William John Tilley (born 29 March 1963) is the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

member for the seat of Benambra in the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...

. He was elected at the

2006 Victorian state election The 2006 Victorian state election, held on Saturday, 25 November 2006, was for the 56th Parliament of Victoria. Just over 3 million Victoria (state), Victorians registered to vote elected 88 members to the Legislative Assembly of Victoria, Legi ...

, beating

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

candidate and

Wodonga Wodonga (pronounced ; ) is a city on the Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is part of the twin city of Albury-Wodonga and is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Wodonga L ...

mayor Lisa Mahood and former Nationals Upper House member Bill Baxter. Prior to his candidacy, Tilley served in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

and then the

Victoria Police Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''. , Victor ...

Parliamentary career

Following the election of the Baillieu government at the

2010 Victorian state election The 2010 Victorian state election, held on Saturday, 27 November 2010, was for the 57th Parliament of Victoria. The election was to elect all 88 members of the Legislative Assembly and all 40 members of the Legislative Council. The incumbent ...

, Tilley was appointed to be Parliamentary Secretary for Police. On 26 October 2011, the

Office of Police Integrity The Office of Police Integrity (OPI) was the Australian state of Victoria's independent police oversight and anti-corruption agency established by the Victorian Government in November 2004. OPI ceased operation on 9 February 2013 and was replace ...

released a report into the resignation of Assistant Police Commissioner Sir Ken Jones stating that Tilley had met with Sir Ken and Tristan Weston, a police officer on leave while acting as an advisor to the Police Minister Peter Ryan, to complain about the then Police Commissioner

Simon Overland Simon James Overland (born 19 March 1962)
2 March 2009, www.premier.vic.gov.au is the for ...

. As a result of the report, Tilley resigned as Parliamentary Secretary for Police. the subsequent Lawyer X scandal suggests that Mr Tilley may have been unjustly tainted by the allegations when Parliamentary Secretary. The revelation in March 2019 included that a former gangland barrister called Nicola Gobbo was also a police informer was a legal scandal like no other – one that threatened the foundations of the state's criminal justice system and some of Victoria Police's most celebrated convictions. The scandal, unfolding largely in secret and shrouded by suppression orders, took almost a decade to play out until the Director of Public Prosecutions finally decided Ms Gobbo's former clients had a right to know that she might have informed on them, breaching her duties as their lawyer. In March 2024, Tilley announced that he will not re-contest the seat of Benambra at the

2026 Victorian state election The 2026 Victorian state election is expected to be held on 28 November 2026 to elect the 61st Parliament of Victoria. All 88 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Legislative Assembly (lower house) and all 40 seats in the Victorian Legis ...

, retiring from politics after serving as the local member for 20 years. Despite being his last term, Mr Tilley continues to advocate for a better deal for Albury Wodonga Health, the only cross-border health services in Australia. The Victorian and NSW Governments committed $558M to build a medical tower at the Albury Base Hospital site in October 2022. Mr Tilley called the announcement a case of putting "lipstick on a pig". Other politicians and candidates at the state election that year lauded it as a "great outcome for the community". Documents obtained through the NSW Parliament show the decision was skewed by self-interest rather than meeting the needs identified by a thorough review of the hospital's needs in the next 30 years. Already many of the promises included in that announcement have been cut from the project to meet the budgeted cost.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tilley, Bill 1963 births Living people Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Australian police officers Australian Army officers Politicians from Sydney 21st-century Australian politicians