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Alison Byrnes
Member of the
Australian Parliament
for Cunningham
Assumed office
21 May 2022
Preceded by Sharon Bird
Personal details
Born (1974-02-05) 5 February 1974 (age 50)
Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
Political party Labor
Spouse Paul Scully
OccupationPolitician
Website https://www.nswlabor.org.au/alison_byrnes

Alison Joy Byrnes (born 5 February 1974) is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and was elected as a member for the New South Wales seat of Cunningham in the House of Representatives in the 2022 election.

Early life

Byrnes was born on 5 February 1974 in Wollongong, New South Wales. [1] She is the daughter of Petronella and Ron Byrnes; her mother was born in the Netherlands and arrived in Australia as a child. [2]

Byrnes grew up in the suburb of Woonona, [3] attending Woonona Public School and Woonona High School. [2] She holds the degree of Master of Management from the University of Wollongong. [1]

Politics

Byrnes has worked for the ALP since the age of 16. [4] She was a staffer to Cunningham MP Sharon Bird for 18 years, [5] including as chief of staff. [6] Following Bird's retirement, she won ALP preselection for Cunningham in February 2022. [5] She was chosen unopposed following the withdrawal of her main opponent, Misha Zelinsky. [4] At the 2022 Federal Election, she was elected to the seat of Cunningham with 65% of the vote. [7] [8]

Personal life

Byrnes is married to Paul Scully, an ALP member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. [4] She has sometimes used the name "Alison Byrnes-Scully". [6] [9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Ms Alison Byrnes MP". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Maiden Speech". Hansard. Parliament of Australia. 5 September 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  3. ^ "Alison Byrnes". Australian Labor Party. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  4. ^ a b c "Labor candidate Alison Byrnes launches campaign for Illawarra seat of Cunningham". ABC Illawarra. 25 February 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  5. ^ a b Tullis, Ashleigh (21 February 2022). "MP Sharon Bird's staffer Alison Byrnes preselected as Labor's candidate in federal Cunningham seat". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  6. ^ a b Pearson, Andrew (5 December 2016). "Labor staffer ditches Watson for new MP". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  7. ^ McIlwain, Kate (21 May 2022). "'Alison Byrnes wins Cunningham for Labor'". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  8. ^ "House of Representatives division information".
  9. ^ "Labor preselection in Cunningham heats up; Andrew Constance confirmed for Liberals in Gilmore". ABC Illawarra. 17 January 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Cunningham
2022–present
Incumbent