Andrew Hastie (politician)

Andrew Hastie MP
Member of the Australian Parliament for Canning
Incumbent
Assumed office 19 September 2015
Preceded by	Don Randall
Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 February 2017
Deputy	Hon Anthony Byrne, MP
Preceded by	Hon Michael Sukkar, MP
Personal details
Born	Andrew William Hastie (1982-09-30) 30 September 1982 Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Liberal Party of Australia
Spouse(s)	Ruth Hastie
Children	2
Profession	Member of Parliament (MP)
Website	www.andrewhastie.com.au
Military service
Allegiance	Australia
Service/branch	Australian Army
Years of service	2001–2015
Rank	Captain
Unit	2nd Cavalry Regiment (2007–2009) Special Air Service Regiment (2010–2015)
Battles/wars	War in Afghanistan Military intervention against ISIL

Andrew William Hastie (born 30 September 1982) is an Australian politician who serves as Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security and as the Federal Member for Canning, WA in the Australian House of Representatives. He was first elected in the 2015 Canning by-election and re-elected in 2016.^[1]

Hastie was born in Wangaratta, Victoria before moving to Sydney in 1987. He attended The Scots College from 1993-2000 before completing his Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in History, Politics & Philosophy through the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in conjunction with the Australian Defence Force Academy. He was later recruited into the Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) where he served in Papua New Guinea, Jordan, and multiple deployments to Afghanistan as Captain and Troop Commander. He featured in SBS Documentary SAS – The Search For Warriors as “Candidate 10”.^[2]

Ancestry

Hastie’s forebears were migrants to Australia from Scotland, England, and Ireland.^[3] Both Hastie's father and paternal grandfather were raised in the Sydney suburb of Vaucluse and were educated at Sydney Grammar School.^[4] Hastie's paternal grandfather served as an officer with the Royal Australian Air Force and was severely wounded by gunfire when covering the air-sea rescue of two downed Australian airmen during the Pacific War for which he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Hastie's grandmother Rose was a nurse her whole life and looked after Hastie's grandfather until he died.^[5]

Early years and education

Hastie's parents moved the family to Wangaratta, Victoria in 1979 to establish Wangaratta Presbyterian Church where they ministered to the local community for seven years. Hastie was born there 30 September 1982. The family then moved to Ashfield, NSW in 1987 where Hastie's father became Minister of Ashfield Presbyterian Church. From age five to ten, Hastie attended Ashbury Public School. In 1993, Hastie began studying at The Scots College in Sydney where he graduated in the year 2000.

Hastie holds a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree (B.A., Hons.) in History, Politics, & Philosophy from the University of New South Wales in Sydney and UNSW Canberra at ADFA. After receiving his undergraduate degree in 2005, Hastie went on to officer training at Royal Military College, Duntroon in 2006 and Armoured Corps Officer training at Puckapunyal Military Area thereafter. In 2007, Hastie completed the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs's U.S. Foreign Policy Summer Program in Washington, D.C.

Military career (2001–2015)

Hastie enlisted in the Australian Army following the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 by Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda who killed 2,996 people including 10 Australians.^[6] Hastie completed his UNSW Bachelor of Arts degree at the Australian Defence Force Academy before attending officer training at Royal Military College, Duntroon. Hastie then completed Armoured Corps Officer training at Puckapunyal before being posted to the 2nd Cavalry Regiment. The regiment is the second most senior regiment in the Royal Australian Armoured Corps, and is attached to the 1st Brigade, based in Darwin, Northern Territory.^[7]

Hastie with United States Secretary of Defense General Mattis at the Pentagon in 2018

Hastie first deployed to Afghanistan as Cavalry Troop Commander of the 2nd Mentoring & Reconstruction Task Force in 2009–2010, commanding a troop of Australian Light Armoured Vehicles on patrols in Uruzgan province.^[8] In 2012, he deployed to Port Moresby to support the Papuan New Guinea National Election then returned to Afghanistan with Special Operations Task Group 18. He returned to Afghanistan again in 2013 as Troop Commander of the Special Operations Task Group 19 SASR Troop that conducted counter-leadership operations in support of Australian Defence Force mentoring efforts. Hastie's final deployment to Afghanistan was as Operations Officer for Operation Gallant Phoenix to support intelligence efforts to understand the ISIS social media campaign.

Hastie completed selection for the Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) in 2010 and was subsequently posted to 1 SAS Squadron in 2012 following completion of his reinforcement training. He deployed with the Australian Special Operations Task Group Rotation XIX in 2013, commanding B Troop who were fighting Taliban in southern Afghanistan. Hastie deployed in late-2014 and 2015 to a Middle East-based role countering ISIL.^[9] He resigned his commission in August 2015 after announcing his candidature.^[10]

In Afghanistan, Hastie and his fellow troops were a part of operations that saw the successful removal of enemy combatants who fired rockets at the Allied base and prevented a truck bomb from coming through the front gates.^[11]

Political career (2015–present)

The seat of Canning became vacant by the death in office of the Liberal member, Don Randall, triggering the 2015 Canning by-election. On Saturday 19 September, after a four-week campaign, Hastie won 55.26% of votes under the two-party-preferred system making him the 10th Federal Member for Canning by defeating Labor candidate Matt Keogh.

Hastie and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announce $824 million for infrastructure projects in Canning

In the 2016 Federal Election, Hastie ran for re-election and won 56.79% of the votes under the Two-party-preferred vote against Labor opposition candidate Barry Winmar.

In September 2016, Hastie was appointed to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, he was then invited to chair the committee in 2017.^[12]

Hastie is a public opponent of same sex marriage.^[13][14]

Hastie has been critical of the ADF for spending more than $1 million on sex reassignment surgery for staff experiencing gender dysphoria stating that “I do not see how these surgeries enhance our war-fighting capability as a nation."^[15][16]

Hastie raised the issue that South African farmers who face persecution should apply for help under Australia's Refugee and Humanitarian programme.^[17][18]

On 27 April 2018, Prime Minister Hon Malcolm Turnbull met with Hastie in Lakelands to announce $824 million of federal funding to build three major infrastructure projects in the Division of Canning. This commitment represents one quarter of all federal funding allotted to Western Australia in the 2018 budget. The package is considered a very important investment gain for the Peel region. The projects include the southward extension of the Tonkin Highway to the South Western Highway, the building of the Lakelands Train Station, and the extension of the Armadale railway line to Byford.^[19]

Personal life

Hastie met his wife Ruth in the summer of 2007 while he was studying at George Washington University. Hastie proposed to Ruth on the steps of the Sydney Opera House. The two were married in January 2008. Their children were born in Perth in June 2015 and August 2017 respectively. The family of four now lives in the City of Mandurah in the Peel region of Western Australia.^[20][21]

Honours and awards

	Australian Active Service Medal	with clasp for ICAT
	Afghanistan Medal	Operation SLIPPER
	Australian Service Medal	with clasp for CT/SR (Counter Terrorism / Special Recovery)[22]
	Australian Defence Medal
	NATO Medal for the Non-Article 5 ISAF Operation in Afghanistan	with clasp ISAF
	Meritorious Unit Citation with Federation Star	Awarded to Task Force 66 in the 2015 Australia Day Honours
	Infantry Combat Badge
	Army Combat Badge

References

External links

• Parliamentary biography