Renee Heath

Heath is a lifelong member of the "ultra-conservative City Builders' church," a church led in Australia by her father that is accused of having historic links to gay conversion practices.{{cite news |last1=Ilanbey |first1=Sumeyya |title='Renee is not her family': Guy defends new Liberal candidate |url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/renee-is-not-her-family-guy-defends-new-liberal-candidate-20220731-p5b613.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=The Age |date=31 July 2022 |language=en-AU}} Her preselection was controversial and viewed as a victory for the conservative faction of the Liberal Party over its moderate faction.{{cite news |last1=Smethurst |first1=Annika |title=Victorian election results 2022: Liberal leadership hopefuls walk away from Matthew Guy's promise to bar Renee Heath |url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/pesutto-and-battin-face-off-for-liberal-leadership-as-labor-gets-back-on-rail-loop-track-20221128-p5c1rw.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=The Age |date=28 November 2022 |language=en-AU}} At the time of Heath's preselection, other Eastern Victorian Liberals and former members of the City Builders church spoke out about the church's "ambitions to shift Victorian politics to the hard right."{{cite news |last1=Grieve |first1=Charlotte |last2=McKenzie |first2=Nick |last3=Weaver |first3=Clair |title=Liberal candidate 'agent' for ultra-conservative church, family says |url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/liberal-candidate-agent-for-ultra-conservative-church-family-says-20221118-p5bzca.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=The Age |date=18 November 2022 |language=en-AU}}

Following revelations of Heath's role in the church and its opposition to gay, transgender and reproductive rights, Liberal leader Matthew Guy announced prior to the election that if and when elected, Heath would not be allowed to join the Liberal Party's parliamentary caucus.{{cite news |last1=McMillan |first1=Ashleigh |last2=McKenzie |first2=Nick |title=Victorian election 2022: Guy says ultra-conservative Liberal candidate Renee Heath won't sit in party room |url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/ultra-conservative-liberal-candidate-won-t-sit-in-party-room-if-elected-guy-20221119-p5bzlm.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=The Age |date=19 November 2022 |language=en-AU}}{{cite news |last1=Bucci |first1=Nino |title=Victorian Liberal leader dumps candidate linked to conservative church a week out from state election |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/nov/19/victorian-liberal-leader-dumps-candidate-linked-to-conservative-church-a-week-out-from-state-election |access-date=27 December 2022 |newspaper=Guardian Australia |date=19 November 2022 |language=en-AU}} This followed criticism by her Liberal Party predecessor, Cathrine Burnett-Wake, who in her final speech in parliament called on "ordinary people" to "awaken" to extremist political candidates. Burnett-Wake referred to the 'taking over' of Liberal Party branches in Gippsland by right-wing church groups and told the parliament she was concerned about infiltration of the Liberal party by people with "extremist" views – widely interpreted as a reference to Heath.{{cite news |last1=Symons |first1=Bec |title=Ousted Liberal Party MP Cathrine Burnett-Wake condemns extremists in politics - ABC News |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-21/cathrine-burnett-wake-valedictory-church-religion-liberal-party/101463452 |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=ABC News |date=21 September 2022 |language=en-AU}}

Following Heath's election and Guy stepping down as leader of the party, this decision to exclude Heath from the parliamentary party was overturned by new Liberal leader John Pesutto. Heath was also appointed by Pesutto to be the Secretary of the Parliamentary Liberal Party for the 60th Parliament of Victoria.{{Cite Hansard|title=Shadow Ministry|jurisdiction=Parliament of Victoria|house=Victorian Legislative Council|url=https://new.parliament.vic.gov.au/parliamentary-activity/hansard/hansard-details/HANSARD-974425065-19907|date=2022-12-20|speaker=Crozier, Georgie|position=Member for the Southern Metropolitan Region}} In her inaugural speech, Heath stated that "Victorians should not be told what to think, what to say, how to worship, how to raise their children. This is symptomatic of a failed socialist experiment which has reinvented itself as a cultural movement in our time."{{cite news |last1=Ore |first1=Adeshola |last2=Kolovos |first2=Benita |title=New Victorian Liberal MP tells Labor to 'get out of churches' and rails against 'failed socialist experiment' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/dec/20/new-victorian-liberal-mp-tells-labor-to-get-out-of-churches-and-rails-against-failed-socialist-experiment |access-date=27 December 2022 |newspaper=Guardian Australia |date=20 December 2022 |language=en-AU}} On the 12th of May 2023, Heath was demoted from Secretary of the Parliamentary Liberal Party in the wake of a caucus meeting held to vote on the expulsion of fellow Liberal MP Moira Deeming, in which Heath produced three different versions of minutes, one of which was leaked to the media.{{Cite news |date=2023-05-11 |title=Victorian Liberal leader heralds 'turning point' after vote to expel Moira Deeming — as it happened |language=en-AU |work=ABC News |location=Australia |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-12/moira-deeming-liberal-expulsion-motion-john-pesutto-live-blog/102331004 |access-date=2023-05-15}} Heath is considered a close ally of Deeming.{{cite web | url=https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/disunity-but-not-deterred-why-pesutto-still-wants-to-lead-20240309-p5fb32.html | title=Disunity but not deterred: Why Pesutto still wants to lead | date=10 March 2024 }}

In August 2023, Heath appeared ‘at two events attended by conspiracy theorists’ that promoted conspiracies about vaccinations and the ‘deracinating’ of Australia.{{cite web | url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/let-s-not-talk-about-us-liberals-won-t-sanction-renee-heath-over-speaking-events-20230811-p5dvuw.html?btis | title='Let's not talk about us': Liberals won't sanction Renee Heath over speaking events | date=11 August 2023 }} In 2024, Heath abstained from voting in support of the Labor government's wind energy target, despite support from the Liberal opposition.

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• [https://new.parliament.vic.gov.au/parliamentary-activity/hansard/hansard-details/HANSARD-974425065-19952#1793 First speech to Parliament]

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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Category:Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria

Category:Members of the Victorian Legislative Council

Category:21st-century Australian politicians

Category:People from Morwell, Victoria

Category:Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council

Category:21st-century Australian women politicians

Category:Living people