Robert Evan Schwarten was born on 6 October 1954 and is an Australian politician.
13 Facts About Robert Schwarten
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Robert Schwarten contested the newly created seat of Keppel, but was defeated by Vince Lester of the National Party.
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Robert Schwarten was Minister for Public Works and Information and Communication Technology in Anna Bligh's Labor Government.
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Robert Schwarten held the Public Works portfolio from 1998 to 2011.
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Robert Schwarten stood down from Parliament and was replaced by Bill Byrne, who held the seat for Labor.
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Robert Schwarten drew national media attention when he was involved in a violent scuffle with Craig Brown, the husband of Federal MP Kirsten Livermore, following Rockhampton's Labour Day celebrations in May 2000.
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In July 2010, it was reported that Robert Schwarten had become involved in a verbal stoush with other diners at a Rockhampton restaurant.
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An unnamed customer had told media that Robert Schwarten was swearing, shouting and threatening to fight other customers.
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Robert Schwarten said while he and his wife Judy were sitting down to a meal, customers began being offensive, verbally attacking him, and upsetting his wife.
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Judy Robert Schwarten said that she was upset at the incident and claimed her husband had gone over to shake hands with the customers but they shoved him away.
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The manager of the restaurant apologised to Robert Schwarten following the incident.
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Since retiring from parliament, Robert Schwarten has regularly appeared in the media as a columnist and commentator.
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On 1 December 2023, the Courier-Mail published an opinion column from Robert Schwarten suggesting Queensland Labor needed "a new model" of leader to replace Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk ahead of the 2024 Queensland state election, following poor polling.