State Records Commissioners

The State Records Commission consists of three ex-officio members: the Auditor General, the Information Commissioner, and the Ombudsman; and a Governor's appointee with recordkeeping experience from outside Government (that is, someone who is not a public service officer under the terms of the Public Sector Management Act 1994).

The current members of the State Records Commission are:

Mr Colin Murphy
Auditor General
Ex-officio Member

Mr Sven Bluemmel
Information Commissioner
Ex-officio Member

Mr Chris Field (Chairperson)
Western Australian Ombudsman
Ex-officio Member

Ms Justine McDermott
Director, Information Governance Services at the University of Western Australia
Governor's Appointee

Mr Colin Murphy
Auditor General for Western Australia
Ex-officio Member
(Chair 2007 to March 2016 and
Commission member 2007- )
 

Colin Murphy is the Auditor General for Western Australia.

Prior to taking up his current role, Colin acted as Director General for the Department of Justice and then for the newly formed Department of the Attorney General.  Colin acted as Under Treasurer during the 2005 state election and the 2005-06 budget.

Colin has extensive experience in finance and administration in both State and Commonwealth Government roles.  He has previously worked for the Commonwealth Department of Finance in Perth and Washington DC and as Business Manager for Murdoch University.  Within the State Government, he has held senior positions in the Department of Treasury and Finance, the Department of Land Administration, the Building Management Authority and the Office of the Auditor General.

Colin holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Western Australia. He is a Fellow, Past State President and a Board member of CPA Australia.  

Mr Sven Bluemmel
Information Commissioner
Ex-officio Member
(Commission member 2009- )

Sven Bluemmel is the Western Australian Information Commissioner.  Prior to taking up his appointment in May 2009, Sven held senior positions in the Public Sector Commission, the Department of the Premier and Cabinet and the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department.  Sven also practised law in the private sector in Melbourne and Perth, where he was recognised as one of the leading lawyers in the areas of information and privacy law in the national publication Legal Profiles.

He has been a contributor to a number of publications, particularly in the areas of information and technology law.  He is an alumnus of Leadership Western Australia and actively participates in the community.  Sven holds a Bachelor of Laws with Honours and a Bachelor of Science, both from the Australian National University.

Mr Chris Field
Chairperson
Ombudsman for Western Australia
Ex-officio Member
(Commission member 2007-
Chair March 2016 -)
 

Chris Field is the Western Australian Ombudsman. He concurrently holds the role of Energy and Water Ombudsman. Chris is also the Chairman of the State Records Commission.

Chris is the Treasurer of the International Ombudsman Institute and a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of the Institute. He is also a member of the Integrity Coordinating Group.

Chris is an Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Western Australia and founder and co-coordinator of the unit, Government Accountability – Law and Practice. Chris is also the author of a range of publications on law, economics and public policy, including the university text, Current Issues in Consumer Law and Policy. He is also the 'Consumer Dealings' editor of the Australian Business Law Review.

He commenced his career as a lawyer at Arthur Robinson and Hedderwicks (now Allens Linklaters), prior to holding the roles of Executive Director, Consumer Law Centre Victoria and Chairman, Australian Consumers’ Association (now Choice). Immediately prior to his appointment as Ombudsman, he was an inaugural Member of the Economic Regulation Authority. He holds Arts and Law (Honours) degrees.
 

Justine McDermott is the Director, Information Governance Services at the University of Western Australia (UWA).

Justine has over 20 years’ experience in the field of information management.  She joined the Sydney office of the National Archives of Australia in 1989, where she worked for seven years in the areas of Information Services and Records Evaluation and Disposal.  After moving to Perth in 1996, Justine held the positions of University Archivist and Records Manager at Edith Cowan University and the Botanic Parks and Gardens Authority respectively, before joining the UWA as University Archivist in 1999.  In her current position as Director Information Governance Services her main responsibilities include ensuring the UWA’s compliance with the State Records Act 2000 and the implementation of effective records management strategies, including the rollout of electronic document management, throughout the University.

Former members of the State Records Commission

Mr Des Pearson (Inaugural Chairperson)
Ex-officio Member (Auditor General), July 2001 – September 2006

Ms Bronwyn Keighley-Gerardy
Ex-officio Member (Information Commissioner), July 2001 – October 2003

Mr Murray Allen
Ex-officio Member (Western Australian Ombudsman), July – September 2001

Ms Kandy-Jane Henderson (First Governor's Appointee)
Governor’s Appointee (Archivist, John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library), July 2001 – December 2008

Mr Alex Errington
Ex-officio Member (Acting Western Australian Ombudsman), September 2001 – March 2002

Ms Deirdre O’Donnell
Ex-officio Member (Western Australian Ombudsman), March 2002 – March 2007

Ms Darryl Wookey
Ex-officio Member (Acting Information Commissioner), November 2003 – October 2007

Mr John Lightowlers
Ex-officio Member (Acting Information Commissioner), October 2007 – May 2009

Last updated 25 July 2016