Allison Ritchie is a politician and community leader, who has dedicated her career to improving the lives of those in her hometown of Hobart, as well as the wider island population.
Allison has earned a reputation for delivering strong effective advocacy for community matters, close to the heart of the people she has lived with and worked with her whole life.
Outside of her professional life, Allison has two children with her husband David. Together, they operate a family farm just outside of the city.
Allison is a Director of Colchis Pastoral, a family farm established in 2004. Since that time the enterprise has operated as a busy working farm focussing on wool and meat sheep, cattle and cropping.
Allison has overseen the re-establishment of Boxing (Australia) Tasmania Inc since 2018 and provides the necessary leadership for the administration of this State Sporting Association. Boxing Australia (Tasmania) Inc is affiliated with Boxing Australia Limited and is the only pathway for amateur boxing in Tasmania to access the Commonwealth and Olympic Games.
Allison’s focus is on improving the health and wellbeing of at-risk youth. The club provides low-cost, sporting, recreational, social and cultural programs in a safe environment to young people, with these programs bettering their families and the Hobart community as a whole.
Allison has been tireless in highlighting systemic failures while achieving improved protections for children, notably in her work campaigning for the now-active Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings.
Allison is the youngest person ever elected to the Legislative Council and the first woman to give birth while in office. Allison served as the MLC for Pembroke for eight years during which time she achieved the following appointments:
Allison served as the Tasmanian Convenor of Emily's List, Australia’s only financial, political and personal support network for progressive Labor women in Australian politics.
Allison gained a deep understanding of the issues facing people in her State, including cost of living pressures, homelessness, access to education, child and community health and safety, infrastructure development, job creation, and support for seniors and services for people with disabilities.
Allison supported an organisation providing accommodation and service to people with disability and served as a long term patron for the Association for Children with Disability
Allison has been a long-time supporter and Auxiliary member of the Clarence RSL Ladies Auxiliary, during which time she served in the role of Assistant Secretary.
