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Fiona Martin

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Dr Fiona Martin
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Reid
In office
18 May 2019 – 21 May 2022
Preceded byCraig Laundy
Succeeded bySally Sitou
Personal details
Born
Fiona Barbouttis

(1977-11-16) 16 November 1977 (age 47)[1]
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Political partyLiberal (until 2024)
ParentGeorge & Kathleen Barbouttis
EducationSanta Sabina College and Rosebank College
Alma materUniversity of Sydney
ProfessionPsychologist

Dr Fiona Barbouttis Martin (born 16 November 1977) is an Australian psychologist and former politician who served as the Member for Reid from 2019, becoming the first woman to represent the seat. She was defeated for re-election in 2022 by Labor's Sally Sitou.

Before being elected, Martin was an educational and developmental psychologist and small business owner. During her term in Parliament, she chaired the first ever Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Select Committee and made national headlines for being one of five Liberal MPs to vote against the Government in favour of an amendment strengthening protections for vulnerable young people from the LGBTQIA+ community.

After her defeat, Martin returned to private practice and continues to advocate for mental health. She let her membership of the Liberal Party lapse in 2024.

Early years and background

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Martin is the daughter of Kathleen and George Barbouttis. Her parents and maternal grandparents were born in Australia, while her paternal grandparents were Greek migrants to Australia from the island of Kastellorizo.[1] Martin grew up in Campsie, Earlwood and Concord West, attending Santa Sabina College in Strathfield and then Rosebank College in Five Dock.[2]

Martin graduated from the University of Sydney with a doctorate in psychology and owned a psychology practice that has rooms in Mosman and Gladesville.[3][4] Her PhD thesis was titled "Self-understanding in high-functioning males with autism spectrum disorders: relationship with social functioning and theory of mind".[5]

Political career

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In mid-March 2019, the then incumbent member for Reid, Craig Laundy, announced that he would not be standing at the 2019 election.[6] Early the following month, Martin was nominated for the seat by the Liberal Party, being described as a "captain's pick".[7] Martin's preselection faced a backlash among conservative elements of the Liberal Party, due in part to former statements of Martin's that supported pill testing, abortion and left wing US politicians such as Nancy Pelosi.[8] She also hadn't lived in the electorate for a number of years but promised to return there if elected, in 2022 Martin disclosed that she lived in nearby East Ryde.[9][10]

Tensions arose during the election when volunteers for Martin's campaign were accused of inappropriate slurs at volunteers for her Labor opponent and Martin lodged a complaint after claiming to have been "manhandled" by a Labor volunteer.[11]

Martin retained Reid for the Liberal Party, on a margin of around 53%. She was a member of the Moderate/Modern Liberal faction of the Liberal Party.[12]

In December 2020, Martin was selected to chair a Select Committee into Mental Health and Suicide Prevention. The select committee, made up of 5 Coalition MPs and 3 Labor MPs handed down its final report in November 2021.[13][14]

On 10 February 2022, Martin crossed the floor with four other Liberal MPs to protect vulnerable young people including transgender students in the government's modifications to the Sex Discrimination Act, which resulted in the Coalition Government's Religious Discrimination Bill being pulled.[15] Martin's vote was the decisive fifth vote needed to guarantee the included amendments would pass. Defending her decision, she said "I did what was right. I supported the religious discrimination bill, I supported people of faith and I protected the rights of vulnerable young students. To me, that was the right balance"[16]

Martin would go on to lose the seat to Labor's Sitou on a swing of around 8%.[17] It was reported that after her loss the outgoing Prime Minister Scott Morrison didn't call Martin to commiserate her defeat. It was reported that eight months before the 2022 election Martin wanted then Treasurer Josh Frydenberg to lead the Liberal Party.[18]

After leaving Parliament, Martin returned to private practice and was later appointed to the Department of Education's expert working group on consent education and respectful relationships. She also became a patron of the charity Australians for Mental Health. In 2023, she endorsed a yes vote in the 2023 Indigenous Voice to Parliament refurendum.[19] By 2024, Martin let her party membership lapse, citing negative experiences within the NSW Liberal Party.[20]

Personal life

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Fiona Martin was initially married to Jeremy Martin, they separated in 2015. Martin later married Nicolai Clausen, who was a Danish citizen at the time of their marriage.[1][3] Since December 2022, she has been in a relationship with Liberal senator Andrew Bragg.[21][22]

Martin was one of eleven MPs in the 46th Parliament of Australia who possessed a PhD, the others being Katie Allen, Jim Chalmers, Anne Aly, Andrew Leigh, Daniel Mulino, Jess Walsh, Adam Bandt, Mehreen Faruqi, Anne Webster and Helen Haines.[23]

See also

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  • Members of the Australian House of Representatives: 2019–2022
  • Electoral results for the Division of Reid 2019

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Fiona Martin: Candidate checklist and additional documentation" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2019 – via Australian Electoral Commission.
  2. ^ "Fiona Martin is your Liberal Candidate for Reid". Liberal Party. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  3. ^ a b Saulwick, Jacob (3 May 2019). "Reid candidate lives five minutes away from the marginal seat but is happy to return". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  4. ^ "Dr Fiona Martin". Sydney Psychology Centre. Retrieved 20 May 2019.[permanent dead link‍]
  5. ^ Martin, Fiona Barbouttis (August 2008). Self-understanding in high-functioning males with autism spectrum disorders: relationship with social functioning and theory of mind (Thesis). The University of Sydney. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  6. ^ FitzSimons, Peter; Koziol, Michael (15 March 2019). "'Time to put family first': Craig Laundy confirms he will quit politics at the election". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
  7. ^ Raper, Ashleigh (10 April 2019). "Scott Morrison's captain's pick for Reid up against Labor staffer and political operative". ABC News. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  8. ^ Martin, Sarah; correspondent, Sarah Martin Chief political (29 November 2021). "High-profile Liberal woman quits party to run as independent after alleging 'inappropriate' behaviour". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 October 2024. {{cite news}}: |last2= has generic name (help)
  9. ^ Saulwick, Jacob (2 May 2019). "Reid candidate lives five minutes away from the marginal seat but is happy to return". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  10. ^ "'I made a legitimate comment': Liberal MP Fiona Martin refuses to apologise to Labor's Sally Sitou". SBS News. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  11. ^ "'English only': Labor accuses Liberal volunteers of racist slurs in marginal Sydney seat". SBS News. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  12. ^ Massola, James (20 March 2021). "Who's who in the Liberals' left, right and centre factions?". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  13. ^ corporateName=Commonwealth Parliament; address=Parliament House, Canberra. "Mental Health and Suicide Prevention - Final Report". www.aph.gov.au. Retrieved 9 October 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ Voutos, John (3 December 2021). "Fiona Martin MP calls for 'critically significant' reform of mental health system". The Greek Herald. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  15. ^ Evans, Jake (10 February 2022). "The government lost a dramatic showdown on religious discrimination laws overnight. So what happened?". ABC.
  16. ^ Karp, Paul (11 February 2022). "'I did what was right': Liberal rebel Fiona Martin on the change that sank the religious discrimination bill". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  17. ^ "Reid (Key Seat) - Federal Electorate, Candidates, Results". abc.net.au. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  18. ^ https://www.news.com.au/national/federal-election/scott-morrison-refused-to-call-liberal-mp-fiona-martin-after-she-lost-her-seat/news-story/f557c70b0cddf473d47389233bc29012?amp [bare URL]
  19. ^ "Voting yes to the voice is a liberal act to empower Indigenous Australians to take responsibility for their lives". The Guardian. 14 April 2023. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  20. ^ "Ex-federal MP Fiona Martin quits the Liberal Party". The Greek Herald. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  21. ^ Towell, Noel; Napier-Raman, Kishor (5 December 2022). "Senior public servant's side-hustle as pole dancing instructor". The Age. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  22. ^ Patrick, Aaron (13 November 2023). "Senator Bragg really, really wants attention". Financial Review. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  23. ^ "Pathways to Parliament". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Reid
2019–2022 		Succeeded by
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