Lawyer and former chief counsel Alice Linacre has been appointed as Australia’s new permanent Freedom of Information Commissioner, replacing Toni Pirani.
Ms Linacre, who will take up the role at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner from late September, is the third FOI commissioner to be appointed in less than three years.
She comes to the role with extensive experience as a senior legal practitioner within the public service, including as a one-time chief counsel at the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources.
Since 2022, the OAIC has had three FOI commissioners, including Leo Hardiman, who quit a year into the role in March 2023, and Elizabeth Tydd, who moved into the Information Commissioner role in August 2024.
Ms Pirani filled the role on a 12-month term following Ms Tydd’s departure, as previously reported by InnovationAus.com.
Services Australia has appointed Tenille Collins as its new chief data officer after acting in the role, which was recommended in the aftermath of Robodebt.
Ms Collins moves into the role following time as general manager of Data Platforms, a role where she oversaw work on delivering real-time data services and the agency’s broader digital transformation agenda.
National Data Commissioner Gayle Milnes will step down and retire from the public service on 22 August. The commissioner’s departure brings to a close three years in the role of overseeing the development and implementation of data governance frameworks across government.
Andrew Taylor will act as National Data Commissioner from 23 August on an interim basis, with the Department of Finance issuing an expression of interest to appoint an acting national data commissioner for a period of 6 months.
As reported by InnovationAus.com, former chief scientist Dr Cathy Foley has been appointed the next president of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, replacing outgoing president Katherine Woodthorpe.
Michael Webb has been appointed chief information officer at the Department of Parliamentary Services, responsible for modernising ICT systems supporting Parliament House, including cyber security and digital infrastructure. He replaces James Lawson, who has stepped down after being on leave since March.
Former Queensland deputy premier Jackie Trad has been appointed chief executive officer of the Clean Energy Council. Ms Trad takes the helm of the industry peak body at a time of rapid transition in the energy sector, as renewable projects scale up to meet federal and state decarbonisation targets.
Dominic Price, Atlassian’s long-time “work futurist” and one of the software company’s most high-profile culture leaders, has announced his departure after 12 years. In a LinkedIn farewell, Mr Price cited his role leading experimentation with new ways of working.
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