Jane Halton

Sarah Jane "Jane" Halton AO PSM (born 4 January 1960) is a former senior Australian public servant. She was the head of the Department of Health between January 2002 and June 2014 and the head of the Department of Finance from 2014 to 2016. She joined the board of ANZ Bank in October 2016. She will commence as the Independent Chair of COTA Australia (Council on the Ageing) in December 2017.

Jane Halton AO PSM
Jane Halton addresses World Health Organization as president of the 60th World Health Assembly in 2007
Secretary of the Department of Finance
In office 27 June 2014 – 15 October 2016
Secretary of the Department of Health
In office 18 September 2013 – 27 June 2014
Secretary of the Department of Health and Ageing
In office January 2002 – 18 September 2013
Personal details
Born	Sarah Jane Halton 4 January 1960 Wickwar, Gloucestershire, England
Nationality	Australian
Spouse(s)	Trevor Sutton[1]
Children	2 sons
Alma mater	Australian National University
Occupation	Public servant

Background and early life

Jane Halton was born on 4 January 1960 in Wickwar, Gloucestershire, England.[2] She and her family moved to Australia in 1973 when her father, Charles Halton, was recruited from Canada by the Whitlam Government to lead the Department of Transport.[2] Jane Halton has an Honours degree in psychology from the Australian National University.[3]

Career

Halton's first joined the Australian Public Service in the Australian Bureau of Statistics.[4]

As a Deputy Secretary in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Halton was convener of the People Smuggling Taskforce in the Children Overboard Affair.[5][6]

Prime Minister John Howard appointed Jane Halton as Secretary of the new Department of Health and Ageing in January 2002.[7][8] The Department was reformed as the Department of Health in September 2013, when the Abbott Government was elected, and Halton remained at the head. During this time, Halton was responsible for providing advice to government on issues including the administration of Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and private health insurance, and for implementing a $60 billion budget.[1] While she was Health Secretary, Halton led the development of the first Memorandum of Understanding between Medicines Australia and the Australian Government, in 2010.[9][10]

In June 2014, Halton was appointed Secretary of the Department of Finance.[11] Halton identified strengthening the performance framework for measuring the impact of Australian Government programs and services as a priority in the role, with a focus on streamlining, boosting transparency and providing a greater level of accountability.[12] She also emphasised the scope of work harnessing technology to deliver public services more efficiently across government agencies into different platforms.[12]

Halton announced her resignation, set for 15 October 2016, on 16 September 2016.[13][14][15] After stepping down as Secretary, Halton was appointed to the board of the ANZ Bank[16] and Vault Systems.[17]

Halton is chair of the global Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations[18][19] and in March 2020 was appointed to the executive board of the Australian National COVID-19 Coordination Commission.[20]

Awards and honours

Halton was awarded the Public Service Medal in 2002 and the Centenary Medal in 2003.[21]

In 2014, Halton was ranked number eight in The Australian Women's Weekly Power List of Australia's 50 most powerful women.[22]

Halton was created an Officer of the Order of Australia in June 2015.[23] She was made an Honorary Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (FAHMS) in 2015.[24]

Notes

1. Raggatt, Matthew (11 June 2014). "Canberra's power couples - the cream of the crop". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 30 June 2014.
2. Maher, Sid, Jane Halton, News Corp Australia, archived from the original on 30 May 2012
3. Kingston, Margo (29 June 2002). "The fall girl". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013.
4. Easton, Stephen (16 September 2016). "Jane jumps: Finance boss Halton calls it quits". The Mandarin. Private Media. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
5. Malone 2006, p. 130.
6. "Reith and Jane Halton will have to be sacrificed". Crikey. 17 February 2002. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013.
7. "Meet Australia's most powerful public servants". News.com.au. News Corp Australia. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013.
8. Howard, John (18 January 2002). "SENIOR APPOINTMENTS - DEPARTMENTAL SECRETARIES" (Press release). Archived from the original on 10 November 2013.
9. Haggan, Megan (16 September 2016). "Jane Halton resigns, thanked by stakeholders". AJP.com.au. APPco Pty Ltd. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
10. "Memorandum of Understanding with Medicines Australia" (Press release). Australian Government. 28 September 2010. Archived from the original on 1 August 2016.
11. Belot, Henry (26 June 2014). "Jane Halton appointed head of the Department of Finance". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 26 June 2014.
12. Easton, Stephen (20 November 2014). "Jane Halton on central reform from her new Finance fiefdom". The Mandarin.
13. Towell, Noel (16 September 2016). "Finance Department secretary Jane Halton quits". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 18 September 2016. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
14. McDonald, Kate (16 September 2016). ""Lovechild of COAG": Jane Halton resigns from public service". Pulse IT Magazine. Archived from the original on 17 September 2016.
15. Crowe, David (17 September 2016). "Mandarin Jane Halton steps down after 33 years in public service". The Australian. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
16. Roddan, Michael (21 October 2016). "Former top federal public servant Jane Halton joins ANZ board". The Australian. News Corp. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
17. LaFrenz, Carrie (6 November 2017). "Vault Systems attracts Moelis, former mandarins Jane Halton, Dennis Richardson". The Australian Financial Review. News Corp. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
18. Morton, Rick (28 March 2020). "Inside the hunt for a vaccine". The Saturday Paper. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
19. "A global coalition for a global problem". Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
20. "National COVID-19 Coordination Commission". Prime Minister of Australia (Press release). 25 March 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
21. IHCC Speakers: Official Opening—Ms Jane Halton, AAPM & QIP, 2013
22. "Jane Halton: Secretary of the Department of Finance". The Australian Women's Weekly. Bauer Media Group. Archived from the original on 25 November 2014.
23. Mannheim, Markus (8 June 2015). "Queen's Birthday honours: Finance Department's Jane Halton leads way for women". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media.
24. "Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Health & Medical Sciences - October 2015" (PDF). Australian Academy of Health & Medical Sciences. Retrieved 12 October 2018.

References and further reading

• Malone, Paul (2006), "Chapter 19: Taking the 'Hospital Pass' – Jane Halton, Department of Health and Ageing", Australian department heads under Howard : career paths and practice (PDF), Canberra: The Australian National University, pp. 129–136, ISBN 1-920942-83-1, archived from the original (PDF) on 6 November 2013