Tony was appointed Victoria’s first Inspector-General for Emergency Management in July 2014, an independent Governor in Council Statutory Appointment, working closely with emergency management sector partners and the community to strengthen Victoria's emergency management arrangements and enhance community safety. For 41 years he has worked in intelligence, security and emergency/crisis management spending 9 years in the Royal Australian Air Force before moving into the emergency services/management sector. He has performed senior operational functions in a number of Victorian emergency service organisations before moving to senior crisis coordination and policy positions. Tony has held a number of senior roles in both state and federal government including 4 years in the role of Director-General, Emergency Management Australia. He holds Graduate and Post-Graduate qualifications in Management, Health Science, Emergency Management, and Public Administration and is a graduate of the Australia and New Zealand School of Government, Victorian Leadership Development Centre, and Victorian Leadership Academy.
Tony was founding President and Patron of the Oceania Council of the International Association of Emergency Managers and a Global Board Member of the IAEM. He is the current Chair of the Emergency Services Foundation, current Blue Ribbon Day Council Board Member, current UNSW/Swinburne University Advisory Board Member to the ARC project on ‘Collective Action and Collaborative Governance in Crisis Situations’, former Chair of the International Advisory Committee of the Centre for Disaster Management and Public Safety at Melbourne University, former Advisory Board Member to the Monash University Disaster Resilience Initiative, and a Fellow of the Centre for Emergency and Disaster Management at Queensland University of Technology. Tony has dedicated his career to improving community safety outcomes and through his role as Chair of the Emergency Services Foundation is a passionate advocate for improving the mental health and well being of emergency services/management paid staff and volunteers.