By Nick Bonyhady and Stephen Brook
Former Liberal leader Brendan Nelson’s absence from the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, which he ran for seven years until late 2019, has proved short-lived.
The Howard-era defence minister will be back in the building as a member of its governing council after Veterans’ Affairs Minister Andrew Gee decided he was just the man for the job after Kerry Stokes, the self-made billionaire owner of Channel Seven and outgoing chair, decided it was time to leave the board.
Brendan Nelson and Kerry Stokes.Credit: John Shakespeare
Those in the know predict Nelson will have a quick ride to the top and replace Stokes as chair, to go with his day job as local president of aerospace and defence giant Boeing.
Stokes’ role at the institution drew praise but was also controversial, in part because of his support of Ben Roberts-Smith, the former SAS soldier and executive for Stokes’ Seven West Media, who is on leave, and is suing The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age over allegations of war crimes, which he denies.
Evidently none of that has troubled Gee, who issued a statement overflowing with praise for Stokes, who has sat on the War Memorial Council for 15 years. He was thanked for his “passion, leadership and vision” as well as work on its polarising $500 million expansion.
SUMMER HOLIDAY
Chief communications officer Bruce Meagher has parted ways with the corporate regulator. Meagher, who previously worked at SBS and also Foxtel, joined ASIC in August 2019 for what turned out to be an eventful time.
There was fallout from royal commissions aplenty – namely the Banking Royal Commission and the Crown Royal Commission – not to mention the pandemic.
Former chair James Shipton decided to leave his post two years short of fulfilling his five-year tenure after the Auditor-General raised concerns about expenses paid by the corporate watchdog to prepare his tax returns. A formal review later cleared him of wrongdoing.
And then there was ASIC’s investigation into a relatively anonymous financial advisor from Sydney’s eastern suburbs, Melissa Caddick, who has become a household name in death.
Meagher’s departure comes nearly a year after the government appointed Joseph Longo as ASIC chair and on the cusp of a federal election.
Meagher finishes up at Easter and then takes off for a trip to the United States and London, where he is planning a pub catch up in London and a side trip to the Cotswolds, if anyone can recommend a good Airbnb.
ASIC senior executive leader, corporate affairs, Rebecca Parish, will act in his role while a replacement is recruited.
ENCORE, ENCORE!
Scott Morrison’s favourite singer, the multilingual superstar Tina Arena, is making an encore appearance on the board of the Australia Council for the Arts, despite a spotty attendance record.
In 2020-21 Arena made it to just two out of six meetings of the board that oversees the country’s most important arts funding organisation, and four out of nine the year before.
Like the rest of the creative sector, Arena had a rough time during the pandemic but has bounced back, putting in a turn as artistic director of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival.
“We’ve all got something in our wardrobe that it’s probably time we took out, dusted off and put back on,” she told South Australian site InDaily.
As for whether Arena’s attendance record in the Australia Council role, worth $36,750 last year, has bounced back too, the council wouldn’t say. Instead, it emailed a statement eerily reminiscent of one your columnists previously received on the same topic.
Arena’s representative did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but Communications and Arts Minister Paul Fletcher, who made the appointment, was more than happy to give his public blessing.
“Ms Arena brings extensive experience to the Australia Council Board as a singer, songwriter and recording artist. I’m pleased she has accepted a further three-year term on the board.” Clearly, he’s a fan too.
THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENED
It looks like the COVID cluster we reported on from last month’s star-studded Melbourne premiere of blockbuster musical Hamilton is growing.
Premier Daniel Andrews had the virus and is now out of isolation, but the lurgy has spread to members of his family.
Wife Catherine, pictured with the Prem in a date night Instagram selfie from the dress circle at Her Majesty’s Theatre, complete with Hamilton face masks, has contracted the virus, while results have been mixed for their brood, who also attended. Daughter Grace has the virus, and son Noah tested positive on Tuesday, while other son Joseph is playing a waiting game.
At his press conference on Tuesday, the Premier referred to Casa del Andrews when talking about the call by some (including opposition leader Matthew Guy) to scrap the rule that household contacts have to stay home for seven days.
“I see some people [saying], ‘well, you know, there was no infection in my household so that should be the rule for every household’. Well, in my house, despite our best efforts, that’s not what happened.”
Other Hamilton COVID casualties included Victoria’s Governor Linda Dessau, Tourism Minister Martin Pakula and federal shadow minister Tony Burke.