Tim Whetstone

Timothy John Whetstone (born 5 March 1960) is an Australian politician representing the seat of Chaffey in the South Australian House of Assembly for the South Australian Liberal Party since the 2010 election. Whetstone served as the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development in the Marshall ministry from 22 March 2018. He resigned from cabinet on 26 July 2020 after a scandal over parliamentary allowances, which he was subsequently cleared of on 15 October 2020.

Background and early career Whetstone was born in the state's South East at Keith before completing his schooling in Adelaide. He finished a tool maker apprenticeship at General Motors Holden and later went on to develop his own small business building and restoring muscle cars and speedboats.

Whestone was a project manager on the Moomba gas fields before moving to the Riverland in 1989 to purchase a citrus property and develop a vineyard on the River Murray. The SA Nationals did not contest the 2014 election, which saw Whetstone win 75.1 percent of the two-party vote.

Between June 2014 until the state election, Whetstone was the Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment, as well as being the Shadow Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing from 2014 to 2017.

In July 2020, Whetstone admitted to wrongly claiming travel expenses on 90 occasions over six years, including several claims for accommodation in Adelaide at the same time as he was undertaking international or interstate travel, in what Premier Steven Marshall described as "extraordinarily disappointing" behaviour. As a result, Whetstone resigned from the Marshall ministry on 26 July 2020. Whetstone repaid approximately $7,000 attributed to diary-keeping errors, and on 15 October 2020 was cleared of further investigation. Then-South Australian Independent Commissioner Against Corruption Ann Vanstone explained that "the information provided so far does not reveal evidence of misconduct" and, as a result, had "decided not to widen those inquiries to other Members of Parliament."

On 6 January 2023, Whetstone resigned as Shadow Minister for Road Safety after accumulating too many demerit points due to unspecified traffic offences, resulting in the loss of his license. Shortly following the incident, then-Leader of the Opposition David Speirs appointed Whetstone as Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment, citing his experience and performance within the shadow ministry.

Following Vincent Tarzia's appointment as Opposition Leader in August 2024, Whetstone was given responsibility over the Industry, Recreation and Racing, and Emergency Services portfolios. He was also later appointed Shadow Minister for Social Services.