Steering Committee

On 26 February 2008, the Prime Minister announced the Independent Steering Committee for the Australia 2020 Summit.

The Independent Steering Committee is chaired by Professor Glyn Davis. The 11 remaining panel members will perform a critical role by leading one of the 10 key discussion areas of the Summit. The Steering Committee also assisted in selecting participants for each of the key discussion areas.

The panel and their discussion areas are as follows:

During the Summit, the Indendent Steering Committee co-chairs will be joined by 10 Government co-chairs:

  • The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Education, Minister for Employment & Workplace Relations (the productivity agenda)
  • The Hon Wayne Swan MP, Treasurer (the future of the Australian economy)
  • Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water (population, sustainability, climate change, water and the future of our cities)
  • The Hon Tony Burke, MP, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (future directions for rural industries and rural communities)
  • The Hon Nicola Roxon MP, Minister for Health and Ageing (a long-term national health strategy)
  • The Hon Tanya Plibersek MP, Minister for Housing (strengthening communities, supporting families and social inclusion)
  • The Hon Jenny Macklin MP, Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (options for the future of Indigenous Australia)
  • The Hon Peter Garrett AM MP, Minister for the Environment Heritage and the Arts (towards a creative Australia)
  • The Hon Maxine McKew MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Early Childhood Education and Childcare (the future of Australian governance)
  • The Hon Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs (Australia’s future security and prosperity in a rapidly changing region and world)

Committee Member Biographies

Professor Glyn DavisProfessor Glyn Davis

Professor Glyn Davis has been Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Melbourne since January 2005. In this role, Professor Davis is Chief Executive Officer of the University exercising general superintendence over the educational and administrative affairs of the University.

He has recently stepped down as Chair of the Group of Eight, which represents Australia’s leading research universities.

Professor Davis previously was Vice-Chancellor of Griffith University in Queensland and has served as the most senior public servant in the state of Queensland, Australia.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with first-class honours in political science from the University of New South Wales and was awarded his Doctorate of Philosophy from the Australian National University for a thesis entitled 'The Political Independence of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation'.

His academic career began in 1985 as a lecturer in politics and public policy at Griffith University. The award of a prestigious Harkness Fellowship provided an opportunity to work at the University of California, Berkeley, the Brookings Institution in Washington and the John F Kennedy School of Government, Harvard, during 1987 and 1988.

Subsequently, as an Australian Research Council QE II Research Fellow at Griffith, Professor Davis published a series of articles and books on policy coordination and public sector change. He was appointed a Professor in 1998.

Secondments to the Queensland Government have included appointments as Commissioner for Public Sector Equity in the Queensland Public Sector Management Commission (1990-1993), as Director General of the Office of the Cabinet (1995-1996), and Director General of the Queensland Department of the Premier and Cabinet (1998-2002).

Professor Davis has written widely on policy and governance. His most recent publications are a third edition of The Australian Policy Handbook (with Peter Bridgman, 2004), The Future of Australian Governance: Policy Choices (coedited with Michael Keating, 2000) and Are You Being Served? State, Citizens and Governance (coedited with Patrick Weller, 2001).

In 2008, Professor Davis was appointed to the panel reviewing Australia’s National Innovation System.

He was Foundation Chair of the Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG) which is headquartered at the University of Melbourne.

He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and a Companion in the Order of Australia.


The Hon. Warwick Smith AMThe Hon. Warwick Smith AM

Warwick Smith is the Chairman of the Advisory Board of Australian Capital Equity Pty Ltd ( ACE) where he has a strategic focus on the Group’s international and domestic cross-sector activities.  Warwick is also the Chairman of E*TRADE Limited and the Chairman of the Australian New Zealand Banking Group ( ANZ Ltd) for the State of New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory.  

Formerly, Warwick was an Executive Director with Macquarie Bank for 10 years operating as Global Head of the Bank’s Corporate Communications Division and chairing the Telecommunications, Media, Entertainment and Technology (TMET) Group within Investment Banking.

Warwick has served as a Federal Government Minister in a Parliamentary career spanning 15 years.  He served as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the 2000 Olympics, Minister for Sport, Communications, Privatisation, Family Services, and Aboriginal Affairs.  In 2007, Warwick chaired the National Tourism Investment Strategy Consultative Group and was a member on the Trade Policy Advisory Council.

Warwick was also Australia’s first Telecommunications Ombudsman.

Warwick has a strong focus on international affairs.  He is the Immediate Past Chair of the Australia China Business Council.  He is the Deputy Chair of the Asia Society of Australia. He is also the Inaugural Australian Member for BOAO Forum for Asia and a Board Member of The Global Foundation.

Warwick has received a Centenary Medal for contribution to philanthropic and community programmes.  In 2008, he was honoured in the Order of Australia for his contribution to the Parliament of Australia, philanthropy, international trade, tourism, and the telecommunications industry.


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Dr David MorganDr David Morgan

David Morgan was Chief Executive Officer of Westpac Banking Corporation from 1999 to 2007, is a non-executive director of BHP Billiton Ltd, and was also chairman of the Australian Bankers' Association.

Prior to joining Westpac, Dr Morgan worked at the International Monetary Fund in Washington in the 1970s and the Federal Treasury in the 1980s, where he contributed to government policy for the financial sector, specifically supporting the floating of the Australian dollar as well as financial deregulation more generally.

Dr Morgan holds a bachelor degree in economics, and also received a Master of Science in Economics and a Doctorate of Philosophy (Economics) from the London School of Economics.


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Mr Roger Beale AOMr Roger Beale AO

Mr Roger Beale AO is a Senior Associate with The Allen Consulting Group. He served for close to 20 years at departmental head level in the Commonwealth Government and retired in 2004 after eight years as portfolio secretary of the Department of Environment and Heritage. He was a lead author for the UN’s Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report and has had a close involvement in the development of greenhouse policy in the Commonwealth, with the States and internationally.

Mr Beale was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1995 in recognition of his contribution to economic reform and was awarded the Centenary Medal for leadership of the environment portfolio in 2001. In 2006 he was promoted to be an Officer in the Order of Australia in recognition of his contribution to the development of national environment policy.

Mr Beale has a BA majoring in History and Law from the University of Queensland, studied economics at the ANU and completed a Master of Industrial and Labor Relations (Economics) at Cornell University. He was a Harkness Fellow from 1973 to 1975 and President of the Economic Society of Australia (ACT branch) from 1999 to 2001. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management.


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Mr Tim Fischer ACMr Tim Fischer AC

After a 13 year career in State politics, Mr Fischer went into Federal politics in 1984 when he won the federal seat of Farrer for the National Party. He became Leader of the party in 1990. Tim Fischer was Deputy Prime Minister of Australia from 1996 to 1999.

In July 1999 he announced his resignation as National Party Leader, Trade Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. He retired in 2001 to spend more time with his family.

Since leaving Federal Politics he has taken on a wide range of roles and responsibilities. Most recently, in November 2007, he was appointed National Chairman of the Flying Doctor Service.

In 2004 the South Australian government appointed him Special Envoy for the Adelaide to Darwin railway, and he was awarded a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) in 2005. In June 2007 Mr Fischer completed a three-year term as Chairman of Tourism Australia.

He is a patron and ambassador for a number of charitable and not for profit organisations.


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Professor Michael GoodProfessor Michael Good

Professor Michael Good is the Director of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, the past President of the Association of Australian Medical Research Institutes, and the past Director of the Cooperative Research Centre for Vaccine Technology.

In 2006 he was appointed as Chair of the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia. He graduated MD PhD DSc from the University of Queensland and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne. He undertook postdoctoral training as a Visiting Scientist at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.


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Mr Tim Costello AOMr Tim Costello AO

Tim Costello became the Chief Executive of World Vision Australia in February 2004. Mr Costello studied law and education at Monash University, followed by theology at the International Baptist Seminary Rueschlikon in Switzerland, and a Masters in Theology at the Melbourne College of Divinity.

As a Baptist Minister, he established an active ministry at St Kilda Baptist Church between 1986 and 1994, and was mayor of St Kilda from 1993-94. From 1995 to 2004, Tim was Minister at the Collins Street Baptist Church and Executive Director of Urban Seed, a not-for-profit Christian outreach service for the urban poor. He was also the National President of the Baptist Union of Australia from 1999 to 2002.

In 2004, Mr Costello was awarded Victorian of the Year, in 2005 was Victorian Australian of the Year and also in June 2005, was made an Officer of the Order of Australia. He is currently Chairman of the National Australia Bank Community Advisory Council, a member of the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation, and a member of the National Aid Advisory Council. He has been voted as one of Australia’s 100 National Living Treasures.


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Dr Jackie Huggins AMDr Jackie Huggins AM

Dr Huggins is a woman of the Bidjara/Birri-Gubba Juru peoples, and the Deputy Director of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit at the University of Queensland. Historian and published author, she was a member of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation for six years. She is a director of the Telstra Foundation; director of the Silver Lining Foundation; and a member of the Indigenous Reference Group of the Queensland Centre of Domestic and Family Violence Research, Central Queensland University.


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Ms Cate BlanchettMs Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in 1992. She won both the Sydney Theatre Critics Circle Best Newcomer Award (Kafka Dances) and the Best Lead Actress Award (Oleanna) in 1993, becoming the first person to win both awards in the same year.

Following the 1997 film Paradise Road, she has subsequently starred in 28 major film roles. Her work has been acknowledged both at home and internationally with AFI, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Academy Awards. Cate has also been awarded the Centenary Medal for Service to Australian Society through Acting.

Cate is an Ambassador for the Australian Film Institute and the Australian Conservation Foundation, and is a Patron of the Sydney Film Festival. Cate was appointed to the Australian Museum Trust in 2007.

Alongside Andrew Upton, Cate Blanchett is Co-Artistic Director, Co-CEO and Board Member of the Sydney Theatre Company.


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Dr Julianne SchultzDr Julianne Schultz

On 14 April 2008, the Prime Minister announced that Dr Schultz would act as an additional co-chair for the Creative Australia discussion area.

Dr Schultz is an accomplished author and academic. A former journalist, Dr Schultz is a Professor at the Centre for Public Culture and Ideas at Griffith University and the author/editor of more than 20 books. Dr Schultz is also the founding editor of Griffith REVIEW, an award-winning topical literary and public affairs quarterly.

Dr Schultz was General Manager, Corporate Strategy and Communications at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation 1998-2000, and prior to this, was the Perspectives Editor and columnist at The Courier Mail. Before returning to full-time journalism, Dr Schultz was the Associate Professor of Journalism and the founding director of the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism at the University of Technology Sydney.


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Mr John HartiganMr John Hartigan

John Hartigan heads News Corporation’s Australian operations as chairman and chief executive officer of News Limited.

Mr Hartigan began his career as a cadet reporter at John Fairfax & Sons. He joined News Limited in 1970 as a journalist on the Daily Mirror, later becoming its news editor.

In 1980 he was posted to The Sun in London and then the New York Post. Upon his return to Australia, Mr Hartigan became editor of Queensland’s Sunday Sun, and later the founding editor of the Brisbane metropolitan daily, The Daily Sun, while also a director of Queensland Sun Newspapers.

In 1986, Mr Hartigan became editor of The Daily Telegraph, and three years later was promoted to editor-in-chief of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph.

In 1997, Mr Hartigan was appointed group editorial director, the company’s most senior editorial position responsible for the editorial direction of all of the company’s newspapers.

He was appointed chief executive officer of News Limited in 2000 and chairman and chief executive officer in 2005.

Mr Hartigan is a director of News Limited and its subsidiary companies, Queensland Press , Advertiser Newspapers and The Herald and Weekly Times Limited. He is also chairman of Australian News Channel which owns and operates Sky News and a director of FOXTEL.

Among his external board and community responsibilities he is a director of The Bradman Foundation, the American Australian Association and the NSW Wine Industry Council.


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Professor Michael WesleyProfessor Michael Wesley

Michael Wesley is Professor of International Relations and Director of the Griffith Asia Institute at Griffith University. Prior to taking up this position in July 2004, he was the Assistant Director-General for Transnational Issues at the Office of National Assessments. Before he joined ONA, he was a Senior Lecturer in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of New South Wales and a Research Fellow at the Asia-Australia Institute, also at UNSW.

Professor Wesley’s books include: Casualties of the New World Order: The Causes of Failure of UN Missions to Civil Wars (1997), Making Australian Foreign Policy (2003, second edition 2007) (co-authored with Allan Gyngell), and the edited collections, Regional Organisations of the Asia-Pacific: Exploring Institutional Change (2003) and Energy Security in Asia (2006). His latest book is The Howard Paradox: Australian Diplomacy in Asia, 1996-2006 (2007).

Professor Wesley is the Editor of the Australian Journal of International Affairs, a member of the Australian Member Committee of the Council for Security Co-operation in the Asia-Pacific (AUS-CSCAP) and a member of the National Executive of the Australian Institute of International Affairs.