NSW Liberal MLC Jacqui Munro, a former adviser to Gladys Berejiklian during her time as treasurer in the Baird government, has been named shadow assistant minister for innovation and digital government.
Ms Munro was appointed to the newly created role on Sunday as part of a major reshuffle of the NSW Liberals that was largely overshadowed by the federal government new-look ministry.
The first-time shadow assistant minister takes on the role as the NSW opposition prepares for a “fight” around innovation, entrepreneurship and digital government policy at the next election.
“Without champions for better productivity, improved digital infrastructure, and economic diversification, NSW will fall behind other states, and nations,” Ms Munro told InnovationAus.com.
“The Labor government is jeopardising our prosperity, with productivity now plummeting to the second lowest rate of all states. Under the Coalition, we led the nation in multi-factor productivity over a decade.”
Ms Munro entered NSW Parliament in March 2023 as the youngest Liberal woman ever elected to the Legislative Council and the NSW Liberal Party’s first LGBTQI+ woman parliamentarian.
Before entering politics at the 2023 state election, the 34-year-old was the president of the NSW Liberal Party’s women’s council and had spent several years working in public relations in Sydney.
She also worked for several NSW and federal parliamentarians in her early career, including former Liberal MP and one-time Treasurer Gladys Berejiklian, as well as a media advisor during the Australian Marriage Equality campaign.
Over the last 16 months in the NSW Parliament, Ms Munro has spent much of her time advocating for the technology and innovation sector, initially rallying against the government’s decision to pause the popular MVP Ventures program for six months last year.
Ms Munro also said decisions by the government to axe roles like the Modern Manufacturing Commissioner and Chief Data Scientist, and slash funding for the Innovation and Productivity Council are “major government failures”.
More recently, the MLC has sat on several parliamentary committees, including the Premier and Finance Committee conducting the high-profile artificial intelligence inquiry, which last week urged the government to appoint a Chief AI Officer.
“Innovation, entrepreneurialism and digital technologies are such exciting policy spaces with so much potential to contribute to our economy, society and prosperity,” she said.
Mark Coure, who remains shadow minister for innovation, science and technology, has welcomed the appointment of the “very capable Jacqui Munro to advance our plans for the sector”.
“Why do we need a shadow assistant minister for innovation and digital government now? Because Labor government ministers have demonstrated that they cannot effectively speak up for innovation and are unwilling to engage with the sector,” he said.
“From government procurement and bootstrapping startups to protecting innovation districts like Macquarie Park and building a tech-skilled workforce, the Coalition is preparing to fight for innovation, entrepreneurship and digital government at the next election.”
Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology Anoulack Chanthivong, who last year flagged a planned reset of the state’s industry policy is yet to release the new policy.
The Innovation Blueprint, which Investment NSW began consulting on in February, has also not yet materialised. The blueprint seeks to cultivate a more collaborative, less transactional relationship with innovators.
Earlier this month, the Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade was carved up and renamed, with Investment NSW and the Office of the Chief Scientist moving to the Premier’s Department.
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