council, representing the Western Victoria Region. As a member of the Brumby Government, she served as Parliamentary Secretary for Industrial Relations (August 2007 – January 2010) and Parliamentary Secretary for Regional and Rural Development, Industry and Trade (January – November 2010).][
Following the Labor government's loss at the 2010 state election, Pulford was appointed Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition (Legislative Council) and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional and Rural Development.][
On 4 December 2014, Pulford was appointed Minister for Agriculture, Minister for Regional Development and Deputy Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council as part of the Labor Government led by Daniel Andrews. She was Victoria's first female Agriculture Minister, and oversaw significant reform, including the establishment of Regional Partnerships and a medicinal cannabis industry, the mandatory electronic tagging of sheep, Victoria's first digital agriculture program, greater animal welfare protection, and attracting recreational fishers to Victoria.
On 30 November 2018, Pulford was appointed Minister for Roads, Road Safety and the TAC, and Fishing and Boating in the re-elected Andrews Government.
On 22 June 2020, Pulford was appointed Minister for Small Business; Minister for Employment; and Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy.]
Personal life
Pulford is married with a son and lives in Ballarat. Her daughter Sinead died of cancer in 2014, aged 13. Labor MP Jaala Pulford lost her daughter Sinead to cancer shortly after the election
Herald Sun, 23 January 2015
References
External links
www.jaalapulford.com.auEntry in Victorian Parliament Ministers Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pulford, Jaala
1974 births
Living people
Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria
Members of the Victorian Legislative Council
Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council
Deakin University alumni
21st-century Australian politicians
21st-century Australian women politicians
People from Castlemaine, Victoria