About Chris Pearce

Chris Pearce was first elected to the Parliament of Australia as the Member for Aston in July 2001. His election took place in one of Australia's most high profile by-elections, a result which the then Prime Minister described as the "great turning point" in securing an historic third term for the Coalition Government. Chris has subsequently been re-elected by the Aston constituency three times.

In 2008, Chris Pearce was appointed Shadow Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law and to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services and served in the position until December 2009, following his announcement to retire from Parliament. Earlier in 2008, he was elected Deputy Chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics until his appointment as Shadow Minister in late 2008.

In 2004, Chris was appointed to the Ministry as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer and served in that position until November 2007. During his time as Parliamentary Secretary, Chris had portfolio responsibility for corporate governance, financial services, financial markets and consumer affairs. He was also Chair of the Ministerial Council for Corporations and a member and past Chair of the Ministerial Council for Consumer Affairs.

Before being appointed as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, Chris was a member of three key Parliamentary Committees - Family and Community Affairs; Education and Training; and Communications, Information Technology and the Arts.

Through these committees, Chris has been able to exercise his passion for outcomes that impact on families and the economy, education policy, together with communications and information technology reforms.

Chris understands that these areas of policy reflect local concerns because he's a local himself - Chris and his family have lived in the area for many years.

Chris was actively serving the community well before his election to Parliament. He has previously served as a Councillor in the Knox City Council and co-editor of a local community newspaper. Chris continues to be an active member of many community organisations, including his local church and is a Justice of the Peace.

Prior to joining Parliament, Chris spent 21 years in senior business roles in the music, communications and IT industries. His business career culminated in being the Australian and New Zealand Managing Director for one of the world's leading software companies.

Chris has a Business Degree from Monash University and has completed a Management Development Program at the Mt. Eliza Australian Management College. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and an Associate Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute. Chris has also been a Member of The Economist's CEO Forum and an Associate Fellow of the CEO Institute of Australia.

Chris lives in his electorate of Aston with his wife, Andrea, and family.

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