Bill Farmer (public servant)

Bill Farmer AO
Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs
In office 26 November 2001 – July 2005
Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs
In office 5 February 1998 – 26 November 2005
Personal details
Born	William John Farmer
Nationality	Australian
Spouse(s)	Elaine Farmer[1][2]
Alma mater	University of Sydney London School of Economics
Occupation	Public servant

William John "Bill" Farmer AO is a retired senior Australian public servant and policymaker, best known for his time as Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs and for his career in the Australian diplomatic service.

Background and early life

Bill Farmer graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts with Honours and from the London School of Economics with a Master of Science in Economics.^[3]

Career

Farmer started his public service career in the Department of External Affairs in 1969.^[4][5] His early Australian Public Service roles saw him serving in Cairo, London and Suva.^[6] He was Deputy Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations in New York 1984-1987; Australian Ambassador to Mexico, the Central American Republics and Cuba 1987-1989; Australian High Commissioner in Papua New Guinea 1993-1995 and in Malaysia 1996-1997; and Deputy Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade 1997-1998.

Between 1998 and 2005, Farmer was Secretary of the Australian immigration department, known as the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs when he was first appointed, and later called the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.^[3] During this appointment he was often in the media spotlight, including during the Children Overboard affair in 2001, at the time of the unlawful detention of Cornelia Rau in 2004 and 2005,^[7] and during later inquiries.^[8][9]

When Farmer resigned from the immigration department, he told Prime Minister John Howard that a new Secretary was needed to drive change within the department.^[10] After his resignation, Farmer was appointed Australia's ambassador to Indonesia, replacing David Ritchie.^[10][11][12] The appointment was controversial, with Indonesian MP Djoko Susilo lodging his concern with the diplomatic posting.^[13] Media saw Farmer's appointment as "something of a reward... after service to the Howard government through many immigration controversies".^[14] However, in the post his initial appointment was extended under the Labor government by two years.^[15] While in Jakarta, Farmer assisted in negotiations to return a group of 78 Sri Lankan asylum seekers to Indonesia after they were apprehended by the Australian Customs vessel Oceanic Viking.^[15] He also helped to send Australian-funded relief aid to victims of the 2009 Sumatra earthquakes.^[16]

Farmer retired in 2010.^[17][18] In retirement, he headed an independent review of Australia's live animal export trade,^[19] tasked in June 2011 to examine the facilities, treatment and handling of livestock in Indonesia.^[20] Farmer made 14 recommendations, including that live animal exporters should be required to ensure their "supply chains" comply with international animal welfare standards.^[21] He also served on the High-Level Review of the Australian Aid program 2010-2011, and chaired an Independent Review of the Australian Centre For International Agricultural Research.

As at January 2015, he was a member of the Advisory Council of the Asia Society Australia and of the Australian Board of Trustees for the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, overseeing the direction and management of fundraising in Australia for the organisation.^[22]

Awards

In June 2005 Farmer was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the community through contributions to Australia's international relations and to major public policy development including domestic security, border systems, immigration, multicultural affairs and Indigenous service delivery.^[23][24]

References

1. ↑ Fitzpatrick, Stephen (30 August 2008). "Blessed be this spouse". The Australian. News Corp Australia. 
2. ↑ Fitzpatrick, Stephen (29 August 2008), "Marrying roles as cleric and envoy's wife", The Australian, News Corp Australia 
3. 1 2 Mr Bill Farmer AO: Ambassador to Indonesia, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, archived from the original on 27 January 2014 
4. ↑ "Wrong head rolls in Immigration". The Age. Melbourne, Victoria. 12 July 2005. p. 12. 
5. ↑ Flitton, Daniel (16 January 2010). "Bureaucratic heavyweights from Class of '69". The Age. Fairfax Media. p. 3. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. 
6. ↑ Anjaiah, Veeramalla (11 July 2005). "Howard names Bill Farmer as new envoy to RI". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. 
7. ↑ "Bill Farmer's new appointment an 'offshore solution': William Maley". Australian Broadcasting Service. 11 July 2005. Archived from the original on 6 January 2008. 
8. ↑ Burgess, Verona (23 February 2002). "Moore-Wilton was urged to check facts". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. p. 8. 
9. ↑ Mitchell, Alex (29 January 2009), Howard loyalist Farmer to key diplomatic post, Crikey, archived from the original on 27 January 2014 
10. 1 2 "Immigration head resigns", ABC Premium News, Australian Broadcasting Commission, 10 July 2005 
11. ↑ "Australian PM defends appointment". Taipei Times. Archived from the original on 18 April 2009. 
12. ↑ Seccombe, Mike (11 July 2005). "Besieged Immigration chief lands prize job". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. 
13. ↑ Hudson, Philip (17 July 2005). "Indonesian threat to block envoy". The Age. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. 
14. ↑ Sheridan, Greg (12 July 2010). "Greg Moriarty the best man possible for Indonesia envoy". The Australian. News Ltd. 
15. 1 2 Flitton, Daniel (5 July 2010). "Jakarta envoy leaves post". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 30 January 2015. 
16. ↑ "A`lian envoy helps to send off relief aid for W Sumatra". Antara News. 29 October 2009. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. 
17. ↑ Khalik, Abdul; Siagian, Sabam (3 July 2010). "Bill Farmer: Career prepared me for Indonesian assignment". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012. 
18. ↑ Kawilarang, Renne R.A (20 April 2010). "Indonesia, a great place for Aussie diplomats". Viva News. Archived from the original on 27 January 2014. 
19. ↑ Kirk, Alexandra (13 June 2011). "Former ambassador to Indonesia heads live animal export review". Australian Broadcasting Commission. Archived from the original on 29 June 2014. 
20. ↑ Wright, Shane; Mercer, Daniel (13 June 2011). "Former envoy to review live trade". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. 
21. ↑ Rout, Milanda (21 October 2011). "Tracking for all animal exports to end cruelty after Farmer review". The Australian. News Corp. Retrieved 1 November 2016. 
22. ↑ Australian Board of Trustees, The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust Australia, archived from the original on 12 February 2014 
23. ↑ Search Australian Honours: FARMER, William John 
24. ↑ "Queen's honour for Immigration secretary", ABC Premium News, Sydney: Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 13 June 2005