- Biography:
Anna Bligh AC was the 37th Premier of Queensland from 2007 to 2012, and is the first woman to be appointed Premier of Queensland. She led Labor to victory in the 2009 Queensland state election, becoming the first woman elected in her own right as a State Premier in Australia.
Anna is a former Deputy Premier, Treasurer, and Minister for Finance, State Development, Trade and Innovation. She was also Minister for Infrastructure in Queensland from July 2005 – September 2007.
Prior to that, she was Queensland’s first female Education Minister, with additional responsibilities for the Arts portfolio, when she oversaw the construction of GOMA and a range of new initiatives in the arts and cultural sector.
In recognition of her eminent service to the Parliament of Queensland, particularly as Premier, as well as to infrastructure development, education reform, and being an advocate for the role of women in public life and work in the not-for-profit sector, Anna received a Companion in the General Division of the Order of Australia award in the 2017 Australia Day Honours list.
Anna is the CEO of the Australian Banking Association and former Chief Executive Officer of the YWCA NSW. She is a non-Executive Director of Medibank Private; joining the Bangarra Board in February 2013.