Carina Garland | |
|---|---|
 Garland at a 2022 election forum | |
| Member of the Australian Parliament for Chisholm | |
| Assumed office 21 May 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Gladys Liu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1982 Traralgon,Victoria |
| Political party | Labor |
Carina Mary Lindsay Garland (born 1982) is an Australian politician. She has served as a Labor MP for Chisholm since the 2022 Australian federal election.
Garland was born in Traralgon,Victoria. [1] Her father was a general practitioner and ran a practice in Melbourne's south-east with her mother,a nurse. [2] Her maternal grandparents immigrated to Australia from Italy in the 1950s. [3] Her grandfather was a maths teacher at Emmaus College in Burwood. [4]
Garland grew up in Clayton. [5] [6] As a child,she performed ballet concerts at the Alexander Theatre in Clayton. [7] She attended SacréCœur School in Glen Iris,where she was a School Prefect. [1] She later enrolled in an Arts/Law degree at Monash University,being awarded first class honours in English Literature. She received a scholarship to complete a PhD in the humanities at the University of Sydney. [8]
In her early life she experienced insecure work, [9] which she has described as "the dominant form of employment" that she has experienced. [7] She said that this experience influenced her advocacy for secure,local jobs and her belief "that people should have jobs they can count on". [9]
Garland worked as an academic at the University of Sydney. [10] [ when? ] After completing her PhD in the humanities,Garland worked as a parliamentary staffer for Simon Crean. [11] "Simon was the first person I voted for in any election and my first boss in politics," she said in 2023. [11] She described him as a "generous boss" who gave her support and advice during her election campaign in 2022. [11]
From 2016 to 2018,Garland was Senior Vice-President of the Australian Labor Party (Vic). [10]
Garland served as the Assistant Secretary for the Victorian Trades Hall Council from 2018 - 2021. [1] Her responsibilities included the Young Workers Centre and the Migrant Workers Centre. In 2019 she was a witness in the Victorian Government's Legislative Assembly Economy and Infrastructure Committee Inquiry into sustainable employment for disadvantaged jobseekers,where she advocated for marginalised and migrant workers. [12]
Garland was preselected to stand in Chisholm for Labor at the 2022 federal election in July 2021,and won the seat with an 8.1-point swing in her direction,defeating Liberal incumbent Gladys Liu. [8] [13] During the 2022 election campaign,Garland and her supporters knocked on 60,000 doors in Chisholm,phoned 72,000 people and had more than 25,000 conversations with voters in the electorate. [14] Garland was endorsed by Kevin Rudd. [15] Anthony Albanese described her as "a local champion who understands Chisholm and its needs". [16]
In the Labor caucus,Garland is a member of the Labor Left faction. [17]
Former Chisholm MP,Anna Burke,is a friend and mentor to Garland,and Garland has said that Burke showed her "what it means to be a really hard-working,active local member of parliament." [14]
In Parliament,Garland advocates for education,healthcare,climate change,workers rights,small business,local manufacturing,the arts and multiculturalism. [4] In April 2023 she signed a letter calling for a substantial increase to JobSeeker. [18] In May 2024 she spoke out about the Federal Government's Future Of Gas Strategy, [19] stating that she believes "the future is renewables" and that she will "always fight for strong,real climate action". [20]
Garland is an advocate for life long learning and building a thriving higher education system in Australia. [21] In September 2023 she made a submission the Australian Universities Accord Interim Report on behalf of the Chisholm electorate. [22] Her submission was based on a survey of the electorate. In her submission,she advocated for financial support for unpaid work placements,improving safety on campus,and reforming the Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) (formerly HECS). [22] On 21 March 2024,Minister for Education the Hon. Jason Clare MP acknowledged Garland's work to raise the issue of HELP debt reform during Question Time. [23]
Garland has publicly supported the importance of early childhood education and care. [24] In February 2024 Garland made a submission to the Productivity Commission's review into early childhood education and care. [25] Her submission was based on a survey of her electorate and a public webinar held with Minister for Early Childhood Education and Care Anne Aly MP. [26] In her submission,she advocated for "wages for early childhood educators (that) reflect the importance of their work" [26] and more affordable child care for families. [26]
Garland is an advocate for action to address gendered violence, [27] and has spoken out about the issue of safety on campus. [28] She has said that she has "witnessed first-hand the devastation that sexual violence on campus has wrought on people's lives", [28] and that she does not want "any other generations of women to have to go through that." [28] On 28 February 2024,Minister for Education the Hon. Jason Clare MP thanked Garland during Question Time for her work advocating for action to address gendered violence on campus. [29]
Garland supports access to affordable,accessible healthcare for all Australians. [30] She has delivered a bulk billing Medicare Urgent Care Clinic in Mount Waverley. [31] Garland is also an advocate for mental health support,delivering a headspace centre for Box Hill [32] [33] and securing funding for the headspace centre in Syndal. [32] [34]
Garland's electorate office is in Mount Waverley. [35]
Garland lives in Clayton. [5] She is a member of the United Workers Union,the Australian Services Union,and the Community and Public Sector Union. [36]
Garland is a descendant of Mary and Edith Garland,who were suffragists in Victoria [37] who signed the 1891 petition to grant Victorian women the right to vote. [4]
Garland has Italian heritage, [38] and her family credits the Federal Labor Government for transforming their lives. [5]
She is a member of the Collingwood Football Club. [36]
Growing up in the south-east and now living in Clayton...
The daughter of a doctor and a nurse, Carland (sic) grew up in the southeastern suburbs of Melbourne and studied at Monash University.
Media related to Carina Garland at Wikimedia Commons