Joseph Michael Francis (born 11 December 1970) is a former Australian politician who was a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

member of the Legislative Assembly of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

from 2008 to 2017, representing the seat of Jandakot. He was a minister in the Barnett government from March 2013 to March 2017, and was considered a front runner for the Liberal Party leadership until he lost his seat at the 2017 state election.

Early life

Francis was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, to Robyn Caroline Mitchell and Charles Henry Francis. He has one sister Janelle May Francis. His primary education was at Spiritus Sanctus Primary school at North Ryde NSW. He attended

Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview Saint Ignatius' College Riverview is an Australian independent single-sex primary and secondary day and boarding school for boys, conducted in the Jesuit tradition, located in Riverview, a small suburb located on the Lane Cove River on the ...

, and after leaving school joined the

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

. He served in the navy from 1989 to 1994, and subsequently worked as a political staffer for several years. Francis moved to Western Australia in 2000, operating a small business. He re-enlisted in the navy in 2002, and served as a navigator and

warfare officer The officer corps of the Royal Navy is the cadre of personnel holding a commission from the sovereign appointing them in a position of authority in the Royal Navy. Recruiting and training There are three main routes of entry to the officer corps; ...

with the RAN Submarine Service, initially aboard HMAS ''Farncomb'' and later as an instructor at a training centre.

Politics

In 2008, Francis left the navy in order to run for parliament at the 2008 state election. He was elected to the newly created seat of Jandakot, which had been created with a notional majority for the Labor Party. In June 2012, Francis was appointed parliamentary secretary to the

Minister for Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

, the Minister for Commerce, and the Minister for Small Business. After the 2013 state election, where he increased his majority in Jandakot, Francis was elevated to the ministry, becoming Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Corrective Services, and

Minister for Veterans The minister of state for veterans' affairs is a ministerial position in the Cabinet Office in the British government, currently held by Johnny Mercer who took the office on 25 October 2022. Earlier, it was jointly with the Ministry of Defence. ...

. In August 2013, he was also made Minister for Small Business. He relinquished that position to

Sean L'Estrange Sean Kimberley L'Estrange (born 19 September 1967) is a former Australian politician. He was the Member for the Western Australian Legislative Assembly seat of Churchlands from 2013 until 2021. He was the Minister for Finance; Minister for Mi ...

in a reshuffle in March 2016, but was made Minister for Fisheries instead.Hon. Joseph (Joe) Michael Francis MLA
– Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 10 July 2016. After losing the seat of Jandakot at the 2017 state election, Francis was appointed general manager of

Australian Transit Group The Australian Transit Group (ATG) is a bus group with operations in the Northern Territory, Victoria and Western Australia. It was established in 2004 when Michael Baulch and Ben Doolan purchased Fortesque Bus Service, Karratha, Kojonup Bus ...

. In 2019, he was appointed to the

Administrative Appeals Tribunal The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is an Australian tribunal that conducts independent merits review of administrative decisions made under Commonwealth laws of the Australian Government. The AAT review decisions made by Australian Gover ...

Community

Francis was appointed (2017 - current) as WA Chair of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award - Australia

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Joe 1970 births Living people Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly People educated at Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview Politicians from Sydney Royal Australian Navy personnel Submariners 21st-century Australian politicians

Early life

Politics

Community

See also

References