AUSTRALIA (CelebrityAccess) – Prime Minister-elect Anthony Albanese announced his cabinet on Tuesday (May 31), and with it, Tony Burke has been named Australia’s Minister of the Arts. The new cabinet also makes history for women sitting in the cabinet (10) and its first Muslim ministers. Burke was sworn in on Wednesday (June 1).
Burke will take on outgoing minister Paul Fletcher’s art(s) portfolio, with Michelle Rowland taking the communications portion.
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) and Phonographic Performance Company of Australia Limited (PPCA) congratulated Burke on social media. They welcomed his desire to develop a cultural policy that “recognizes the true social, cultural, and economic value of music” via a statement.
Congratulations to new Arts Minister @Tony_Burke who gets sworn in tomorrow. We look forward to working with you and the @AlboMP Government on a plan to develop the next chapter of success for the great Australian music industry.@deanapra @pickardnr https://t.co/D3VLdxPhIR
— APRA AMCOS (@APRAAMCOS) May 31, 2022
The Australian music industry’s three-point plan, presented ahead of the election, focuses on direct investment in the creation of great new Australian music, skills development and global exports, incentivising the use of local content on streaming and broadcast platforms, insurance to provide certainty for local audiences and programs to build industry sustainability through strong intellectual property and national mentorship programs, as per The Music Network.
Other cabinet appointments include Mark Dreyfus as Attorney General, a position with responsibility overseeing copyright; and communications minister Michelle Rowland. Earlier in the week, Ford Ennals, CEO of Commercial Radio Australia (CRA), said Rowland is an “excellent appointment”.
