Stephan Knoll


Stephan Karl Knoll is an Australian politician representing the South Australian House of Assembly seat of Schubert for the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia since the 2014 state election. Knoll served as the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government and as the Minister for Planning in the Marshall Ministry between 22 March 2018 and 26 July 2020.. Knoll is also the current Leader of Government Business in the South Australian House of Assembly.

Background and early career

Knoll attended Christian Brothers College, Adelaide, and University of Adelaide, completing a Bachelor of Commerce.
Prior to entering State Parliament he was the general manager of his family's small business Barossa Fine Foods.
He is a former State President of the South Australian Young Liberal Movement.

Parliamentary career

Following his election in 2014 Knoll was appointed to the Parliamentary Committee on Occupational Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation in May that year.
In January 2016 Knoll released a booklet entitled "40 Reasons Why You Can't Trust Labor with Your Money". Also in January, Knoll was promoted to Shadow Parliamentary for Waste, Deregulation and IT Use in Government. In February 2016 Knoll was appointed to the Economic and Finance Committee.
In January 2017, fourteen months before the 2018 election Knoll was promoted to Shadow Cabinet - taking on the portfolios of Police, Emergency Services & Corrections, and Road Safety. Following the election, he was appointed as the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government and as the Minister for Planning.
On 5 February 2020, Knoll was appointed as Leader of Government Business in the House.
In July 2020, Knoll was embroiled in scandal when it was revealed by the ABC that he used a taxpayer travel allowance to pay board to his parents while staying in Adelaide. Knoll said he would repay the $29,574 he claimed for the living away from home allowance but, through the course of a subsequent radio interview described as a "train wreck", he did not elaborate on the "range of expense" for which the allowance were apparently spent. The Australian Labor Party subsequently called for Knoll to pay back all the money he has received for a country members allowance since he entered Parliament, totalling $130,000. Knoll resigned from cabinet on 26 July 2020.