6 January 2026

The Capital Water Cooler: Comings and goings in the public sector

| By Andrew McLaughlin
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headshots of a man and two women

Jane Supit (left) is the new Deputy Chief Solicitor at the office of the Australian Government Solicitor. Jesse Murphy (centre) has been appointed as Senior Executive Lawyer at the Australian Government Solicitor. Terresa Bui has been appointed as Chief of Staff of AUSTRAC. Photos: Australian Government Solicitor and LinkedIn.

A breakdown of the latest appointments and moves in the Australian Public Service, the wider public sector and across the public services of the states and territories.

APS Senior Executive Service

Band 1

Jesse Murphy has been appointed as Senior Executive Lawyer at the Australian Government Solicitor.

Katia Tsiolkas has been promoted to Compliance Branch general manager at the Clean Energy Regulator.

Terresa Bui has been appointed as Chief of Staff of the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) within the Department of Home Affairs.

Stephanie Aeuckens has been promoted to Assistant Secretary, Policy and Program Management in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Rohan Haslam is the new Deputy Director Corporate at the National Museum of Australia.

Band 2

Jane Supit is the new Deputy Chief Solicitor at the office of the Australian Government Solicitor.

Lisa Barlin has been appointed as Chief Operating Officer of Defence Housing Australia.

Shane West has been promoted to executive general manager, property in Defence Housing Australia.

Jennifer Stace has been appointed as First Assistant Secretary, Domestic Aviation and Reform in the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts.

Band 3

Celia Street has been appointed as Deputy Secretary of the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.

portraits of a man and two women

Jennifer Stace (left) has been appointed as First Assistant Secretary, Domestic Aviation and Reform in the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts. Rohan Haslam is the new Deputy Director Corporate at the National Museum of Australia. Katia Tsiolkas has been promoted to Compliance Branch general manager at the Clean Energy Regulator. Photos: DITRDCSA, National Museum of Australia, LinkedIn.

Other federal appointments

The Federal Government announced on 23 December the appointment of four new judges to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2). Amelia Edwards and Philippa Mitchell have been appointed to the Melbourne Registry, Corey Jenkins to the Townsville Registry, and Frances Neilson to the Parramatta Registry of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, with all appointments effective from 3 February.

On 23 December, Professor Zoe Wainer was appointed as the first Director-General of the Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC) from 1 March, to succeed Acting Director-General Paul McCormack.

Professor Wainer brings more than two decades of leadership across government, healthcare, academia and global health, and currently serves as Deputy Secretary for Community and Public Health in the Victorian Department of Health.

On 19 December, the government announced the reappointment of Peter Duncan as chair and Dr Collette Burke as deputy chair of the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) Board for further three-year terms.

Mr Duncan has been the chair of the ARTC Board since January 2023. Dr Burke has served as a non-executive director of the ARTC Board since January 2023, was appointed ARTC deputy chair in June 2025, and currently serves as the interim chair of the Inland Rail Pty Limited Board.

On 19 December, the government announced the appointment of a new convener, deputy convener and four new members to the Classification Review Board, an independent statutory body set up to review Classification Board decisions.

The appointments include the Deputy General Counsel at the New South Wales Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water and board director of the Royal Zoological Society, Alice Yan, as convener; and part-time member of the Review Board and Classification Officer at SBS, Damien Power, as deputy convener.

New members include senior legal and regulatory professional Bonnie Cooney; arbitration consultant and teaching associate Brook Hely; media production, communications and business professional Wendy Jasper; and General Counsel for Australian children’s entertainment group The Wiggles, Matthew Salgo.

The government announced on 19 December the reappointment of Siobhan McKenna as chair and Robyn Clubb as a non-executive director of the Australia Post Board for further three-year terms.

On 17 December, the former Chief of the Royal Australian Navy Vice Admiral (Ret’d) Russell Crane was appointed as the new commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) for an initial three-year term.

VADM Crane served in the RAN for 40 years before retiring as Chief in 2011, and will succeed Gary Prosser as commissioner.

Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Amanda Rishworth announced on 16 December that Natalie James will conclude her term as Secretary of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations on 18 January, and that Tania Rishniw will act as Secretary until a permanent replacement is appointed.

On 11 December, Attorney-General Michelle Rowland announced the appointment of Craig Lenehan SC as a judge of the Federal Court of Australia.

The government announced on 11 December the appointment of Ben Quilty, and the reappointment of Sally Scales, as members of the National Gallery of Australia Council.

On 2 December, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King announced the appointment of private equity investment and banking specialist Neil MacDonald as the new chief executive officer of the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) for a five-year term, to succeed Craig Doyle, who is retiring.

Mr MacDonald previously served as CFO of the government-owned National Intermodal Corporation Limited. He has previously worked as head of corporate finance for Mining and Primary Steel, head of corporate finance for Klesch Group Limited, and executive director and Head of Project Finance Asia Pacific for JP Morgan.

headshots of a man and two women

Lisa Barlin (left) has been appointed as chief operating officer of Defence Housing Australia. Retired Vice Admiral Russ Crane is the new commissioner of the ATSB. Professor Zoe Wainer will be the first Director-General of the Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC), from 1 March. Photos: DHA, ATSB, Victorian Department of Health.

Original Article published by Andrew McLaughlin on PS News.

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