Council members

Ms Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz AM

Ms Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz is the Chair of the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council.

Ms Lloyd-Hurwitz was the Chief Executive Officer of Mirvac and a Director of the Mirvac Board from 2012 to 2023. She was President of Chief Executive Women from November 2022 to June 2025.

She is:

• a non-executive director of Rio Tinto Limited and Macquarie Group
• a member of the Sydney Opera House Trust and INSEAD Global Board
• a Fellow of the University of Sydney Senate
• Chair of the Senate Building and Estates Committee
• Chair of the Australian Centre for Gender Equality and Inclusion @ Work Advisory Board.

Ms Lloyd-Hurwitz holds a:

• Bachelor of Arts (Hons) from the University of Sydney
• MBA (Distinction) from INSEAD (France).

Dr Marcus Spiller

Dr Marcus Spiller is the Council's Deputy Chair.

Dr Spiller is a Director, Principal and Partner of SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd. He is formally qualified in commerce and urban planning. Dr Spiller is a past national president of the Planning Institute of Australia.

He's served on the Australian Government’s National Housing Supply Council. He served in similar advisory committees set up by the New South Wales, Queensland and Victorian governments.

Mr Michael Lennon

Mr Michael Lennon is Industry Professor of Regional Housing and Planning at the University of South Australia.

Mr Lennon was the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Housing Choices Australia.

From 2017 to 2021, Mr Lennon served as Chair of the South Australian Planning Commission. He oversaw a complex and nationally significant re-organisation of the state’s entire planning framework. This included digitisation and rationalisation into a single Planning and Design Code for the Government of South Australia.

Ms Gail McGowan PSM

Ms Gail McGowan is the Chancellor of Murdoch University.

Ms McGowan is:

• Chair of the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority
• Director of:
  • Mid-West Ports Authority WA
  • Foundation Housing WA
  • Western Australian Cricket Association.

Ms McGowan held leadership positions in Western Australia, including as a member of:

• Infrastructure WA
• WA Planning Commission
• WA Infrastructure Coordinating Committee
• Pastoral Lands Board.

Professor Rachel Ong ViforJ

Professor Rachel Ong ViforJ is John Curtin Distinguished Professor of Economics at Curtin University. She is currently Vice-Chair of the Asia-Pacific Network for Housing Research and a Member of the CEDA Council on Economic Policy. Professor ViforJ was also a recipient of the Young Economist Award and an AACSB Influential Leaders Honoree.

Professor ViforJ has conducted extensive research into the housing policy challenges in Australia. In particular, her work focuses on:

• modelling the dynamics of housing supply
• demand and affordability
• investigating intergenerational housing concerns
• analysing the links between housing and the economy
• evaluating the distributional and budgetary outcomes of housing reforms via policy simulations.

Ms Carolyn Viney

Ms Carolyn Viney is the Chief Executive Officer at Assemble. Ms Viney is a:

• Member of the Victorian Premier's Business Council
• Advisory Board Member of Women's Property Initiatives
• Victorian Division Councillor, Property Council of Australia.

Before being appointed as the CEO of Assemble, Ms Viney was CEO of Super Housing Partnerships from 2023 to 2024.

She was Chief Development Officer at Vicinity Centres from 2016 to 2023. In this role, she oversaw the delivery of its $3 billion development pipeline and mixed-use strategy.

Ms Helen Waters Silvia

Ms Helen Waters Silvia is the Director, National Service Delivery at YWCA Australia, a national not-for-profit organisation that has specialised in supporting women for over 140 years.

Ms Waters Silvia is the former Chief Executive Officer of Women’s and Girls' Emergency Centre.

Ms Waters Silvia previously served on the boards of Homelessness Australia and Homelessness NSW. She served on the board of Domestic Violence NSW (from 2017 to 2022), including as chair (from 2017 to 2020).

Mr Neil Willmett

Mr Neil Willmett is an accomplished chief executive officer and company director. He has experience in corporate, government and not-for-profit entities.

Mr Willmett is the CEO of the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Housing Queensland since 2021.

He is a member of the Housing Australia Expert Advisory Group on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Housing.

Mr Willmett held other chief executive officer positions including with the Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council.

He was an executive director with the Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works. There he played a key role in the development of the Queensland Housing Strategy 2017 to 2027. He had a key role in the implementation of the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing.

Mr Willmett is an Aboriginal man with connections to the Waanyi people of the Gulf of Carpentaria and the Kuku Yalanji people of Far North Queensland.

He is also a published author and a content expert in business, employment and organisational development and has written 3 books.

Mr Ben Rimmer

Mr Rimmer is the Director General of Housing in the Department of the Treasury.

Mr Rimmer is the ex-officio member of the Council.