Federal Member for Groom

Biography

Ian is married to Karen with two daughters, Kate and Laura. They live in Toowoomba, Australia's largest provincial inland city.

Ian was a boarder at Brisbane Grammar School for five years before entering the University of Queensland on a Commonwealth Scholarship. 18 months later, he left the Engineering Faculty to return to farming. For the next 20 years Ian farmed peanuts, sorghum and wheat and ran cattle in Queensland's Burnett region.

Before entering federal politics, Ian was one of the country's most active agripoliticians. He was President of the Queensland Graingrowers Association for seven years, President of the Grains Council of Australia for two years and simultaneously held executive positions on the Queensland and National Farmers Federations.

The practical farming tendencies still run deep. His nickname "Chainsaw" now reflects Ian's direct approach to "cutting through" the red tape to get things done for Australian industry on a political level.

Ian was Chairman of the Giddy Goanna program, a Meals on Wheels volunteer, an active school P&C member and was voted Toowoomba's Australia Day Citizen of the Year in 1998. He remains an avid rugby fan.