Mr Schultz said he had enormous respect for retiring MP Joanna Gash and believed he was the right person to continue her good work.

If preselected, he said, he would lead a team that was inclusive and supportive of all party branches in Gilmore.

If elected as Member for Gilmore, Mr Schultz said he would work for the people of Gilmore and for the Liberal Party “without fear or favour”.

Mr Schultz is the son of long-serving Member for Hume, Alby Schultz.

He said he had long watched and admired his father’s service to his constituents firstly as the State Member for Burrinjuck and for more than 20 years as the Federal Member for Hume.

He said he had inherited his father’s passion for “fighting for the underdog” and was happiest when undertaking roles in which he could serve the community.

Mr Schultz, 48, spent 28 years with the Australian Federal Police and served as a peacekeeper with four United Nations missions – two in Cyprus and two in East Timor.

He also managed a $20 million joint AusAID/AFP program building the Timorese National Police.

Mr Schultz and his wife, fellow AFP officer Rebecca Schultz, returned to Rebecca’s home town of Ulladulla in 2009 to raise their children.

They operate two local retail businesses – one of them in Batemans Bay and the other in Milton.

Mr Schultz also spent time coordinating the Regional Illegal Dumping Squad, based in Nowra. He is currently employed as an assistant director in the Australian Public Service.

His current projects include the development of compliance strategies and processes for the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act.

Mr Schultz said he strongly believed the interests of the community must always come before personal interests and aspirations.

He said he had always put family and community ahead of his own interests and would continue to do so in any role he undertakes.

Mr Schultz said he understood the challenges facing those people who live and work in Gilmore as well as the things the electorate has to offer from both a tourism and industry perspective.

He said a heightened focus on development, further improvements to infrastructure and greater investment support were among the “key ingredients” needed to stimulate growth and reduce unemployment in the region as a whole.

At this stage the only other person to announce their intentions to run for Liberal Party preselection has been Shoalhaven City councillor Andrew Guile.