The Minister for Agriculture and Food is a position in the Cabinet of Western Australia. The minister is responsible for the Department of Agriculture and Food, and usually holds several other portfolios.
The responsibilities now incorporated in the portfolio were originally held by the Colonial Secretary, and it was not until the 1904 Daglish Ministry that a separate Minister for Agriculture was appointed, with the inaugural minister being the nominally independent John Drew. From its first implementation through to the 1920s, and sporadically afterward, the titles of Minister for Agriculture and Minister for Lands were generally held by the same person, although the positions were legally separate, and were quite different in scope. A similar situation has existed since the late 1970s with the Fisheries and Forests portfolios. The minister's title was simply "Minister for Agriculture" until 1993, when Monty House was made Minister for Primary Industries in the Court–Cowan Ministry. The current title was implemented in 2005.
The current Minister for Agriculture and Food is Jackie Jarvis of the Labor Party. The previous Minister for Agriculture and Food was Mark Lewis of the Liberal Party. Lewis was only the third Liberal to hold the position – in previous Coalition governments, the position has been reserved for members of the National Party (and its predecessors).
List of ministers for agriculture and food Thirty three people have been appointed as Minister for Agriculture and Food (or equivalent) in Western Australia, with Crawford Nalder's 11 years and 335 days the longest time period in the position.Agriculture Ministers of Western Australia – Parliamentary Library of Western Australia. Last updated 29 June 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2013. In the table below, members of the Legislative Council are designated "MLC". All others were members of the Legislative Assembly at the time of their service. In Western Australia, serving ministers are entitled to be styled "The Honourable", and may retain the style after three years' service in the ministry.Addressing a Member of Parliament – Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
Order Minister Party Premier Title Term start Term end Term in office 1 John Drew Independent Daglish Minister for Agriculture 2 Newton Moore Ministerialist Rason 3 Frank Wilson Moore 4 James Mitchell Liberal Wilson 5 Thomas Bath Labor Scaddan 6 William Johnson 7 Sir Henry Lefroy Liberal Wilson Nationalist Lefroy 8 Charles Baxter Country Colebatch 9 Hal Colebatch Nationalist Mitchell 10 Henry Kennedy Maley Country 11 Michael Troy Labor Collier 12 Harry Millington 13 Percy Ferguson Country Mitchell –(12) Harry Millington Labor Collier 14 Frank Wise Willcock Wise 15 John Tonkin 16 Lindsay Thorn Country McLarty 17 Garnet Wood Honorary Minister for Agriculture Minister for Agriculture 18 Sir Charles Latham 19 Ernest Hoar Labor Hawke 20 Lionel Kelly 21 Crawford Nalder Country Brand 22 David Evans Labor Tonkin 23 Ray McPharlin National Alliance Court 24 Dick Old National Country O'Connor –(22) David Evans Labor Burke 25 Julian Grill Dowding 26 Ernie Bridge Lawrence 27 Monty House National Court Minister for Primary Industries 28 Kim Chance Labor Gallop Minister for Agriculture Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Minister for Agriculture and Forestry Carpenter Minister for Agriculture and Food 29 Terry Redman National Barnett 30 Ken Baston Liberal 31 Dean Nalder 32 Mark Lewis 33 Alannah MacTiernan LaborMcGowan 14 December 2022 34Jackie Jarvis 14 December 20228 June 2023 Cook8 June 2023incumbent
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