Tania Maree Maxwell is a former Australian politician. She was a
Derryn Hinch's Justice 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 2018 and 2022, representing
Northern Victoria Region
Northern Victoria Region is one of the eight electoral regions of Victoria, Australia, which elects five members to the Victorian Legislative Council (also referred to as the upper house) by proportional representation. The region was created i ...
. She was not re-elected at the
2022 state election.
Maxwell was born and raised in
Finley, New South Wales
Finley '' Macquarie Dictionary, Fourth Edition'' (2005). Melbourne, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd. is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest town in the Berrigan Shire local government area. At the 20 ...
, before moving to Perth to work in Western Australia's mining sector in 1988. She then moved to
Wangaratta
Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...
, Victoria, where she became a youth worker and studied mental health.
Maxwell in 2020 successfully put a motion in Victoria's Parliament to establish an inquiry into Victoria's criminal justice system by the Legislative Council Legal and Social Issues Committee, of which she had been a member since 2019. The inquiry's first hearing was held in Wangaratta. The committee reported on March 24, 2021, making 100 recommendations to reform the state's criminal justice system.
Ahead of the
2022 state election, Maxwell stated she was not privy to
preference deals negotiated and agreed to by her party, and encouraged people to vote
below the line.
Maxwell is married to Jarrod Toomer.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maxwell, Tania
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Derryn Hinch's Justice Party members of the Parliament of Victoria
Members of the Victorian Legislative Council
Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council
21st-century Australian politicians
21st-century Australian women politicians