Bob Day

Robert John Day (born 5 July 1952) is an Australian former politician and businessman who was a Senator for South Australia from 1 July 2014 to 1 November 2016.

He is a former federal chairman of the Family First Party.

Before entering politics, he worked in the housing industry, owning several businesses, and at one stage serving as president of the Housing Industry Association.

Day was born in Manchester, UK, on 5 July 1952.

He came to Australia as a child in 1963.

Day attended Gilles Plains High School and the University of South Australia.

Day's career started in the South Australian public service at the Materials and Research Laboratories of the former Highways Department, now part of the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure.

He qualified as a science technician after studying at the SA Institute of Technology (now UniSA).

After six years he resigned and started in the building industry.

He was a founder of Homestead Homes and Home Australia, which now also owns Collier Homes in Western Australia, Newstart Homes in Queensland, Ashford Homes in Victoria and Huxley Homes in New South Wales.

These are all major constructors of new houses in their respective states.

He is the founder of Oz Homes Foundation, and is managing director of Home Australia.

Day's business activities have made him a millionaire.

Both Huxley Homes and Day himself have been fined for not complying with rectification orders.

Huxley Homes has built many thousands of homes in NSW however twenty-five customers claimed they were in dispute with Huxley Homes and were taking legal action against the company for substandard or unfinished work.

Huxley Homes denied the allegations saying they would vigorously defend any legal action.

Day is the sole director of Ashford Homes, which is also facing action over unpaid money to creditors.

Day was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the housing industry and to social welfare, on Australia Day 2003.

Day is a board member of the North East Development Agency, having been president for almost a decade, and of North East Vocational College in Adelaide.

In his community service role, Day has planted several thousand trees for farmers and land owners across South Australia.

He undertook a roadside planting, irrigation and re-vegetation program along North East Road including a local school.

Day was the Liberal Party's candidate for the federal seat of Makin at the 2007 election, but resigned from the party after failing to gain preselection for the 2008 Mayo by-election.

Day was elected federal chairman of the Family First Party in 2008.

On the day of Senator Cory Bernardi's resignation from the Liberal Party to form a new party, Day confirmed that he was collaborating with Bernardi but would not say whether he would join the new party; Family First stated that Day had resigned from its executive and believed that he had left the party.

He subsequently joined the Family First Party and was their candidate for the by-election, later becoming their lead Senate candidate in South Australia at the 2010 election and 2013 election.

On his fourth attempt to enter federal parliament in 2013, Day was elected to the Senate from a 3.8 per cent primary vote for Family First, to a term beginning on 1 July 2014.

Despite a decline in the party's vote to 2.9 per cent, he was re-elected at the 2016 double dissolution election.

However, Day resigned on 1 November 2016 after stating that the investor had backed out.

As a result, he had not been eligible to sit as a senator from at least February 2016 onward by reason of section 44(v) of the Constitution.

In September 2016, The Australian newspaper raised concerns of how Day contributed $380,000 to Family First in 2012–13 while his businesses appeared to be facing financial difficulties.

He is a past president of the Housing Industry Association, the trade association which represents the residential housing industry in Australia.

Day was the long-time secretary of the New Right-influenced H.R. Nicholls Society and a founder of Independent Contractors of Australia (ICA) – a front group campaigning for labour market deregulation in Australia.

According to John Stone of the H. R. Nicholls Society, "one of the most active members of that Association (ICA), Mr Bob Day, has been a member of the [H.R. Nicholls] Society's Board of Management almost from the outset. I do not think he will contradict me if I say that he has taken the ethos of the Society into the work of the Association."

Day was also a former board member of the Centre for Independent Studies – a libertarian Australian think tank.

On 5 April 2017 the High Court held that Day's re-election to the Senate in July 2016 was invalid, since he'd had an "indirect pecuniary interest" in an agreement with the Commonwealth since at least February 2016.

Day formally filed bankruptcy papers and was declared bankrupt in April 2017.

Elected to the 12th and final South Australian Senate spot, Day's term was due to expire on 30 June 2019.

Following the liquidation of Home Australia Group, Day announced his intention to resign from the Senate.

However, he stated that a potential new investor had expressed interest in the business, that there was too much important work for the Family First Senate seat to be vacant for even one day and that therefore he would not resign before the year's end.

He was discharged from bankruptcy on 3 July 2020 [AFSA Registry].