Lisa Mary Neville (born 27 May 1964) is a former Australian politician, formerly serving as the member for

Bellarine The Bellarine Peninsula (Wathawurrung: ''Balla-wein'' or ''Biteyong'') is a peninsula located south-west of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, surrounded by Port Phillip, Corio Bay and Bass Strait. The peninsula, together with the Mornington Pe ...

in the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

. She represented the Labor Party. Between 2014 and 2022, she was the Minister for Police and Minister for Water. She also held other portfolios such as environment, climate Change and emergency services at different times during this period.

Early life and education

Neville was born in

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...

. Her father worked for the airline

Qantas Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...

, and the family moved around Australia and Papua New Guinea before settling in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. Neville attended Mount Alvernia College, and then completed an arts degree at

Griffith University Griffith University is a public research university in South East Queensland on the east coast of Australia. Formally founded in 1971, Griffith opened its doors in 1975, introducing Australia's first degrees in environmental science and Asian ...

. At university, she was involved in student unionism, initially with the Queensland Union of Students and then as general secretary and president of the National Union of Students in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. She worked as a community visitor, inspecting residential facilities for the elderly and disabled on behalf of the state Public Advocate.

Political career

Neville first entered parliament at the 2002 election winning the marginal

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

seat of

. After spending her first term on the backbench, she was promoted to the position of Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Children and Minister for Aged Care after the 2006 election. Neville was named as the Shadow Minister for Environment, Climate Change and the Arts by leader Daniel Andrews following Labor's loss in the 2010 Victorian state election. Neville was made Minister for Environment and Climate Change and Minister for Water following the 2014 Victorian state election. Following a cabinet reshuffle in May 2016 Lisa Neville was appointed as the first female Minister for Police in Victoria, and retained her water portfolio. In February 2021, Neville was admitted to hospital and was forced to take leave due to Chron's disease. She returned to work in August 2021. The nature of her

emergency services Emergency services and rescue services are organizations that ensure public safety and health by addressing and resolving different emergencies. Some of these agencies exist solely for addressing certain types of emergencies, while others deal w ...

portfolio required regular travel around to remote parts of the state at short notice, which was not suitable with her medical condition, forcing her to relinquish the portfolio. In June 2022, Neville announced she would retire at the November state election, citing her Chron's disease medical condition. She stepped down from her ministerial roles on 27 June 2022, and her term as member for Bellarine ended on 26 November 2022.

Personal life

Neville was previously married to, and has a son with,

Richard Marles Richard Donald Marles (born 13 July 1967) is an Australian politician serving as the 19th deputy prime minister of Australia and the Minister for Defence. He has been the deputy leader of the Labor Party since 2019 and previously served as D ...

, who later became the federal MP for Corio and the

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...

References

External links

Parliamentary voting record of Lisa Neville at Victorian Parliament Tracker
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Neville, Lisa 1964 births Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Griffith University alumni Deakin University alumni 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians Women members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Labor Right politicians Politicians from Brisbane