The inaugural appointments of an economics professor and a regional bank boss to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s new interest rate-setting board have been announced.
Australian National University professor Renee Fry-McKibbin and former Bendigo and Adelaide Bank chief executive Marnie Baker will make up the central bank’s new monetary policy board alongside four permanent RBA board members, it was announced on Monday Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
The RBA board has been split in two and its rate-setting powers will be taken over by the monetary policy board, while a separate board will be responsible for the bank’s governance, aligning it with its international counterparts.
The RBA reform comes after an independent review of the central bank’s operations that criticized the current board’s decision-making and its ability to hold the governor to account.
Other measures recommended by the review have already been implemented, including regular press conferences by the governor following rate decisions and reducing the number of board meetings per year from 11 to eight.
Professor Fry-McKibbin sat on the three-person review panel and has held leadership positions in the economics and social sciences community in both Australia and the UK.
Ms Baker, who is also a former vice president of the Australian Banking Association, brings to her role a deep knowledge of Australia’s financial system and an important regional perspective, the treasurer said.
The coalition has called for the monetary policy council to be made up entirely of members of the current Reserve Bank board to avoid the possibility of the government stacking it with pro-Labour appointees.
Jim Chalmers has announced the inaugural appointments of an economics professor and a regional bank boss to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s new interest rate-setting board.
After delays in passing RBA reforms through parliament, Labor finally sealed a deal with the Greens after agreeing to retain the government’s powers to override the bank’s rate decisions.
Former Business Council of Australia chief executive Jennifer Westacott, former Telstra chief executive David Thodey, business leader Danny Gilbert and banking executive Swati Dave are the new faces joining the governing board.
All members of the current reserve bank board will continue to serve on one of the two boards.