Elizabeth Cosson
Major General Elizabeth Cosson, AM, CSC (born 1958) served as Secretary of the Department of Veterans' Affairs from 2018-2023. Cosson "vowed" to resign as Secretary of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, on 19 July 2020, if she cannot improve the department’s relationship with veterans stating in a media interview on 19 July 2019 that "if I’m still part of the problem in 12 months I will hand over [the job]."
Elizabeth Cosson AM, CSC | |
|---|---|
| Secretary of the Department of Veterans' Affairs | |
| In office 19 May 2018 – 23 January 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Simon Lewis |
| Succeeded by | Alison Frame |
| Deputy Secretary (Chief Operating Officer) of the Department of Veterans' Affairs | |
| In office 9 May 2016 – 18 May 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Shane Carmody |
| Succeeded by | Mark Cormack |
| Deputy Secretary (Chief Operating Officer) of the Department of Health | |
| In office 1 July 2015 – 6 May 2016 | |
| Succeeded by | Alison Larkins |
| Deputy Secretary of the Department of Health | |
| In office December 2014 – 30 June 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Andrew Stuart |
| Deputy Secretary (Business Services Group) of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection | |
| In office 12 December 2012 – November 2014 | |
| Deputy Secretary (Business Services Group) of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship | |
| In office 19 November 2012 – 11 December 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Jackie Wilson |
| First Assistant Secretary (Client and Commemorations) of the Department of Veterans' Affairs | |
| In office March 2012 – November 2012 | |
| Succeeded by | David Chalmers |
| General Manager (Executive Division) of the Department of Veterans' Affairs | |
| In office 2 November 2010 – March 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Gary Collins |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1958 (age 65–66) Melbourne, Victoria |
| Spouse | James Baker |
| Parents |
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| Occupation | Public official |
| Known for | Kovco leak scandal (2006) First female Major General in Australian Army (2007). |
| Salary | $720,480+ |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Branch/service | Australian Army |
| Years of service | 1979–2010 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Awards | Member of the Order of Australia Conspicuous Service Cross |
Between 1979 and 2010, Cosson served 31 years in the Australian Army as an officer, commencing with officer training in the Women's Royal Australian Army Corps (WRAAC) on 22 February 1979 (when she was 20 years old) at Georges Heights (WRAAC OCS 28/79 – the first WRAAC Officer course to have a similar syllabus and training duration during as the male officer cadets had, and coming only a year after servicewomen first received the right to equal pay). In 1983 she was transferred to the Royal Australian Army Ordnance Corps, as the WRAACs disbanded.
In 2017, Cosson became the first female major general in the Australian Army (but not the first female two star Australian Defence Force officer, as Air Vice Marshal Julie Hammer achieved this milestone in 2003).
While Cosson is most well known for her part in the Kovco scandal (due to the extensive media coverage it generated), it has not harmed her career in any lasting way, and not only did she go on to get promoted (despite the 12 month formal administrative warning she received), but she has since held a number of senior executive service appointments at the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (later re-named the Department of Immigration and Border Protection), and the Department of Health.