Andrew Bragg facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Andrew Bragg
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Official portrait, 2021
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| Senator for New South Wales | |
| Assumed office 1 July 2019 |
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| Born | 11 July 1984 Carlton, Victoria, Australia |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Occupation | Accountant Manager |
Andrew James Bragg, born on July 11, 1984, is an Australian politician. He became a Senator for New South Wales in the Australian Parliament after the 2019 federal election. He belongs to the Liberal Party. Senator Bragg works on committees that deal with money and technology. He also supports changes to how Australians save for retirement and backs the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart, which is about giving Indigenous Australians a voice.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Andrew Bragg was born in Melbourne and grew up in Shepparton, Victoria. As a child, he played for the Congupna Football Club. He went to local Catholic schools. Later, he studied accounting at the Australian National University. His father and three of his grandparents were born in the United Kingdom. This meant he was also a British citizen until he gave up that citizenship in December 2017.
Career Before Politics
Andrew Bragg is a trained accountant. He first worked in internal audit at a company called Ernst & Young.
After that, he spent seven years at the Financial Services Council. There, he worked on rules for superannuation (retirement savings) and managing money. He later became the head of policy for the council.
From 2014 to 2016, Bragg was the Director of Policy & Global Markets at the Financial Services Council. He helped create important rules for the finance industry. These included standards for how retirement funds are managed.
In November 2016, he became the policy director for the Menzies Research Centre. This is a research group linked to the Liberal Party. In August 2017, he became the executive director of the Business Council of Australia.
While working for the Financial Services Council, Bragg also earned a Master's degree in Financial Regulation from Macquarie University.
Political Journey
Before Entering Parliament
Before the 2016 federal election, Andrew Bragg tried to become a Liberal Party candidate. He aimed for a spot in the Senate for New South Wales. He also tried for the Division of Murray in Victoria, but he was not chosen for either.
In April 2017, Bragg became the acting federal director of the Liberal Party. He was seen as a supporter of the Prime Minister at the time, Malcolm Turnbull. However, he was not chosen for the permanent role. Later that year, he led the "Liberals & Nationals for Yes" campaign. This campaign was for the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, which asked Australians if same-sex marriage should be legal.
Bragg also put his name forward to be a candidate for the 2018 Wentworth by-election. This election happened after Malcolm Turnbull left parliament. Bragg was thought to be a strong candidate for a while. But he decided to withdraw from the race. He said he believed the Liberal Party should choose a woman for the role.
In the 46th Parliament
In 2018, Bragg was chosen as a candidate for the Coalition's Senate team. He was elected to the Senate in the 2019 federal election.
Senator Bragg serves on Senate committees that look at financial technology, economics, and financial services. He helped start a year-long investigation into Australia's financial technology industry. He then led the committee for this investigation. Bragg also created a group of 15 experts to advise the Australian government. This group helps find ways for Australia to compete better in financial technology with countries like China.
Bragg also led a motion that asked the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) to share details about its agreement with The New Daily. After the ABC ended its contract with The New Daily, Bragg wrote an opinion piece in The Daily Telegraph. He said The New Daily was like a propaganda arm for the superannuation industry. The New Daily disagreed with his comments.
In the 47th Parliament
Senator Bragg strongly supported the 'Yes' campaign during the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum. He stood out within his party, the Coalition, for this support. He believed that the Voice would help parliament, not weaken it. As a member of the committee for the Constitution Alteration Bill, he said it was fair for Indigenous Australians to have a direct say in laws that affect them. Even with his support, Bragg criticized how Prime Minister Albanese managed the campaign. He even suggested delaying the referendum.
In August 2022, Bragg became the Chair of the Senate Economics References Committee. He led important investigations, including:
- ASIC Investigation and Enforcement: This inquiry started in October 2022. It looked at how well the ASIC could investigate and take action against financial misconduct. The final report, released in July 2024, criticized ASIC. It questioned the regulator's ability to do its job well. The inquiry suggested splitting ASIC into two separate groups.
- Residential Electrification: This inquiry began in June 2023. It explored how making homes more electric could save energy and reduce pollution. The final report, released in April 2025, said that making homes electric is becoming more important for Australians.
- Financial Regulatory Framework and Home Ownership: This inquiry started in August 2024. It looked at Australia's financial rules and how they affect people buying homes. The final report, released in November 2024, called for changes to Australia's financial rules. It also suggested updating the rules for the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority to make it easier for first-time home buyers to get loans.
In March 2023, Bragg introduced a new bill called the Digital Assets (Market Regulation) Bill 2023. This bill aimed to create rules for cryptocurrency and other digital assets in Australia. It was meant to speed up how Australia regulates crypto.
In March 2024, Bragg was appointed Shadow Assistant Minister for Home Ownership. In this role, he has supported ideas that would let Australians use their superannuation (retirement savings) to help pay for a house deposit. He also believes that current lending laws make it too hard for first-time home buyers to get mortgages. He thinks these rules are too strict and are making the housing crisis worse. He has said that owning a home is one of the biggest problems facing Australia.
He also disagreed with the Albanese Government's plan to add a new tax on superannuation earnings that haven't been sold yet.
In the 48th Parliament
Andrew Bragg was re-elected to the Senate for a second term in 2025. He was the top candidate on the New South Wales Coalition Senate ticket. In May 2025, the Opposition Leader, Sussan Ley, appointed Bragg as the Shadow Minister for Housing and Homelessness. He also became the Shadow Minister for Deregulation and Productivity.
Senator Bragg's Views
Andrew Bragg is part of the Moderate Faction within the Liberal Party.
He often speaks out about industry superannuation funds. These funds invest the money workers put aside for retirement. When Bragg worked for the Business Council of Australia, he pushed for these funds to have independent directors. In his first speech as a Senator, Bragg explained why he disagreed with mandatory retirement payments. He also wants these funds to openly share how they manage retirement money and how much they give to trade unions.
Bragg supports the Uluru Statement from the Heart. This statement asks for a network of Indigenous Australian representatives to be consulted by the government before laws affecting them are passed. He has encouraged other politicians to support this idea. He also supported the Australian government buying the copyrights to the Aboriginal flag. This would allow people to use the flag without worrying about copyright rules. Bragg also supports creating a special place for burying the remains of Indigenous Australians, called the National Resting Place or "Ngurra Precinct."
Bragg has urged the Australian government to create rules for cryptocurrency. He believes this would encourage cryptocurrency companies to start in Australia. He also wants big tech companies like Facebook and Google to make fair content deals with smaller news publishers, not just large ones. He helped with talks between Facebook and smaller news groups to make these agreements happen. Bragg was also important in creating the "Consumer Data Right" privacy laws.
Bragg led the Liberal Party's campaign to support same-sex marriage. He also spoke out against anti-Asian comments during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has also supported policies that aim for carbon neutrality, meaning no net release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Author and Media
Andrew Bragg writes for The Australian Financial Review, The Daily Telegraph, and The Australian. He also appears on the ABC and Sky News. He has written several books, including Fit for Service (2017) and Bad Egg: How to Fix Super (2020). He also wrote an essay called "Scrap Iron for Japan" in the book Forgotten People Updated (2018). Bragg also published a book called Buraadja: The Liberal Case for National Reconciliation. This book is a three-part series about the history of Indigenous Australians' rights.
Personal Life
Andrew Bragg was married to Melanie Evans, who is the CEO of ING Australia. They separated in September 2022. Since December 2022, he has been in a relationship with former Liberal MP Fiona Martin.
In March 2020, Bragg tested positive for COVID-19. This was part of a group of cases linked to a wedding.
Bragg is a Grand Commander in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia's Order of Christ-loving. He received this honor from Archbishop Makarios. This was after he helped the archbishop get permanent residency in Australia. He is reportedly the first person who is not Greek or Orthodox to receive this high honor from the Greek Orthodox Church in Australia.
Images for kids
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Official portrait, 2021
