Lara Giddings

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Deputy Premier of Tasmania
Lara Giddings
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 May 2008
Preceded by	David Bartlett
Constituency	Franklin

Born	4 November 1972 (1972-11-04) (age 35) Goroka, Papua New Guinea
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Australian Labor Party
Profession	Political party officer

Larissa Tahireh (Lara) Giddings (born 4 November 1972, Goroka, Papua New Guinea) is an Australian politician. She is an Australian Labor Party member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly, representing the outer suburban Hobart electorate of Franklin.

She was first elected to parliament in the 1996 election in the electorate of Lyons as the youngest woman elected to an Australian Parliament at the age of 23 years, but was defeated at the 1998 election, and then re-elected in the 2002 election in Franklin. Following the resignation of the Premier, the Hon. Paul Lennon on 26 May 2008 and the elevation of the Deputy Premier, the Hon. David Bartlett to the position of Premier, Giddings was elected as Deputy Australian Labor Party Leader and sworn in as Deputy Premier. ^[1]

Giddings obtained a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws Degree from the University of Tasmania and went on to work in the Australian Senate as Whip's Clerk, then an electorate officer with Senator Sue Mackay. She travelled to the UK, where she did some temporary administrative work in London, and later worked as a Parliamentary research officer for the Member for Dunfermline East, Mrs Helen Eadie, in the Scottish Parliament. Until her return to parliament in 2002, she worked for the Tasmanian Premier as a speech writer and media assistant.

From 2004 to 2006, Ms Giddings was Minister for Economic Development and Minister for the Arts. Following the 2006 election, she was assigned the role of Minister for Health and Human Services. Shortly after the election, the State Government decided to proceed with building a replacement for the Royal Hobart Hospital and the significant task of planning the replacement came under Ms Giddings' portfolio. In April 2007, she came under criticism for the poor conditions in the Emergency Department and blamed the Federal Government for under-funding.