(news.com.au)
Australia’s longest serving finance Minister has been elected the new head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Australia’s former finance minister Mathias Cormann has been elected the new head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Mr Cormann, 50, will be the Asia-Pacific region’s first head of the Paris-based economic organisation, which represents 37 member nations.
He beat nine other candidates, including former European Union trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, of Sweden, for the coveted role.
Climate activists hit out at his bid for the leadership, with environmental and humanitarian organisations calling on diplomats and world leaders to reject it.
“Mathias Cormann has been a leading figure in a government that has repeatedly blocked climate action and promoted the increased use of fossil fuels, the leading driver of climate change,” said David Ritter, CEO of Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
Former Liberal Party member Mr Cormann is Australia’s longest serving finance Minister. He left parliament late last year.
