Jeremy Page Rockliff (born 5 February 1970) is an Australian politician who has been serving as the 47th

Premier of Tasmania The premier of Tasmania is the head of the executive government in the Australian state of Tasmania. By convention, the leader of the party or political grouping which has majority support in the House of Assembly is invited by the governor of ...

since April 2022, after the resignation of

Peter Gutwein Peter Carl Gutwein () (born 21 December 1964) is an Australian politician who was the 46th premier of Tasmania from 2020 to 2022. He has been a Liberal Party member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly since 2002, representing the electorate of ...

as Premier. He has been 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

Tasmanian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Hobart. The Assembly has 25 m ...

in the

Division of Braddon The Division of Braddon is an Australian electoral division in the state of Tasmania. The current MP is Gavin Pearce of the Liberal Party, who was elected at the 2019 federal election. Braddon is a rural electorate covering approximately ...

since the 2002 election. He was the

Deputy Premier of Tasmania The deputy premier of Tasmania is a role in the Government of Tasmania assigned to a responsible Minister in the Australian state of Tasmania. It has second ranking behind the premier of Tasmania in Cabinet, and its holder serves as acting pr ...

from 2014 to 2022 before becoming Premier.

Early life and education

Rockliff was born on 5 February 1970 in

Devonport, Tasmania Devonport ( ; Palawa Kani: ''Tiagarra'') is a city in northern Tasmania, Australia, located on the lands of the Pannilerpanner clan of the Palawa nation. It is situated at the mouth of the Mersey River. Devonport had an urban population of 26, ...

. He is the son of Richard and Geraldine Rockliff, with his father's family having farmed at

Sassafras ''Sassafras'' is a genus of three extant and one extinct species of deciduous trees in the family Lauraceae, native to eastern North America and eastern Asia.Wolfe, Jack A. & Wehr, Wesley C. 1987. The sassafras is an ornamental tree. "Middle ...

since the 1850s. Rockliff grew up on his family's farm at Sassafras. He attended

Latrobe High School , motto_translation = Strength and stability , established = , status = Open , type = Government comprehensive secondary school , gender = Co-educational , educational_authority = Tasmanian Department of Education ...

and

Launceston Church Grammar School (Unless the Lord is with us, our labour is in vain) , established = , type = Independent, co-educational, day & boarding , denomination = Anglican , slogan = Nurture, Challenge, ...

. He completed a diploma in farm management at Lincoln University in New Zealand, before returning to Sassafras to manage the family property. He was president of the

Latrobe Football Club The Latrobe Football Club is an Australian rules football club based in the town of Latrobe in northern Tasmania. The club competed in the North West Football Union throughout the competition's entire existence from 1910 until 1986, and has c ...

from 2006 to 2009.

Political career

Rockliff joined the Young Liberal Movement in 1991, and the Liberal Party in 1992. He became MP for Braddon in the House of Assembly in 2002. He was immediately promoted to the front bench, serving as opposition whip from 2002 until March 2006. When

Will Hodgman William Edward Felix Hodgman (born 20 April 1969) is an Australian diplomat and former politician who has been the High Commissioner of Australia to Singapore since February 2021. He was the 45th Premier of Tasmania and a member for the Divisi ...

, who had also been first elected in 2002, was elected leader of The Tasmanian Liberal Party in March 2006, he named Rockliff as his deputy, and hence Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Rockliff became

in March 2014, following the Liberal Party winning government at the 2014 state election. He also served as Minister for Education and Training, and Minister for Primary Industries and Water. When Hodgman resigned as party leader and Premier in January 2020, Rockcliff did not stand in the subsequent Liberal Party leadership contest, which was won by

unopposed on 20 January 2020. As such, Rockcliff remained as deputy party leader and Deputy Premier. Along with being Deputy Premier, Rockliff was also Minister for Education and Training, Minister for Trade, Minister for Advanced Manufacturing and Defence Industries, Minister for Disability Services and Community Development, and Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing. At a party-room meeting on the morning 8 April 2022, Rockliff was elected unopposed as the new leader of the Tasmanian Liberal Party, after

had announced his resignation earlier that week. That afternoon he was sworn in by the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

as the 47th

References

External links

Personal Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rockliff, Jeremy 1970 births Living people Members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Tasmania Deputy Premiers of Tasmania Premiers of Tasmania Lincoln University (New Zealand) alumni 21st-century Australian politicians