He trained as an electrician at the Mount Lyell School of Mines in Queenstown and became involved with the Electrical Trades Union (ETU).
[1] He was first nominated to fill the casual vacancy caused by the resignation of Don Grimes in April 1987.
[1] From 24 to 27 January 1994, thirty protesters from the Tasmanian Wilderness Society (TWS) blockaded Riveaux Road in the Picton Valley in Tasmania to prevent logging of woodland.
At the blockade, Devereux announced his resignation from the ALP in protest against its policies on forest issues.
[1] On 7 February 1996, Devereux resigned from the Senate in order to contest the 1996 Tasmanian state election as an independent.