Michael Coutts-Trotter is an Australian public servant who is the current

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

of the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet for Premier Dominic Perrottet. He was previously

of the New South Wales

Department of Communities and Justice The New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice, a government department, department of the Government of New South Wales, is responsible for the delivery of services to some of the most disadvantaged individuals, families and communiti ...

. He was previously the director-general of the Departments of Education and Customer Service. Coutts-Trotter served almost three years of a nine-year

prison sentence In law, a sentence is the punishment for a crime ordered by a trial court after conviction in a criminal procedure, normally at the conclusion of a trial. A sentence may consist of imprisonment, a fine, or other sanctions. Sentences for multip ...

after being convicted for the importation and distribution of heroin into Australia in 1986.

Early life

Coutts-Trotter was born in England and arrived in Australia with his parents in 1976. His father Paul was the son of Sir Murray Coutts-Trotter, former chief Justice of Madras, while his mother Helen was from Cootamundra. Coutts-Trotter matriculated from

Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview Saint Ignatius' College Riverview is an Australian independent single-sex primary and secondary day and boarding school for boys, conducted in the Jesuit tradition, located in Riverview, a small suburb located on the Lane Cove River on the ...

. In 1986, he received a nine-year

as a drug dealer selling heroin to addicts. He served two years and nine months in jail before

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

in 1988. He graduated from the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...

with a degree in communications in 1995.

Public service career

In April 2007, Coutts-Trotter was appointed Director-General of the

NSW Department of Education ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , e ...

. This appointment was criticised by opposition members of parliament, the

NSW Teachers Federation The New South Wales Teachers Federation (also known simply as the Federation) is the registered trade union that covers New South Wales (NSW) public school teachers. The New South Wales Teachers Federation represents all teachers in NSW public ...

and the Public Principals Forum for his lack of experience in teaching and education and his

criminal conviction In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant Guilty (law), guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", w ...

as a heroin trafficker. The Teachers Federation also questioned his criminal past and time spent in prison for heroin dealing; with the Federation's president, Maree O'Halloran, saying that a teacher with his criminal conviction for a serious drug offence would be unable to continue teaching and working with children. Appointing him as Director-General of the Department of Finance and Services in April 2011, Premier

Barry O'Farrell Barry Robert O'Farrell (born 24 May 1959) is a former Australian politician who has been Australia's High Commissioner to India and non-resident Ambassador to Bhutan since May 2020. O'Farrell was the 43rd Premier of New South Wales and Minis ...

said that Coutts-Trotter's skills would allow this new department to deliver on its results. It was reported in July 2013, upon his appointment to lead the Department of Family and Community Services, that Coutts-Trotter's new role was a demotion. Following the report O'Farrell held a media conference to reject the suggestion. In 2013, Coutts-Trotter was made a national fellow of the

Institute of Public Administration Australia The Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) is a nonpartisan and apolitical member-based organisation which provides public sector thought leadership and works to strengthen the capacity of public servants through events, training and ...

. In April 2019 Coutts-Trotter was announced as the new head of the (NSW) Department of Communities & Justice after Andrew Cappie-Wood left that position. In October 2021 the newly appointed NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet announced that Coutts-Trotter was promoted to the role of Secretary of the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet.

Personal life

Coutts-Trotter is married to

Tanya Plibersek Tanya Joan Plibersek (born 2 December 1969) is an Australian politician who served as Deputy Leader of the Labor Party and Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 2013 to 2019. She has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sydney since 1998 ...

, a federal MP and former deputy leader of the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coutts-Trotter, Michael Public servants of New South Wales Spouses of Australian politicians Australian drug traffickers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People educated at Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview University of Technology Sydney alumni