New Faces on the National Library Council
Ms Janet McDonald (left) and Senator Russell
Trood
Under the National Library Act 1960 the affairs of the Library are conducted by a Council, consisting of 12 members including the Director-General, one senator elected by the Senate and one member of the House of Representatives elected by that House. The remaining members are appointed by the Governor-General, on the basis of their knowledge and experience across a range of areas including information technology, finance, and research and education. Recently there have been a number of changes to the Library Council, with the appointment of several new members representing a range of business and community interests.
Ms Janet McDonald AO was appointed on 22 March for a three-year term. Ms McDonald is a member of the Advisory Council of Cancer Australia and the Drug Utilisation Sub-committee of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. She is a former Chair of the National Breast Cancer Centre.
Senator Russell Trood, Senator for Queensland, has been appointed for a three-year term effective from 13 June. He serves on several parliamentary committees including the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties and the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, and is Joint Chair of the Joint Standing Committee on the Parliamentary Library. Prior to his election, Senator Trood was Associate Professor of International Relations and Director of the Centre for the Study of Australia-Asia Relations at Griffith University in Brisbane. He is the author of over 50 publications on international affairs and foreign policy.
Senator Trood replaces Senator George Brandis SC on Council, following Senator Brandis’ resignation to take up his appointment as Minister for Arts and Sports. Senator Brandis served on the Library Council from 14 March 2005 until 12 March 2007.
Ms McDonald and Senator Trood join other recent appointments to Council, Mr Geoffrey Lewis, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, ASG Group Limited, and Ms Deborah Thomas, Editorial Director, The Australian Women's Weekly and The Australian Women’s Weekly book division, both of whom joined Council in 2006.
The Library would like to acknowledge two other outgoing members of Council, Dr Colin Rubenstein AM and Ms Helen Williams AO. Dr Rubenstein, Executive Director of the Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council, left the National Library Council in February at the conclusion of his three-year term. Ms Williams served as a member of Council since March 2002 following her appointment as Secretary of the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts. With her move to the Departmental Secretary role at the Department of Human Services in May, Ms Williams resigned her position on Council. It is anticipated the new Secretary of the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Ms Patricia Scott, will be appointed to the Library Council to replace Ms Williams.
Details of all Council Members can be found on the Library website at http://www.nla.gov.au/council/.
Belinda Tiffen
Council Secretary, Office of Executive
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