Leonie Short

Leonie Marjorie Short (born 1 January 1956) was a member of the Australian House of Representatives for eight months in 2001, representing the western Brisbane seat of Ryan for the Australian Labor Party, a party she had been a member of since 1981. Short was elected on 17 March 2001 at a by-election following the resignation of John Moore in what was normally a safe Liberal seat. The Liberals' preferred candidate, Michael Johnson, was unable to stand because he had not renounced his British citizenship. Leonie defeated former state Liberal president Mr Bob Tucker with a swing of 9.59% - issues such as the fallout over the G.S.T. and increased petrol and beer prices dominated the by-election. However, the seat reverted to the Liberals at the general election in November 2001, which saw Leonie defeated by Mr Michael Johnson.

Leonie holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Masters of Health Planning, and is a registered dental therapist. Following her time in parliament, she worked at Teachers Union Health and DRUG ARM. She then helped establish Australia's first new Dental School in 57 years at Griffith University on the Gold Coast. She is currently Associate Professor in Oral Health at Central Queensland University in Rockhampton. She has published numerous articles in referred journals and has been awarded over $1m in competitive research grants. She is a Life Member of the Australian Dental and Oral Health Therapists' Association, an Associate Fellow of the Australian College of Health Service Executives and a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

References

• Leonie Short, Parliamentary Library Biography