AustLit

'Mark grew up in Green Valley near Liverpool, attending Ashcroft Public School and Hurlstone Agricultural High School. He completed a Bachelor of Economics degree (Honours) at Sydney University in 1982. Before entering Parliament, Mark was a political adviser working for Gough Whitlam, the New South Wales branch of the Party and Bob Carr. He was a councillor on the Liverpool Council between 1987 and 1994 and was mayor from 1991 to 1994.

Mark was elected to Federal Parliament as the Member for Werriwa at a by-election in January 1994. He was re-elected in March 1996, October 1998 and November 2001. He was elected to the Shadow Ministry on 22 November 2001. Mark was elected leader of the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party on 2 December 2003. He resigned as Labor Leader and Member for Werriwa on 18 January 2005.' http://www.alp.org.au/people/nsw/latham_mark.php (Sighted 27/05/2006)