Martin Pakula

Martin Philip Pakula (born 7 January 1969) is a former Australian politician. He has been a Labor Party member of the Parliament of Victoria since 2006: in the Legislative Council for Western Metropolitan Region from 2006 to 2010, and then in the Legislative Assembly for Lyndhurst (2013–2014) and Keysborough (2014–2022).

The Honourable Martin Pakula MP
Minister for Industry Support and Recovery
In office 22 June 2020 – 27 June 2022
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	New position
Succeeded by	Ben Carroll
Minister for Trade
In office 22 June 2020 – 27 June 2022
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	Himself
Succeeded by	Tim Pallas
Minister for Business Precincts
In office 22 June 2020 – 27 June 2022
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	Jacinta Allan
Succeeded by	Ben Carroll
Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events
In office 29 November 2018 – 27 June 2022
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	John Eren
Succeeded by	Steve Dimopoulos
Minister for Racing
In office 4 December 2014 – 27 June 2022
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	Denis Napthine
Succeeded by	Anthony Carbines
53rd Attorney-General of Victoria
In office 4 December 2014 – 29 November 2018
Premier	Daniel Andrews
Preceded by	Robert Clark
Succeeded by	Jill Hennessy
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Keysborough
In office 29 November 2014 – 26 November 2022
Preceded by	New seat
Succeeded by	Seat abolished
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Lyndhurst
In office 27 April 2013 – 29 November 2014
Preceded by	Tim Holding
Succeeded by	Seat abolished
Member of the Victorian Legislative Council for Western Metropolitan Region
In office 25 November 2006 – 26 March 2013
Personal details
Born	(1969-01-07) 7 January 1969 (age 53) Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Political party	Labor
Website	www.martinpakula.com.au

Pakula has served as a minister in the First Andrews Ministry and Second Andrews Ministry. Most recently until June 2022, Pakula was the Minister for Industry Support and Recovery, Minister for Trade, Minister for Business Precincts from June 2020, the Minister for Tourism, Sport & Major Events from November 2018, and the Minister for Racing from December 2014. He previously served as the Minister for Jobs, Innovation & Trade (2018–2020), Attorney-General (2014–2018). He also served as Minister for Industrial Relations (2008–2010), Minister for Industry and Trade (2008–2010) and Minister for Public Transport (2010) in the Brumby Ministry.^[1]

Early life

Pakula was born in Melbourne in 1969, the son of immigrants from Poland who were deported during World War II to Uzbekistan.^{[citation needed]} Pakula's mother, a school teacher, arrived in Australia as a 6 year old with no knowledge of English, while his father, a lawyer, spoke no English at home.^[2] He attended Ormond Primary School and then Haileybury.^{[3][citation needed]} Following this, he was accepted to study economics and law at Monash University.^{[citation needed]} During his time at Monash he became a leading member of Victorian Young Labor, joining the Labor Party in 1987.^{[citation needed]} He completed his Bachelor of Economics in 1989 and an Honours Degree in Law in 1991.^{[citation needed]} In his final year, he won the Industrial Relations Law prize.^{[citation needed]}

Professional career

After graduating from university, Pakula began work at Macpherson and Kelley Solicitors. In 1993, he became an Industrial Officer at the National Union of Workers. He went on to become State Secretary and National Vice President.^{[citation needed]}

In 2005, Pakula unsuccessfully challenged Simon Crean in the ALP preselection for the seat of Hotham. Pakula was then preselected for ALP's third spot for the Western Metropolitan Region and was elected at the 2006 Victorian state election. Following the election, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Roads and Ports under Tim Pallas.^{[citation needed]}

After the resignation of Minister Theo Theophanous in December 2008, Pakula was appointed Minister for Industry and Trade and Minister for Industrial Relations. In January 2010, he replaced Lynne Kosky as Minister for Public Transport following her resignation.^[4][5]

On 18 March 2013 he was endorsed as the Labor candidate for the Lyndhurst by-election held on 27 April, caused by the February 2013 resignation of shadow treasurer Tim Holding.^[6] Pakula resigned from the Legislative Council on 26 March 2013 to contest Lyndhurst and was successful in retaining the seat for Labor.

On 4 December 2014 he was sworn in as the Victorian Attorney-General, and was replaced by Jill Hennessy following the 2018 Victorian state election. He continued to be a minister in a number of portfolios, with the racing portfolio being held the longest since 2014.

In June 2022, Pakula announced he would retire at the November state election.^[7] He stepped down from his ministerial roles on 27 June 2022.

Personal life

Pakula is married with two children and is a supporter of the Carlton Football Club.^[8] He lives in Black Rock.^[9] Pakula is Jewish.^[10]

References

1. "Hon Martin Pakula". Parliament of Victoria. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
2. "My mum arrived here as a 6 year old. No English. Ended up being a school teacher for decades. Dad was born here but spoke no English at home. Became a lawyer. I'm the Attorney General of Victoria, and you - mate - can get stuffed. Australian enough for you?". Twitter. Martin Pakula. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
3. "About Martin | Martin Pakula MP".
4. . www.premier.vic.gov.au. Archived from the original on 6 February 2009.
5. Pakula to inherit transport troubles, The Age, 20 January 2010.
6. Willingham, Richard (19 March 2013). "Pakula for safe seat". The Age. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
7. "Victorian ministers confirm resignations from Andrews government ahead of November election". ABC News. 24 June 2022.
8. "Martin Pakula MLC". Premier of Victoria. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
9. Smethurst, Annika. "Parachuting pollies into safe seats fuels political cynicism". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
10. Douglas, Carly. "Southwick, Pakula seats at risk". The Australian Jewish News. Retrieved 23 November 2021.

External links

• Parliamentary profile
• Martin Pakula in Victorian Hansard
• [1]
• Parliamentary voting record of Martin Pakula at Victorian Parliament Tracker

Victorian Legislative Assembly
Preceded by Tim Holding	Member for Lyndhurst 2013–2014	Abolished
New seat	Member for Keysborough 2014–2022	Abolished
Victorian Legislative Council
Preceded by New region	Member for Western Metropolitan 2006–2013 Served alongside: Khalil Eideh Andrew Elsbury Bernie Finn Colleen Hartland Justin Madden	Succeeded by Cesar Melhem
Political offices
Preceded by Theo Theophanous	Minister for Industry and Trade 2008–2010	Succeeded by Jacinta Allan
Preceded by Lynne Kosky	Minister for Public Transport 2010	Succeeded by Terry Mulder
Preceded by Robert Clark	Attorney-General of Victoria 2014–2018	Succeeded by Jill Hennessy
Preceded by Denis Napthine	Minister for Racing 2014–2022	Succeeded by Anthony Carbines
Preceded by Philip Dalidakis as Minister for Trade and Investment Minister for Innovation and the Digital Economy	Minister for Jobs, Innovation and Trade 2018–2020	Succeeded by Himself as Minister for Trade
		Succeeded by Jaala Pulford as Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy
Preceded by Himself as Minister for Jobs, Innovation and Trade	Minister for Trade 2020–2022	Succeeded by Tim Pallas
Preceded by John Eren	Minister for Tourism, Sport & Major Events 2018–2022	Succeeded by Steve Dimopoulos
New title	Minister for Industry Support and Recovery 2020–2022	Succeeded by Ben Carroll
Preceded by Jacinta Allan as Minister for Priority Precincts	Minister for Business Precincts 2020–2022