Shann Memorial Lecture: A perspective of the financial system through COVID and beyond

The 2022 Shann Memorial Lecture was presented on Wednesday 28 September. The event was hosted by The UWA Business School and The Economic Society of Australia (WA Branch). This year's lecture was given by Meghan Quinn, Secretary of the Department of Industry, Science and Resources. Meghan presented on A perspective of the financial system through COVID and beyond. Please click below for access to the lecture transcript. 

Transcript

The Shann Memorial Lecture has been running annually since 1963 and was introduced to honour the memory of the Foundation Chair of Economics and History at UWA, Edward Shann. Edward Shann has been regarded as the pioneer of the academic development of economics and traditional Australian economic history and he was a strong advocate of individual intellectual freedom and developing a sense of social responsibilities. He penned several books and essays on the economic history of Australia and was a major influence in formulating financial and fiscal policies in Australia.

Q&A discussion

Following the annual Shann Lecture, there will be a discussion and Q&A with Meghan Quinn, Secretary for the Department of Industry, Science and Resources. This will provide an opportunity for audience members to ask questions.

About the speaker

Meghan Quinn

Secretary for the Department of Industry, Science and Resources

Meghan Quinn is the Secretary for the Department of Industry, Science and Resources, taking up the role in August 2022. Prior to that, Meghan was Deputy Secretary for Markets Group in Treasury, where she had also held positions as Deputy Secretary of the Macroeconomic Group and Deputy Secretary of the Structural Reform Group. Her role included managing financial market aspects of the COVD-19 crisis. Meghan played a central role in the Asia Century Whitepaper during the Gillard Government in 2012 and has also held positions as a senior economist at the Bank of England. She graduated from UWA with a B.Ec Hons before completing a masters at LSE.

About Edward Shann

Edward Shann was born in 1884 and graduated with first-class honours in history and political economics from Queens’ College, The University of Melbourne. He won several scholarships and went on for higher studies at The London School of Economics. He returned to Australia from England in 1910 and was lecturer-in-charge of history and economics at The University of Queensland from June 1911 to December 1912. He joined The University of Western Australia in its inaugural year of 1913 as the Foundation Professor of history and economics. He then went on to work at the University for a total of 22 years and was Vice-Chancellor from 1921 to 1923. Edward Shann’s life was cut tragically short when he died at the age of 51, in 1935.