Sophie Scamps

Sophie Scamps
Scamps in 2022
Member of the Australian Parliament for Mackellar
Assumed office
21 May 2022
Preceded byJason Falinski
Personal details
Born (1971-03-15) 15 March 1971 (age 53)[1]
Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia
Political partyIndependent
Alma materUniversity of Sydney
UNSW
University of Oxford
Occupation
  • Politician
  • athlete
  • general practitioner
WebsiteOfficial website

Sophie Anna Rebecca Scamps (/skɒmps/ SKOMPS;[2] born 15 March 1971[3]) is an Australian independent politician, general practitioner, and former athlete. In the 2022 Australian federal election, she was elected as the Member for Mackellar in the Australian House of Representatives.

Early life

Scamps grew up in Turramurra, New South Wales.[4] She attended Abbotsleigh school, noted for her achievements in athletics.[5]

Sporting career

Scamps qualified for the 1992 Summer Olympics as a middle-distance runner.[6] She competed internationally for Australia, and was a member of the gold medal winning 4 x 400 m women's relay, at the World Junior Championships in 1990.[7]

Her personal bests include:[8]

  • 400 m – 52.67s – Sydney, Australia (1991)
  • 800 m – 2:02:2 – Canberra (2000)
  • 4 × 400 m relay – 3:30:38 – Deveti Septemvri Stadium, Plodiv (1990)

Higher education

Scamps studied Medicine at the University of Sydney graduating in 1995. Later, she received a Master of Public Health from University of New South Wales, and a master of Science with honours from the University of Oxford.[9]

Advocacy

She was a founder of the Our Blue Dot environmental movement, which campaigns for waste reduction and carbon neutrality.[10]

2022 election campaign

In 2020, using the "kitchen table conversations" model created by former Indi independent Cathy McGowan, Scamps and four like-minded locals created the 'Voices of Mackellar' group.[11][12]

Backed by Climate 200, as well as a large grass-roots local campaign, Scamps announced her candidacy as an independent in December 2021.[13] Scamps was one of the 23 independents who ran for the 2022 Australian federal election. Her campaign focused on the issues of climate, integrity and gender diversity.[14] Scamps has stated that she became motivated to stand for election when she received a survey from the incumbent Liberal MP Jason Falinski, which omitted climate change as an issue important to Mackellar residents.[15] Scamps has also stated that Julia Gillard's Misogyny Speech inspired her to enter politics.[16]

Scamps received A$1,558,960 from 828 separate donors to her election campaign, and spent A$1,216,746.[17]

In early May 2022, fake election posters were placed around Mackellar, claiming that Scamps was a member of the Australian Greens.[18]

Personal life

Scamps lives in Avalon on Sydney's Northern Beaches, with her husband - former Wallaby rugby player Adam Magro - and three children; and, for a time, a family of Ukrainian refugees.[19][20][21][22] Her own surname is Belgian and pronounced 'Scomps'.[23]

References

  1. ^ "Dr Sophie Scamps MP". Parliament of Australia.
  2. ^ Scamps, Sophie (15 December 2021). "Dr Sophie Scamps - Independent for Mackellar". Archived from the original on 20 February 2024. Retrieved 10 May 2023 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ "Sophie SCAMPS | Profile | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Archived from the original on 19 February 2022. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  4. ^ Coultan, Mark (23 January 2022). "Mackellar Independent Sophie Scamps Heeds Climate Change Concerns". Pittwater Online News. Archived from the original on 9 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  5. ^ Gately, Mark (6 March 1986). "Sophie faces big test in Hobart". Sydney Morning Herald. p. 70.
  6. ^ "Why GP decided to run in blue-ribbon seat". smh.com.au. 4 December 2021. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  7. ^ "Athletics – Sophie Scamps (Australia)". www.the-sports.org. Archived from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Sophie SCAMPS | Profile | World Athletics". www.worldathletics.org. Archived from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  9. ^ "About Sophie Scamps". www.betterfutures.org.au. Archived from the original on 16 September 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  10. ^ "Challenge for Mackellar". northernbeachesadvocate.com.au. 9 December 2021. Archived from the original on 9 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  11. ^ "Why GP decided to run in a blue ribbon seat". sophiescamps.com.au. Archived from the original on 9 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Dr Sophie Scamps | GP & Co-Founder of Mackellar Rising". Better Futures. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  13. ^ "Independent Candidates". climate200.com.au. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  14. ^ Pillay, Div (20 January 2022). "Will the Independent women standing in 2022 listen and act for diverse voices?". Women's Agenda. Archived from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  15. ^ Maley, Jacqueline (4 December 2021). "'He voted with Barnaby Joyce every time': Why GP decided to run in blue-ribbon seat". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  16. ^ "The minors and independents shaking up Australian politics". A Current Affair. Nine News. 23 May 2022. Archived from the original on 2 February 2024. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  17. ^ Ransley, Ellen (7 November 2022). "AEC reveals how much money was received, spent on teal independents' campaigns". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 7 November 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  18. ^ Davies, Anne (6 May 2022). "Mackellar malaise: could an independent GP cause an upset in the Liberals' beachside bastion?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2 February 2024. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  19. ^ "Meet the husbands of two teal independents". Australian Financial Review. 1 September 2022. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  20. ^ "Adam Terry Fergus Magro | Player Profile | Classic Wallabies". classicwallabies.com.au. Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  21. ^ Yumpu.com. "Pittwater Life September 2020 Issue". yumpu.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  22. ^ "Fleeing from the Ukraine, family in need finds new home with independent MP". The Canberra Times. 26 June 2022. Archived from the original on 12 July 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  23. ^ "The People at Narrabeen Family Medical - Dr Nicholas Bernard, Dr Vesna Kalajdzic, Dr Kate Hall, Dr Heidi Dawson, Dr Gabriella Legradi, Dr Sophie Scamps, Dr Sue Hartley, Dr Elicia Rodas, Dr Fiona Bernard". Archived from the original on 4 March 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Mackellar
2022–present
Incumbent
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