Merrilyn Miriam Rose (born 24 January 1955) was a minister in the Beattie government and member for

Currumbin Currumbin ( ) is a coastal suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Currumbin had a population of 2,920 people. Geography The suburb extends from Currumbin Creek in the north to Wyberba Street in the south. The Pac ...

in the

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

Parliament.Crown Content ''Who's Who in Australia'' 2007, page 1771

Early life

She was born Merrilyn Miriam Gittins in

Kilcoy, Queensland Kilcoy is a rural town and locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Kilcoy had a population of 1,898 people. Geography The township is on the D'Aguilar Highway, north west of the state capital, Brisbane, ...

in 1955 and attended Kilcoy State High School and St Rita's

Clayfield Clayfield is a suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Clayfield had a population of 10,555 people. Geography Clayfield is by road from the Brisbane GPO. Clayfield is bordered to the north by Nundah, to the east by ...

Career

Rose was elected as the member for Currumbin at the 1992 Queensland election. After the 2001 election, the

Premier of Queensland The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland. By convention the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the unicameral Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is ap ...

, Peter Beattie, appointed her Minister for Tourism and Racing. She was appointed Minister for Tourism, Racing and Fair Trading in 2001. Rose came under fire when it emerged that her son had driven her ministerial car to watch sporting events in Sydney, and also faced accusations of bullying staff. The controversy grew to a point that Beattie was forced to sack her from cabinet just before the 2004 election. At that election,

Jann Stuckey Janet Anne Stuckey (born 21 January 1955) is an Australian politician who represented the electorate of Currumbin in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 2004 to 2020. She was first elected on 7 February 2004 as a member of the Liberal ...

of the

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 ...

soundly defeated Rose, who suffered a massive 17.7 percent swing against her.

Blackmail conviction

Rose had trouble finding a job after the election, and sought an appointment in the Queensland public sector. On 30 May 2007, she pleaded guilty to demanding benefit with threats in October 2006, in relation to her efforts to gain such an appointment. Rose was sentenced to 18 months' jail the following day. Documenting her experiences after three months in jail, Rose appeared on ABC Television's ''

Australian Story ''Australian Story'' is a national weekly current affairs and documentary style television series which is broadcast on ABC Television. It is produced specifically by the ABC News and Current Affairs Department. The program first aired on 29 ...

'' series on 20 October 2008.

References

1955 births Living people Australian female criminals Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly Australian politicians convicted of crimes Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Queensland People from the Gold Coast, Queensland 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians Women members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly {{Australia-Labor-Queensland-MP-stub