Michele Bullock describes herself as a country girl who once found the idea of going to the city daunting.
She will be the first woman to hold the post after previously breaking new ground when appointed deputy governor last year.
Accepted into medicine at the University of New South Wales, the then-17-year-old didn’t know if she was cut out for it.
Her father, an administrator and data processor at the University of New England, suggested she speak with people about the economics course she had enjoyed in school.
“As a country girl, I found the idea of going to the big city quite daunting, so staying at home was a good option,” Bullock said.
“I found economics interesting; it was useful in day-to-day life and topical.”
“It’s offered a great breadth of things for me to contribute to and, underlying it all, is that it’s in the public interest, which works for me,” Bullock said.
She said she was also keenly aware of serving as a role model for other women at the RBA.
“I want to be inclusive, welcoming and make a level playing field upon which everyone can contribute,” Bullock said.
Will Michele Bullock follow Lowe’s lead on interest rates?
Inflation has passed its peak but was still growing at 5.6 per cent annually in May, well above the 2-3 per cent target range.
Most economists agreed borrowers could expect to see a continuation of monetary policy decision-making, with Bullock involved in all the meetings in the present tightening cycle.
UNSW Business School associate professor Mark Humphrey-Jenner said none of Bullock’s communications to date suggested her views deviated much from those of her predecessor.
Former treasury official and economist Steven Hamilton said Bullock was the best option, but there was a valid argument to bring in an outsider to “shake things up” in light of the review findings.
He told ABC TV the decision to go with an insider, who was still able to implement change but unlikely to “scare the horses”, was the right one given the uncertain economic environment.
Hamilton said the review did call for some “pretty dramatic” cultural and governance changes, and appointing someone who had been at the institution for 40 years raised a “legitimate question”.
But he said Lowe should not be criticised for lifting interest rates to tackle high inflation as the RBA has been doing since May 2022.
National Australia Bank economist Ivan Colhoun believes there are likely to be few implications for the hiking cycle but said she was likely to be seen as “more practical and less theoretical than her predecessor”.
“As a very level-headed individual, she seems well suited to implement many of the recommendations for cultural change at the RBA,” he said.
How long did Philip Lowe serve as RBA governor?
Bullock will serve as the ninth governor of the RBA for a seven-year term, beginning on 18 September.
Lowe was at the helm of the Reserve Bank throughout the turbulent pandemic period, but it was during the recovery phase that his leadership came under scrutiny.
In a statement, Lowe said the RBA would be in “very good hands” under Bullock’s leadership.
“The Treasurer has made a first-rate appointment. I congratulate Michele on being appointed Governor,” he said.