The Honourable
Roger Cook
MLA
Cook in 2015
31st Premier of Western Australia
Assumed office
8 June 2023
MonarchCharles III
GovernorChris Dawson
DeputyRita Saffioti
Preceded byMark McGowan
17th Deputy Premier of Western Australia
In office
17 March 2017 – 8 June 2023
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byLiza Harvey
Succeeded byRita Saffioti
Ministerial positions
Minister for Health
In office
17 March 2017 – 17 December 2021
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byJohn Day
Succeeded byAmber-Jade Sanderson
Minister for Mental Health
In office
17 March 2017 – 17 December 2021
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byJohn Day
Succeeded byAmber-Jade Sanderson
Minister for Medical Research
In office
19 March 2021 – 21 December 2021
PremierMark McGowan
Succeeded byStephen Dawson
Minister for State Development, Jobs and Trade
Assumed office
19 March 2021
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byAlannah MacTiernan
Minister for Tourism
In office
21 December 2021 – 8 June 2023
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byDavid Templeman
Succeeded byRita Saffioti
Minister for Commerce
In office
21 December 2021 – 14 December 2022
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byAmber-Jade Sanderson
Succeeded bySue Ellery
Minister for Science
In office
19 March 2021 – 8 June 2023
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byDave Kelly
Succeeded byStephen Dawson
Minister for Hydrogen Industry
In office
14 December 2022 – 8 June 2023
PremierMark McGowan
Preceded byAlannah MacTiernan
Succeeded byBill Johnston
Leader of the Western Australian Labor Party
Assumed office
6 June 2023
DeputyRita Saffioti
Preceded byMark McGowan
Deputy Leader of the Western Australian Labor Party
In office
16 September 2008 – 6 June 2023
LeaderEric Ripper
Mark McGowan
Preceded byEric Ripper
Succeeded byRita Saffioti
Member of the Legislative Assembly
of Western Australia
Assumed office
6 September 2008
Preceded byDistrict created
ConstituencyKwinana
Personal details
Born (1965-08-20) 20 August 1965
Cottesloe, Western Australia, Australia
Political partyLabor
Alma materCurtin University
Murdoch University
Websitekwinana.walabor.org.au

Roger Hugh Cook (born 20 August 1965) is an Australian politician who is the current premier of Western Australia, in office since June 2023 as leader of WA Labor. He was previously deputy premier of Western Australia from 2017 to 2023.

Cook was born in Perth and holds degrees from Murdoch University and Curtin University. Prior to being elected to parliament he was involved in student politics, serving as the first president of the National Union of Students, and worked as a public relations consultant and in management roles with Aboriginal corporations. Cook was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Assembly at the 2008 state election, representing the seat of Kwinana. He was elected deputy leader of the Labor Party ten days after first being elected to parliament, and held this position until his appointment as leader of the party in 2023. He held senior ministerial office under Mark McGowan from 2017 to 2023, before being elected as McGowan's successor after his mid-term resignation.

Early life

Cook was born on 20 August 1965 in Cottesloe, Western Australia. He is the youngest of seven children born to Hugh David Cook, a child psychiatrist, and Lynette Ada Owen, an early childhood educator.[1] Cook grew up in the suburb of Claremont and was educated at Scotch College. As a teenager he represented Western Australia in rugby union.[2]

Cook graduated from Murdoch University with a Bachelor of Arts in public administration and later completed a graduate diploma in business (public relations) and a Master of Business Administration at Curtin University.[1] Whilst at Murdoch, he became involved in student politics, serving as a student representative on the university's senate. He was also involved in the establishment of the National Union of Students in mid-1986, becoming its first national president as a representative of the National Organisation of Labor Students.[3]

Career

After graduating, Cook worked in the offices of a number of Labor MPs, including Stephen Smith, Jim McGinty, and Chris Evans.[4] He served as state president of the Labor Party from 1999 to 2000. Cook later became involved with Aboriginal advocacy groups, serving at various times as a policy coordinator for the Western Australian Aboriginal Native Title Working Group, as CEO of the Yamatji Marlpa Barna Baba Maaja Aboriginal Corporation, and as government relations manager for the South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council.[1] From 2004 to 2008, he was state manager of CPR, a public relations firm which is closely associated with the Labor Party.[5]

Politics

Cook speaking at a Community and Public Sector Union rally in 2012

At the 2008 state election, Cook won the seat of Kwinana in a tightly fought contest, winning by 300 votes from independent candidate Carol Adams, the mayor of the City of Kwinana.[5] Adams had unsuccessfully attempted to gain Labor pre-selection, and later accused Alan Carpenter of "parachuting" Cook into the seat.[6] On 16 September, ten days after the election, Cook was elected to the position of deputy leader of the Labor Party under Eric Ripper.[7] He is a member of the Labor Left faction, backed by the United Voice trade union (previously known as the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union).[6] After Ripper was replaced by Mark McGowan as leader of the opposition in January 2012, Cook maintained his position as deputy leader.[8] He was re-elected at the 2013 state election in a rematch with Adams, winning an increased majority.[1]

However, Kwinana was a very safe Labor seat in a "traditional" two-party matchup with the Liberals; Cook would have won it in both 2008 and 2013 with majorities of well over 10 percent in a traditional contest with a Liberal candidate. Proving this, Cook was easily reelected in 2017 amid the massive Labor wave that swept through Perth, taking over 68 percent of the two-party vote, a "traditional" two-party swing of seven percent.

Cook was responsible for a high-profile portfolio as minister for health from 2017 to 2021, particularly following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia in early 2020. He also played a key role in the passage of voluntary assisted dying legislation in 2019.[9]

After a ministerial reshuffle[10] in December 2021, Cook was removed from the Health Ministry in favour of Amber-Jade Sanderson. He assumed the portfolio of Tourism, while retaining his status as Deputy Premier, and the ministries of State Development, Jobs and Trade, and Commerce and Science.[11] After another reshuffle in December 2022, Cook became the minister for hydrogen industry, taking over from the retiring Alannah MacTiernan, and was succeeded as the minister for commerce by Sue Ellery.[12]

Premier

Following the resignation of McGowan as premier in May 2023, Cook was the first minister to announce his intention to stand in the ensuing leadership ballot.[13] 26 Labor MPs affiliated with the United Workers Union held a meeting on 30 May, choosing to support Sanderson over Cook, 17 votes to 11.[14][15][16] The 17 Australian Manufacturing Workers Union MPs held a meeting on the afternoon of 30 May, unanimously choosing to back Cook to be leader and Saffioti to be deputy leader and treasurer.[14][17][18] Saffioti and Sanderson both pulled out of the contest after that, leaving Cook as the sole candidate to be premier.[19][20]

In August 2023, Cook announced the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2021 would be repealed and the 1972 act reinstated.[21][22]

Portfolios

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roger Cook.

Cook has held the following portfolios since his election in 2008:[1]

  • 26 September 2008 – 27 January 2012: Deputy Leader of the Opposition; Shadow Minister for Health; Shadow Minister for Mental Health; Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs
  • 27 January 2012 – 9 April 2013: Deputy Leader of the Opposition; Shadow Minister for Health
  • 9 April 2013 – 26 June 2015: Deputy Leader of the Opposition; Shadow Minister for Health; Shadow Minister for Science
  • 26 June 2015 – 17 March 2017: Deputy Leader of the Opposition; Shadow Minister for Health
  • 17 March 2017 – 21 December 2021: Minister for Health and Minister for Mental Health[23]
  • 21 December 2021 – 14 December 2022: Deputy Premier; Minister for Tourism; State Development, Jobs and Trade; Commerce and Science[24]
  • 14 December 2022 – 8 June 2023: Deputy Premier; Minister for State Development, Jobs and Trade; Hydrogen Industry; Tourism; Science[12]
  • 8 June 2023 – present: Premier; Minister for State and Industry Development, Jobs and Trade; Public Sector Management; Federal-State Relations

Personal life

Cook married his wife Carly Lane in 2010 and has two children from a previous marriage.[2] Lane is a curator of Indigenous Australian art at the Art Gallery of Western Australia.[25]

Cook is a supporter of the Fremantle Football Club.[26]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Mr Roger Hugh Cook". Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  2. 1 2 Spagnolo, Joe (4 June 2023). "Roger Cook: Soon-to-be WA Premier's journey from working at the Sheraton Hotel to Dumas House". The West Australian. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  3. ↑ Senate minutes 22 June 1987 – Murdoch University. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  4. ↑ About Roger – Roger Cook official website. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  5. 1 2 Murray, Paul (11 September 2008). "Labor's plight a child of several dead-beat dads". TheWest.com.au. Archived from the original on 12 September 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
  6. 1 2 van Schoubroeck, Lesley (2010). The Lure of Politics: Geoff Gallop's Government, 2001–2006. Crawley, Western Australia: UWA Publishing. p. 251. ISBN 978-1-74258-069-2.
  7. ↑ "Ripper elected WA Labor Leader". ABC News. 16 September 2008. Retrieved 16 September 2008.
  8. ↑ Trenwith, Courtney (23 January 2012). "McGowan officially elected Labor leader". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  9. ↑ Spagnolo, Joe (16 May 2020). "Health Minister Roger Cook on managing COVID-19 in WA, his fear of a second wave, and the mental toll the pandemic has taken on him". The West Australian. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  10. ↑ ABC WA Cabinet reshuffle: Amber-Jade Sanderson replaces Roger Cook as Health Minister 17 December 2021
  11. ↑ ABC WA Cabinet reshuffle: Amber-Jade Sanderson replaces Roger Cook as Health Minister 17 December 2021
  12. 1 2 "Premier unveils new team with a focus on renewal and experience". Media Statements. 14 December 2022. Archived from the original on 19 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  13. ↑ Zimmerman, Josh (29 May 2023). "WA Premier: Roger Cook confirms intention to run as candidate to replace Mark McGowan". Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  14. 1 2 Burmas, Grace (30 May 2023). "Amber-Jade Sanderson the frontrunner to replace Mark McGowan after winning key WA Labor vote". ABC News. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  15. ↑ Zimmerman, Josh (30 May 2023). "Amber-Jade Sanderson wins vital backing of United Workers Union in bid to be WA's next Premier". The West Australian. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  16. ↑ Hastie, Hamish (30 May 2023). "Amber-Jade Sanderson gains majority support to be WA's next premier". WAtoday. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  17. ↑ Rintoul, Caitlyn; Zimmerman, Josh (30 May 2023). "Race to be WA Premier: Roger Cook gets backing of AMWU as Labor's left splits". The West Australian. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  18. ↑ Hastie, Hamish (30 May 2023). "Roger Cook leapfrogs Amber-Jade Sanderson in race to become WA's next premier". WAtoday. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  19. ↑ De Ceglie, Anthony; Zimmerman, Josh (30 May 2023). "Roger Cook to be new Premier of WA as Amber-Jade Sanderson withdraws from race". The West Australian. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  20. ↑ Carmody, James (30 May 2023). "Roger Cook set to become WA's new premier after Amber-Jade Sanderson withdraws". ABC News. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  21. ↑ "WA to repeal controversial Indigenous cultural heritage laws weeks after they started". ABC News. 8 August 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  22. ↑ Hastie, Hamish (8 August 2023). "'I'm sorry': Roger Cook scraps WA Aboriginal cultural heritage laws". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  23. ↑ "McGowan unveils Labor cabinet 'brimming with talent'". ABC News. 16 March 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  24. ↑ "Amber-Jade Sanderson replaces Roger Cook as Health Minister in WA Cabinet reshuffle". ABC News. 17 December 2021. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  25. ↑ Spagnolo, Joe (3 June 2023). "Carly Lane: Incoming WA Premier Roger Cook's Murri wife says The Voice is part of Australia's journey". The West Australian. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  26. ↑ "As a Dockers supporter, this might seem like a tough post to write. But I feel I'd be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the contributions of Shannon Hurn, Nic Naitanui and Luke Shuey to footy here in WA – they are all champions in their own right. Congratulations on three brilliant careers and I wish them all the best in retirement". Facebook. Roger Cook. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
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