Ron Brown (Australian public servant)

Ron Brown
Occupation	Public servant
Years active	1977–1990
Known for	Secretary of the Department of Immigration, Local Government and Ethnic Affairs (1987–1990)

Ron Brown is a former high-ranking Australian public official who held the position of Secretary at the Department of Immigration, Local Government and Ethnic Affairs from 1987 until 1990 during the tenure of the Hawke government.

Career

Between 1977 and 1985, Brown occupied senior management roles as State Director of Social Security across multiple regions including the Northern Territory, Tasmania, South Australia, and New South Wales. Following this, from 1985 to 1987, he acted as Executive Director of the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), guiding its transformation from a multilingual radio broadcaster into a public television and radio service.

In May 1987, Brown was named Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, which was subsequently rebranded as the Department of Immigration, Local Government and Ethnic Affairs. His tenure in the Australian Public Service ended shortly after the 1990 federal election, with reports indicating that Prime Minister Bob Hawke dismissed him. The dismissal was attributed to concerns over his perceived lack of engagement with ethnic communities and attempts to remove his Deputy Secretary, Tony Harris. Following Brown’s exit, Gerry Hand took over responsibility for the department.