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Christian Zahra

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Christian Zahra
AM
Member of the Australian Parliament
for McMillan
In office
3 October 1998 – 9 October 2004
Preceded byRussell Broadbent
Succeeded byRussell Broadbent
Personal details
Born (1973-04-08) 8 April 1973 (age 51)
Malta
NationalityAustralian
Political partyAustralian Labor Party
Alma materLa Trobe University
OccupationStrategy consultant
Company director

Christian John Zahra AM (born 8 April 1973)[1] was an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives from October 1998[2] to October 2004,[3] representing the regional seat of McMillan, Victoria.

Early life

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Zahra was born in Malta[4] and migrated to Australia with his family when he was three years of age. He grew up and was educated in Traralgon, Victoria.[citation needed] He holds a Bachelor of Economics from La Trobe University[1] and a Master of Assessment and Evaluation from the University of Melbourne.

Political office

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At the 2001 Federal Election, he was one of the few Australian Labor Party members to increase his share of the vote, gaining a 2PP swing to him of 1.9 per cent,[5] after entering the election with a margin of less than 500 votes.[citation needed] After the election, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Shadow Minister for Communications. At that time, he was the youngest Federal MP ever to reach the status of parliamentary secretary.[6] Additionally, Zahra served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development.[7]

In the 2004 election, following a redistribution[8] that turned the electorate of McMillan from a marginal Labor to a marginal Liberal seat,[9] Zahra was defeated by Russell Broadbent.[10] Zahra had a ten point lead on Broadbent at the beginning of the campaign season, but Broadbent won the seat by more than five percent.[3]

While in office, Zahra had been referred to as the "work experience" Parliamentary member[11] and became known for "combative rhetoric".[12]

Public service

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Before entering the Parliament, he was Chief Executive Officer of the Aboriginal Health Service in Morwell, Victoria.

Since 2004, Zahra has served as a Director of the Victorian Energy Networks Corporation, Chair of the Victorian Government's Sustainable Timber Industry Council and Chairman of the Australian Government's $1 billion Regional Development Australia Fund Advisory Panel. He has also served as a Director of two Aboriginal organisations in the Kimberley, Waardi Limited and Nyimarr Limited. He was a Founding Director of the Regional Australia Institute and has served as its Chair since 2021.[13]

From January 2015 to January 2017, Zahra was Chief Executive Officer of Wunan Foundation, a leading Aboriginal development organisation based in the East Kimberley. Before taking on this role he was a Director in the Strategy Group at KPMG Australia. Between 2017 and 2018, he was Executive Director of the National Catholic Education Commission.

Since 2017, Zahra has been Principal at Impact Partners Australia, a specialist policy and strategy consulting firm. In 2018 he rejoined the Board of Waardi Limited, a traditional owner economic development organisation based in Broome, Western Australia, as an Independent Non-Executive Director.

Zahra has been a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors since 2011.

In June 2018, Zahra was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for "significant service to rural and regional development, to the advancement of Indigenous welfare, and to the Australian Parliament".[14]

In July 2019, Zahra was appointed by the Victorian Government as a Member of the Panel of Administrators at South Gippsland Shire Council. The Council was dismissed by the Victorian Government following the recommendation of the Commission of Inquiry into the Council. The Panel acted as the South Gippsland Shire Council from 24 July 2019 until the next election for the Council in 2021.

In 2023, he was appointed as a Member of the Panel of Administrators at Whittlesea City Council[15][16] and, along with two fellow Administrators, he will serve in this role until the next Council election.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Senators & Members: Mr Christian Zahra AM". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  2. ^ "Dunkley's new goal ... federal politics". The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 December 2003. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Victory on the eastern front". The Age. 17 October 2004. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  4. ^ "MP Danby endorsed". The Australian Jewish News. 19 May 2000. Retrieved 27 August 2024 – via Trove.
  5. ^ "Victoria". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 August 2004. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  6. ^ Wilson, P., The Australian Political Almanac, Hardie Grant Books 2001, p. 256
  7. ^ Elg, Hayley (12 June 2018). "Christian Zahra made a member of the Order of Australia". The Courier-Mail. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  8. ^ "The McGauran name whistles in the wind". The Age. 5 October 2004. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  9. ^ "2004 Federal Election. McMillan Electorate Profile. Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC)". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 8 November 2004. Archived from the original on 10 December 2004.
  10. ^ "Liberals claim victory in McMillan". ABC News (Australia). 9 October 2004. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  11. ^ "A spanked bottom, and 'work experience MP' is sent to his room". The Sydney Morning Herald. 14 October 2003. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Backbenchers jockey to become front runners". The Sydney Morning Herald. 17 June 2003. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  13. ^ "Mr Christian Zahra AM FAICD". Regional Australia Institute.
  14. ^ "Queens Birthday honours for two prominent Maltese from Victoria". Maltese Community Council of Victoria, LLC. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019.
  15. ^ MacGillivray, Colin (11 April 2023). "City of Whittlesea appoints new administrator". The North Central Review. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  16. ^ "Panel of Administrators". City of Whittlesea.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for McMillan
1998–2004 		Succeeded by

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