Introduction
Samuel Thomas Rae (born 26 September 1986) is an Australian politician and a member of the Australian House of Representatives for the new seat of Hawke. He was first elected at the 2022 Australian federal election. Prior to his election he was a state secretary for the Labor Party and a partner at PwC.
Controversies
In March 2023, Rae was accused of yelling "at least I have my own children" during a session of Parliament. Rae was accused of yelling it at Liberal opponent Angie Bell, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community and has four adult children with her partner Ros, during Bell's maiden speech.
Rae denied the accusation but Bell lodged a formal complaint about the incident.
Rae's mentor at PwC, where he was a partner after leaving Victorian ALP Head Office, was Peter Konidaris, a figure in a major controversy where the firm was accused of misusing confidential information it received from the Australian Treasury to assist its corporate clients in tax avoidance. PwC was referred for criminal investigation to the Australian Federal Police by Treasury. Konidaris was required to resign from PwC's executive board in the wake of the scandal.