Mal Washer

Dr Mal Washer
Member of the Australian Parliament for Moore
In office 3 October 1998 – 5 August 2013
Preceded by	Paul Filing
Succeeded by	Ian Goodenough
Personal details
Born	12 August 1945 Bunbury, Western Australia
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Liberal Party of Australia
Alma mater	University of Western Australia
Occupation	MP, General practitioner

Dr Malcolm James Washer (born 12 August 1945), Australian politician,^[1] was a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives from October 1998 to August 2013, representing the Division of Moore, Western Australia.^[2] He was born in Bunbury, Western Australia, and was educated at the University of Western Australia, graduating in 1970 with degrees in medicine and surgery. He was a general practitioner before entering politics.^[3]

He is considered a moderate Liberal in a very conservative state and is supportive of socially liberal issues such as same-sex marriage ^[4] During 2010 and 2011 he was the contact for the Australian Parliamentary Group on Drug Law Reform (APGDLR), a cross party group of 100 MP’s from Australian State and Commonwealth parliaments. The group was set up in 1993 after a meeting in Canberra convened by Michael Moore (ACT Assembly) and Ann Symonds (MLC, NSW).^[5]

In August 2011, he announced he would not be contesting the next federal election.^[6]

In March 2014, Washer announced his resignation as chair of the Alcohol and Other Drug Council of Australia. He said the reason was the "ill-informed" decision of Assistant Health Minister Fiona Nash to cut the organisation's funding without notice, noting that her decision was "a bloody tragedy" which "wasn't subject to any review . . . it was dumb advising dumber, and dumb won."^[7]

References

1. "Senators and Members, by Date of Birth". 42nd Parliament. 17 September 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
2. "Australian Legislative Election of 3 October 1998". Retrieved 24 January 2010.
3. "About Dr Mal Washer". Retrieved 24 January 2010.
4. "Liberals join gay marriage conscience vote call". The Age. Melbourne. 9 November 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
5. "Australian Parliamentary Group for Drug Law Reform". Retrieved 2 November 2011.
6. ABC, The World Today, 15 August 2011
7. Corderoy, Amy (2014-03-13). "Fiona Nash's decision to axe drug and alcohol adviser has cost $1 million". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2014-03-13.