The Government has appointed Australian Julie Read to the post of Chief Executive and Director of the Serious Fraud Office based in Auckland.
She will commence her three-year tour of duty on October 21.
Ms Read has been Special Counsel (Litigation) at the Chief Legal Office within the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) since 2010. As well as being a senior executive responsible for the conduct of ASIC litigation, she is the Minister’s delegate responsible for approval of requests for assistance from foreign regulators.
Ms Read is also the Regional Commissioner of ASIC for Tasmania since 2002.
Impressive record
Her earlier assignments included ASIC Senior Executive Leader, Major Fraud and International (2008 to 2010), Director of Enforcement and Acting General Counsel ASIC (2002 to 2008), Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, managing the Office of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions in Tasmania (1992-2002).
She represented ASIC on the International Organisation of Securities Commissions Committee for cross-border securities law enforcement matters from 2006.to 2012.
Ms Read is currently a member of the Winston Churchill Fellowship Committee,
Announcing her appointment, State Services Commissioner and Head of State Services Iain Rennie said, “Ms Read is a senior public servant with significant experience at executive level managing work similar to that of the SFO. She has a record of building and maintaining effective relationships with stakeholders and colleague agencies, while discharging her statutory role in complex and challenging investigations and prosecutions,” he said.
New Zealanders and people investing in New Zealand should be assured that fraud and corruption will not be tolerated, he added.
“Ms Read will lead the Serious Fraud Office to actively monitor, investigate and prosecute so that serious fraud and corruption do not go undetected or unpunished,” Mr Rennie said.
