Tony Pasin

Tony Pasin
MP
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Barker
Incumbent
Assumed office
7 September 2013
Preceded byPatrick Secker
Personal details
Born (1977-10-01) 1 October 1977 (age 47)
Mount Gambier, South Australia
Political partyLiberal Party of Australia
SpouseFiona Lee
Children2
Alma materFlinders University
ProfessionSolicitor

Antony "Tony" Pasin (born 1 October 1977) is an Australian politician. He is a member of the Liberal Party of Australia for the House of Representatives seat of Barker since the 2013 election.[1]

Early life

Pasin was born in Mount Gambier, South Australia. His parents were both born in Italy – his mother in San Bartolomeo in Galdo, Benevento, and his father in Fontanelle, Veneto.[2] Pasin has degrees in Law and Economics from Flinders University,[3] and previously served on the Mount Gambier City Council from 2003 to 2010.[4]

Parliament

In 2012, Pasin defeated incumbent Patrick Secker, 164 votes to 78 votes,[5] for Liberal preselection in Barker, long the safest Liberal seat in South Australia. He breezed to victory at the 2013 election.

2016 election

A ReachTEL seat-level opinion poll in the safe Liberal seat of Barker of 869 voters conducted by robocall on 20 June during the 2016 election campaign surprisingly found Nick Xenophon Team candidate James Stacey leading Pasin 52–48 on the two-candidate vote. Seat-level opinion polls in the other two rural Liberal South Australian seats of Mayo and Grey revealed Nick Xenophon Team also leading in both.[6]

On election night, Stacey slashed Pasin's margin in Barker from a comfortably safe 16.5 points to just 4.7 points. This was the closest that the Coalition has come to losing Barker since 1943, though Barker remains a comfortably safe Liberal seat in a two-party matchup with Labor.

Pasin is a member of the National Right faction of the Liberal Party.[7][8]Pasin is a powerbroker in the faction and is seen as Senator Alex Antic’s right-hand man. Pasin also has the shadow portfolio of Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport in the Dutton Shadow cabinet. [9]

Controversies

On the 21st of November 2024 Pasin was publicly accused in Parliament of deceitful behaviour, secretly recording a conversation between himself and Minister Catherine King without her knowledge or consent. Pasin was caught by one of King's staff "downloading a film on to a laptop” immediately after the meeting. Pasin denies the claims.[10] Pasin later apologised to the Chamber, claiming “unbeknownst to [him]” that a new staffer recorded him around parliament including the Ministerial corridors.[11]

Personal life

Pasin supports the Essendon Bombers in the Australian Football League.[12]

References

  1. ^ "Tony Pasin retains Barker seat for Liberals". ABC South East SA. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
  2. ^ Citizenship Register – 45th Parliament
  3. ^ "Tony Pasin". 23 July 2013.
  4. ^ "Tony Pasin". Liberal Party of Australia. 23 July 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
  5. ^ Mt Gambier lawyer Tony Pasin wins pre-selection for Barker over Patrick Secker: Adelaide Now 03/03/12
  6. ^ Election 2016: Malcolm Turnbull could lose another seat to independent Nick Xenophon’s team – Herald Sun 20 June 2016
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ Massola, James (8 April 2023). "How Morrison's shattering defeat gave Dutton a seismic shift in factional power". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  9. ^ "Inside the SA Liberal Party: Who are the factional powerbrokers". The Advertiser. 14 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Liberal backbencher denies Catherine King's parliamentary claim he filmed conversation between them on GoPro".
  11. ^ Rachwani, Mostafa; Wind, Emily; Wind (earlier), Emily (25 November 2024). "Musk argues social media bill may not be lawful – as it happened". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  12. ^ "Each AFL Teams Biggest Political Fan".
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Barker
2013–present 		Incumbent