Appointment to Shadow Ministry

13 October 2015

JIM CHALMERS MP
SHADOW MINISTER FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES
AND SUPERANNUATION
SHADOW MINISTER FOR SPORT
SHADOW ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR TRADE,
INVESTMENT AND PRODUCTIVITY

APPOINTMENT TO SHADOW MINISTRY

It's an honour to be promoted into Labor’s Shadow Ministry today and especially pleasing to take up the financial services, superannuation and sport portfolios given my longstanding interests.

Financial services and insurance make the biggest contribution to our economy in value-added terms and is the second-fastest growing sector.

Around 423,600 Australians work in these $133 billion industries.

There are tremendous opportunities for Australian companies and funds to create new and lasting jobs and contribute more to the growth of our national economy.

This sector is at the pointy end of technological transformation in our society and among the most affected by the extraordinary change in the global and domestic economies.

Australia’s services economy will be even more crucial as we move from one relying on high commodity prices to one that places a higher value on innovation and human capital.

I look forward to building on Labor’s very proud record on superannuation and to advancing a more resilient, fair and competitive financial system underpinning a long term investment culture.

Sport is another fantastic opportunity, adding more than $5 billion to our economy a year, sustaining 137,000 jobs, promoting social inclusion and enriching wellbeing at all levels.

I will consult with the many and varied stakeholders across these portfolios in a spirit of collaboration and good faith, recognising their central place in our economy and society.

I pay tribute to Bernie Ripoll for his outstanding work in these policy areas, I thank Bill Shorten for the opportunity to develop economic policy with Chris Bowen and other Shadow Ministers, and I look forward to continuing my work on trade and investment policy with Penny Wong.

I congratulate my terrific first-term friends Katy Gallagher, Sam Dastyari and Terri Butler on their well-deserved promotions and all the colleagues who have been given new responsibilities.