Appointed December 2017
Sue had a business background prior to being elected to the Senate of the Parliament of Australia in 1984. She served in that role for almost 21 years.
Among the many positions she held were Deputy Opposition Whip in the Senate, Shadow Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Chairman of the Senate Budget Estimates Hearings for the Community Affairs Legislation Committee and Temporary Chairman of Committees (Acting Deputy President of the Senate).
During that time she served on numerous committees as Chairman or Deputy Chairman. Such inquiries included: Cancer Treatments in Australia; British Child Migrants in Institutional Care; Australian Children in Institutional Care; Young People in Nursing Himes; Pornography in the Digital Age; and many more. Sue has also participated on committees such as Taxation Reform, Tourism, Health and Industrial Relations.
Since leaving the parliament, Sue has been a Board Member of the Arthritis Foundation of Australia the non-executive Chairman of Perihelion Health; Chairman of Ministerial Inquiry into Smoking and Pregnancy; Member of Research Assessment Committee for Schering-Plough; and Committee member on Water Quality Monitoring in relation to the Tasmanian Community Forests Agreement.
Sue is currently the Convenor of the Classification Review Board, chairman of two tourism resorts in Western Australia, a regular volunteer at St John of God Hospital, Member and Vice Patron of Claremont Football Club and a member of West Coast Eagles.