Industry and Science minister Ed Husic is set to be dropped from federal Cabinet, a casualty of post-election factional jostling for positions in Anthony Albanese’s second ministry.
But regardless of the composition of the Cabinet or who is named to lead the portfolio, there remains a long list of overhanging work that needs urgent attention, tech sector leaders say.
The first meeting of the Labor caucus in Canberra on Friday is hugely consequential for the tech industry. It will confirm the key personnel who will deliver technology policy over the next three years.
The senior leadership team looks steady, with Treasurer Jim Chalmers, Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, Senate leader Penny Wong and Leader of the House Tony Burke each to retain those roles, in addition to deputy leader and Defence Minister Richard Marles.
But Mr Husic is understood to have been dropped to address what had become an over-representation in Cabinet of members of the NSW Right.
The information technology sector has traditionally looked to the Industry portfolio for its primary base of support in the federal level.
But this seems to have shifted, with many now calling for a bigger role for Treasury and other central agencies to drive the benefits – particularly the productivity benefits – of artificial intelligence and other tech-based tools.
A lot of this will become clearer on Friday. After better that expected results enlarged the caucus, the NSW Right faction looks to have been forced to relinquish a seat. The members of the NSW Right in Cabinet are Tony Burke, Chris Bowen (Minister for Climate Change and Industry), Michelle Rowland (Communications), Jason Clare (Education) and Ed Husic (Industry).
Of this group, Ed Husic is the lowest ranking member, despite having been in Parliament since 2010. It was for this reason that Mr Husic stepped out of the shadow ministry in 2019, to make room for then- senator Kristina Keneally.
A change of minister in the portfolio is not a surprise. Labor fulfilled its commitment to return some stability to the portfolio, with Mr Husic the first Industry minister to serve out a full term for more than a decade.
But industry leaders are just as keen to see a reshaping of industrial policy oversight across the whole-of-government, and the shifting of responsibilities for artificial intelligence, data centres and other productivity enhancing technology from the Industry portfolio to Treasury.
Sections of the tech sector have called for the appointment of a Digital Economy minister – which would include managing the upside of AI – within Treasury, and with policy measures more directly connected to the Budget process.
The two priority programs that the tech sector wants government to focus on are the completion of the Strategic Examination of Research and Development (SERD) being conducted jointly by Industry and Treasury, and the creation of National AI Capability Plan that was announced belatedly in December last year and is being coordinated by Industry.
It is on artificial intelligence, data centre infrastructure and the improved performance of the digital economy where tech sector leaders contacted by InnovationAus.com say there is the most urgent need for action.
There is an emerging view that a single minister be given oversight of these core tech sector issues, and that the minister have fundamental expertise in economics and be located in Treasury – given the focus in the current term on productivity, as articulated by Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
Among the candidates expected to be elevated to Mr Albanese’s second ministry is the Victorian MP Dan Mulino, who has a doctorate in Economics from Yale University, and Victorian senator Jess Walsh, who has a doctorate in Economic Geography from the University of Melbourne.
The Member for Parramatta Andrew Charlton, who was first elected to Parliament at the 2022 election, has a doctorate in Economics from Oxford University and has long been talked about as a candidate for advancement. Dr Charlton’s membership of the squeezed NSW Right might make this difficult.
The retirement from the Parliament of Assistant Minister for Financial Services Stephen Jones has opened a junior minister position in the Treasury.
Senator Tim Ayres, from the Labor Left faction in NSW is expected to advance and is a contender for the Industry portfolio.
The other position that is being closely watched by the tech industry is what happens to the Government Services role that was vacated by the now retired Bill Shorten, with responsibilities handed to Finance Minister Katy Gallagher.
There is an huge opportunity for whoever is appointed Minister for Government Services to put their mark on Mr Albanese’s next term.
Anyone paying attention to the positive impact that Victor Dominello had in NSW as Minister for Customer Service – the same portfolio by another name – will see that opportunity.
There are 30 places in the ministry, not enough to keep everyone happy.
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