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AUSPOLLIEWATCH EVERY CLAIM LINKS TO ITS SOURCE · NOT A SCORECARD

Portrait of Dean Smith

Dean Smith

Liberal Party · Senate · WA · incumbent

Dean Anthony Smith was born on 15 May 1969, the son of a policeman and a housewife, and is originally from Mirrabooka, Western Australia. He attended Mirrabooka Primary School and Mirrabooka Senior High School, then the University of Western Australia, graduating with honours in political science as the first in his family to attend university. He joined the Liberal Party at 17 and later worked as a policy adviser to WA Premier Richard Court before entering the Senate in 2012. [source]

Policy adviser to WA Premier Richard Court and senior adviser to Prime Minister John Howard during the 1998 campaign; founded the lobbying firm Smith & Duda Consulting in 2010. Chief Government Whip in the Senate 2019-2022. Shadow Assistant Minister to the Shadow Treasurer and for the Cost of Living from 17 February 2026. [source]

Sourced positions

A verified position is the member's own stated view or vote, supported by the listed sources. This page records public statements and conduct only — see methodology.

Immigration verified

In July 2018, Smith called for a national debate on Australia's population as it reached 25 million, saying issues were broader than immigration alone and included regional growth, congestion and infrastructure. He advocated "moderation" of intake and better forecasting so Australia could "prepare and plan better," suggesting an audit-commission approach or parliamentary inquiry to lead the debate.

Faith & religion verified

Wikipedia states "He is an Anglican" in the personal life section of Dean Smith's article.

Freedom of speech verified

Voted for the second reading of the Human Rights Legislation Amendment Bill 2017, which proposed replacing 'offend, insult, humiliate' with 'harass' in section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act (Senate, 30 March 2017; Ayes 32, Noes 29). Voted for Schedule 1 of that bill to stand as printed, the provision making the substitution; the Schedule was negatived and the change did not proceed (Senate, in committee, 30-31 March 2017; Ayes 28, Noes 31).

Record last updated 2026-08-13.