Sally Talbot
Australian politician (born 1953)
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Sally Elizabeth Talbot (born 22 March 1953)[1] is an Australian politician. She was a Labor Party member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 2005 to 2025, representing the region of South West.
22 March 1953
Dr. Sally Talbot | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for South West Region | |
| In office 22 May 2005 – 21 May 2025 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sally Elizabeth Talbot 22 March 1953 London, England, UK |
| Party | Labor |
| Spouse | Jon Ford |
| Domestic partner | Hon. Wendy Frances Fatin |
| Children | David Talbot |
| Education | Royal College of Music Murdoch University |
| Profession | ALP State secretary (WA), university lecturer and musician |
In July 2024, she announced her retirement from politics.[2]
Biography
Talbot came from a family active in the British Labour Party where politics was actively discussed and engaged in.[3] At 16 she finished her secondary schooling and attended the Royal College of Music in London, specialising in the cello. She spent the next 15 years working as a musician,[4] however she said her life always turned back to her interest in politics.[5]
While attending Murdoch University in Perth in 1983, she joined the staff as a federal member of parliament, her first formal job in politics. In 2001 she became the Assistant Secretary of the Labor Party, a position she held until 2005. It was in this role that she discovered the importance of engaging ordinary citizens in politics to create a better community, thus it was important to have active and healthy political parties.[5] She left her staff role with the party to become a member of parliament, and later as the first President of the Western Australian branch of the Labor Party to be elected by popular ballot in 2008.[4]
Her doctorate in philosophy from Murdoch University was published, "Partial Reason: Critical and Constructive Transformations of Ethics and Epistemology".
Personal life
Talbot was in a relationship with Wendy Fatin, a retired federal politician;[5] a son David was born into their relationship in 1986.[6] She has since married Jon Ford, a former Minister in the Gallop and Carpenter governments[7] and they live in Denmark, Western Australia.