Ben Oquist
Ben Oquist
Born
Benjamin Richard Oquist

1968 or 1969 (age 54–55)[1]
Occupation(s)policy analyst, commentator and political and communications strategist
Spouse
​
(m. 2022)​
ChildrenOne daughter, one step-daughter[2]

Benjamin Richard "Ben" Oquist is a policy analyst, commentator and political and communications strategist.

Oquist was (2015 to 2022) the Executive Director of The Australia Institute, an independent Australian think tank conducting public policy research on a range of economic, social, transparency and environmental issues.[3]

In October 2018, The Australian Financial Review listed Oquist and Richard Denniss of The Australia Institute in equal tenth-place on their 'Covert Power' list of the most powerful people in Australia.[4] In February 2022, Oquist was included in The Australian's list of Australia’s top 100 Green Power Players.[5]

Oquist is also a regular commentator and guest on Agenda (Sky News Australia), The Drum, and a regular column writer for outlets including The Canberra Times,[6] Guardian Australia,[7] Crikey[8] and the ABC.[9]

Career

A 15-year career with Greens leader Bob Brown was broken briefly by a two-year stint with the public affairs company Essential Media Communications.[10][11] Joining The Australia Institute in 2014, Oquist became Executive Director in 2015.

The Australian Greens

Oquist began working with the Australian Greens in 1996 for both Dee Margetts and Bob Brown. Brown has described Oquist as a "friend and confidant" but also as "a core factor in the Greens becoming the third-largest party in Australian politics".[12] In a 2014 radio interview, Brown stated that Oquist's approach to strategy aligned with that of his own.[13] Oquist was reported to have been favoured by Brown for preselection as Greens senator for NSW in 2003.[14] Upon the resignation of Senator Bob Brown on 13 April 2012, Oquist became chief of staff for the new leader, Christine Milne.

In September 2013, Oquist was implicated in an attempt to unseat the then leader of the Australian Greens, Christine Milne.[15] It was reported that Oquist was motivated to attempt to remove Milne before she restructured the organisation to remove his influence.[16] Senator Milne had described him as an adherent to a hierarchical administrative structure, citing this as the reason behind his subsequent departure from his role on the Greens staff.[15] His subsequent commencement with the Australia Institute aligned him with the economist and then Executive Director of the Australia Institute Richard Denniss. Denniss was also an outspoken critic of Christine Milne and a former Australian Greens staffer.[11]

Oquist was widely sourced for comment on the occasion of the resignation of Christine Milne as leader of the Australian Greens in May 2015, where he praised her role as a climate leader.[17][18]

The Australia Institute

Al Gore, Clive Palmer and carbon tax repeal

In July 2014 Oquist, at that time a strategy director of The Australia Institute, was named as a party to the meeting between former US Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore and Clive Palmer.[19] The meeting was instrumental in a deal brokered between the leader of the Palmer United Party, Clive Palmer, and the federal government of Australia for the concessional repeal of the carbon tax.[20] Oquist's role in the context of the repeal was widely reported to be one of pragmatism, driven by a focus on gaining support in particular for the mandated Renewable Energy Target which in 2014 was thought to be under imminent threat.[21][11] Following the demise of the Palmer United Party senate voting block in 2014 the deal collapsed.[22] However, the newly constituted Senate crossbench did not vote to repeal the RET.[23][24] The Carbon Pricing Scheme was abolished on 17 July 2014. Oquist's role in these events remains controversial as Palmer stood to benefit financially from the repeal through his ownership of a coal refinery.[25][26]

Personal

Oquist's engagement to Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young was announced on 15 February 2022.[2] Their marriage was held at Lobethal Road Winery in the Adelaide Hills on the Saturday of the Easter long weekend.[27]

References

  1. ↑ Cadzow, Jane (4 March 2022). "'Of course! Yes. Yes!': What Sarah Hanson-Young said to Ben Oquist". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  2. 1 2 Brook, Stephen; Hutchinson, Samantha (15 February 2022). "'Swept off my feet': Senator to tie knot at Easter". The Age.
  3. ↑ Jewell, Cameron (29 June 2015). "Ben Oquist new Australia Institute executive director". The Fifth Estate. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  4. ↑ "How the leadership coup changed our Power list". Financial Review. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  5. ↑ "The Green Power List 2022". 3 March 2022.
  6. ↑ Oquist, Ben (27 November 2021). "The new law threatening the future of Australia's charities". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  7. ↑ "Ben Oquist - The Guardian". the Guardian.
  8. ↑ Search Results - Oquist. Author for Crikey.
  9. ↑ "Ben Oquist". ABC News. 6 June 2014.
  10. ↑ Staff: Executive Director, Mr. Ben Oquist.
  11. 1 2 3 Seccombe, Mike (11 October 2014). "The Australia Institute are the real senate puppet masters". The Saturday Paper.
  12. ↑ Bob Brown (2014) 'Optimism: Reflections on a life of action', Hardie Grant Books, Melbourne, p. 265
  13. ↑ "Optimism: Bob Brown". Radio National. 5 August 2014.
  14. ↑ "Crashing the party". The Monthly. 1 August 2017.
  15. 1 2 Johnson, Heath Aston, Chris (26 September 2013). "Milne survives push to axe her as Greens leader". The Sydney Morning Herald.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ↑ "The future of the Greens". The Monthly. 1 February 2014.
  17. ↑ Cooper, Hayden (6 May 2015). "Senator Christine Milne resigns as Greens leader" – via www.abc.net.au.
  18. ↑ "Greens head into a new era".
  19. ↑ Taylor, Lenore (25 June 2014). "The strange case of how coal miner Clive turned climate crusader" – via www.theguardian.com.
  20. ↑ Aston, James Massola, Tom Arup, Heath (26 June 2014). "The four who brought together Clive Palmer and Al Gore". The Sydney Morning Herald.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  21. ↑ "Subscribe to The Australian - Newspaper home delivery, website, iPad, iPhone & Android apps". myaccount.news.com.au.
  22. ↑ Bourke, Latika (1 April 2015). "Clive Palmer launches legal action against former Palmer United Party senators Jacqui Lambie and Glenn Lazarus". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  23. ↑ Taylor, Lenore (1 July 2014). "Australia Institute director says Gore-Palmer ploy reset climate debate" – via www.theguardian.com.
  24. ↑ "How the Crossbench Saved Renewable Energy in Australia". 6 January 2019.
  25. ↑ Milne, Christine, 2017, 'An Activist Life', University of Queensland, p. 266.
  26. ↑ "Palmer's carbon tax offer tops menu for breakfast meeting with Abbott". 25 June 2014.
  27. ↑ Schneider, Kate (17 April 2022). "Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young gets married". news.com.au. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
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