The NSW Government has appointed NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon as Northern NSW Recovery Coordinator.
The decision to make the appointment to substantially boost the state’s flood recovery coordination was made after the Premier, Deputy Premier and Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience spent much of the last week visiting Northern Rivers communities, gaining first-hand experience of the scale and size of the recovery effort required.
“The scale of this disaster has been enormous, and our recovery effort will require vast and highly linked coordination to get people, communities, and businesses back on their feet and help them thrive again,” Mr Perrottet said.
“We understand the enormity and complexity of this work and this appointment reflects our commitment to this region that we will bring every resource to where it is needed.
“Deputy Commissioner Lanyon brings a breadth and depth of experience running highly challenging and complex operations that is second to none.”
Deputy Premier, Minister for Regional NSW, and Minister for Police Paul Toole said Mal Lanyon would retain his role as Deputy Commissioner, allowing him to deploy the full resource of the NSW Police Force while effectively marshalling all other Government resources.
“As the recovery for our regional communities begins, we need a multi-agency response to ensure every city, town, and person impacted receives the right support, right now,” Mr Toole said.
“Deputy Commissioner Lanyon has the experience to deliver a swift response now and knows how to drive the long-term recovery these areas desperately need.”
Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience Steph Cooke said the appointment would ensure the necessary structure was in place to match the unprecedented flooding across Northern NSW.
“The clean-up and recovery processes are a multi-agency effort on a scale that requires one of our State’s most senior leaders to lead and direct resources,” Ms Cooke said.
Deputy Commissioner Lanyon will work under the direction of Resilience NSW Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons.
Deputy Commissioner Lanyon will be supported by an operational structure that gives locals a clear voice in decision making that affects them, through local-led Recovery Committees, across a range of areas, including waste and clean-up, housing and business, and tourism.
