most part relatively uneventful, Brideson was involved in a minor scandal in 2001 when he was accused of plagiarising parts of a parliamentary report by taking slabs of material directly from the internet. Brideson did not face election in 2002, which saw the Liberal opposition defeated in a landslide, which saw the other Liberal member for Waverley Province lose their seat, as well as several shadow members. The devastating loss opened up numerous shadow ministerial positions, and Brideson was given the portfolios of scrutiny of government and waste watch and appointed as the Secretary to the Shadow Cabinet. He was a relatively low-profile figure in these roles, however, and received far less attention than his predecessor, David Davis. He subsequently lost the first two positions to younger MLC Richard Dalla-Riva in January 2004, though he remained Secretary to the Shadow Cabinet without portfolio for the remainder of his career. Brideson kept a particularly low profile after his demotion, and rumors of his impending retirement began circulating in late 2004. On 11 March 2005, Brideson became the second Liberal frontbencher to announce publicly that he would not be contesting his seat at the 2006 state election. He also suggested that other older Liberal MPs should consider stepping down at the election. References "MP defends report on $23,000 study trip.", Australian Associated Press, 7 December 2001. "Fourth Vic Liberal announces retirement", ABC News, 18 March 2005. 1944 births Living people Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council 21st-century Australian politicians