He was a Labor Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1983 to 2015, representing the electorates of Riverstone (1983-1991) and Mount Druitt (1991-2015).

[1] Amery returned to the backbench following the 2003 election, as part of a larger reshuffle which also saw the departure of Ministers John Aquilina (who became Speaker) and Paul Whelan (who retired from Parliament).

As the longest-serving member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, Amery is bestowed a colloquial title, Father of the House.

[2] On 8 August 2014 Richard Amery announced that he would leave politics at the next NSW state election in 2015.

[3] Father of the House Richard Amery (Mount Druitt) retired from parliament in 2015.