Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The government has taken a number of decisions, which I am pleased to report to the House. I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Philip Lowe as the next Governor of the Reserve Bank when the current governor, Mr Glenn Stevens, finishes his term on 17 September 2016. It is important for markets and things of that nature that there is continuity in these matters and that these issues are well telegraphed, particularly for such a sensitive position, so we have taken the decision as a government.

I am pleased to announce that Dr Philip Lowe will be the next Governor of the Reserve Bank. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role of governor, having served as the deputy governor since early 2012, having headed up many of the RBA's analytical departments and having published on a wide range of issues relevant to the operation of monetary policy over his three-decade career with the RBA.

Dr Lowe also served as head of the Financial Institutions and Infrastructure Division of the Bank for International Settlements between 2000 and 2002, where he authored important research on the financial stability role of central banks in low-inflation environments. Dr Lowe earned a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after being awarded the university medal for his undergraduate studies in economics at the University of New South Wales. Dr Lowe is well regarded in the central banking community, the financial markets and the Australian business community, and will, I have no doubt, reinforce existing confidence in the institution. I am also confident that Dr Lowe will support the Reserve Bank Board in successfully discharging its duties under the act and in managing and setting the strategic direction for the RBA.

The Governor of the Reserve Bank tells me that, in his opinion, Dr Lowe is the most qualified person to have ever been appointed to the role. I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to Governor Stevens, but there will be an opportunity to say more about that at a later time. I am sure other members in this place would like to take that opportunity—should they be in this place to be able to do so—at that later time. The appointment of Dr Lowe will create a vacancy at the deputy governor level in the RBA, the filling of which will be considered in the second half of the year.

I am also pleased to announce today the appointment of Professor Ian Harper as a part-time member of the Reserve Bank Board for a five-year term from 31 July 2016. He will be taking up the position that will be vacated by Dr Edwards on 30 July 2016. Professor Harper's combined experience in public policy development and academia will enable him to make a very strong contribution to the Reserve Bank Board's deliberations. He recently chaired the competition policy review, served as a member of the Financial System Inquiry and was the inaugural chairman of the Australian Fair Pay Commission. He brings strong academic credentials as an economist to the Reserve Bank Board, having spent two decades as a professor at the University of Melbourne—first as the NAB Professor of Monetary and Financial Economics and then as the Ian Potter Professor of International Finance and the Sidney Myer Professor of Commerce and Business Administration at the Melbourne Business School.

I also want to thank Dr Edwards for his important contribution to the Reserve Bank Board deliberations during a challenging period for the economy. I thank him for his service and I wish him every success.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On brief indulgence, Mr Speaker, can I firstly acknowledge the service of Glenn Stevens as Governor of the Reserve Bank. When you think of the 10 years of service of Governor Stevens, it was a very tumultuous 10 years in the Australian economy through the highs of the mining boom, through the global financial crisis and through the recovery. The Reserve Bank is a vital national economic institution and Governor Stevens has led it very well for 10 years. He is in the front rank of central bank governors around the world, and I know the member for Lilley joins with me in wishing Governor Stevens the best.

I also welcome the appointment of Dr Lowe as Governor of the Reserve Bank. Dr Lowe is one of the finest Australian economists of his generation. He joined the Reserve Bank in 1980 and has only interrupted his service for his doctoral studies at MIT and a secondment to the Bank for International Settlements in Switzerland. As the Treasurer knows, I have previously expressed a view that in this period the Treasurer should be consulting the opposition, but, if he had consulted on this measure, I would have supported the appointment of Dr Lowe as an appropriate one and one which is in the best interests of the bank.

I also want to pay tribute to Dr John Edwards for his service. He has been a very fine servant of our nation. He joined TheAustralian Financial Review in 1970 and has worked in both the public and private sectors. He has a claim for his contribution to the Australian economy over the last 40 or so years—it has been a very substantial one—and I know that Dr Edwards will serve the Australian economy in different ways into the future. I will say that I do believe Dr Edwards would have been very suitably qualified for appointment to a second term. I do believe that he would have been very suitably qualified to continue his service to the Reserve Bank. I note that that is not the decision that has been taken, but I believe that a second term would have been entirely appropriate given Dr Edwards's long and meritorious service and his outstanding knowledge of the Australian economy. I do, however, also acknowledge Professor Ian Harper's appointment to the board and wish him well.