Jessica Howard has joined City of Greater Bendigo as its new Director Corporate Performance.

Ms Howard was most recently Director Policy and Cabinet in the Office of the Victorian Premier, and has also worked as Director Infrastructure and Development at Mount Alexander Shire, and Chief of Staff to then transport infrastructure minister Jacinta Allan.

A former Councillor at Mount Alexander Shire, Ms Howard was also a Senior Policy Officer with the Cape York Land Council and lecturer at Melbourne University.

In her new role Ms Howard will lead the finance, IT, people and culture, governance, change and transformation, and customer experience and corporate planning units.

She’ll also support Council’s move to the Galkangu-Bendigo GovHub.

Ms Howard said she was delighted to accept the role.

“Having previously worked in local government and also served as a councillor, I understand the important leadership role a council has in a community,” she said. 

Bendigo CEO Craig Niemann said Ms Howard’s strong background in local and state government and her experience providing high level advice on strategy and policy made her a valuable addition to the team.

“Jessica has built a diverse career in government and advisory roles, while leading and supporting capable teams,” Mr Niemann said.

Ms Howard takes up the role on March 6.

Kerry Schott vacancy filled at NSW climate change advisory body

Judith Slatyer will take over as chair of the NSW Net Zero Emissions and Clean Economy Board, replacing Dr Kerry Schott who resigned last year.

Ms Slatyer has been a member of the board since December 2021.  She is also a member of the Organising Committee of the Climate Leaders Coalition and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the CSIRO. Ms Slatyer is a former CEO of the Australian Red Cross, Global COO of WWF and CEO of Lonely Planet.

John Lydon, Co-Chair of Australian Climate Leaders’ Coalition and Economic Commissioner at Greater Cities Commission, also comes onboard as a new board member.

Energy minister Matt Kean says under its new leadership the board, established in 2021, will continue to advise the government on climate policy and initiatives to reduce emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050.

“Judith Slatyer and John Lydon bring passion and a wealth of experience to the new roles, which will be invaluable for NSW to continue to lead the nation on climate action,” Mr Kean said.

Dr Schott, who resigned last year reportedly to avoid a conflict of interest after being appointed to the board of AGL Energy, is the author of a critical report into the Inland Rail, which is yet to be released by the federal government.

NSW government pledges Supply Chain Commissioner

The NSW government says if it is relected at the state election next month it will appoint a special commissioner to unblock supply chains and regulate the cost of groceries and goods.

The Supply Chain Commissioner will be tasked with immediately establishing a freight and logistics taskforce come up with ways of drive down transport costs for goods, Premier Dominic Perrottet says.

The Commissioner will work with the state’s’productivity and agriculture commissioners  to tackle truck driver shortages, tackle freight pinch points on the roads, ports and rail networks, and slash red tape.

Road Freight NSW CEO Simon O’Hara says better planning and more collaboration across the sector will create a stronger supply chain network.

“Freight is a $66 billion industry and COVID, bushfires and the recent floods have made it very clear we must invest in upgrading our freight corridors to be more resilient so we can keep goods moving and our economy ticking,” he said in a statement.