It’s certainly a good look to appoint the first Indigenous director of a major Australian company. But when he was previously the tax man, the picture blurs a little.
The appointment of former Western Australian Labor treasurer Ben Wyatt to the Rio Tinto and Woodside boards last week is at one level a great development because he is the first Indigenous director of any major Australian public company.
However, from a governance point of view, there really should be a cooling-off period before former politicians can be paid by corporate entities they used to regulate or tax — or under-tax, in the case of Wyatt and Rio Tinto.
Wyatt is the cousin of federal Liberal MP Ken Wyatt and retired from the WA parliament after a 15-year career at the state election in March.
You know you want to know about all the perks ahead for WA’s former treasurer…
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