Scots scientist facing sack in Australia over £27k ‘fraud’
A SCOTTISH scientist could be fired from two top government posts in Australia after being charged with fraud.
Professor Suzanne Miller has been suspended on full pay as Queensland Chief Scientist and CEO of Queensland Museum Network following an investigation by the state’s Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC).
It is alleged the Edinburghborn geologist claimed £27,000 of private healthcare insurance to which she was not entitled.
The 52-year-old has had to surrender her UK and Australian passports as part of her bail conditions. She has also been banned from the state museum until the case is concluded.
Court papers allege she wrongfully claimed health insurance worth £27,000 through her contract at the museum between February 2014 and July 2017. It is understood prosecutors will say she claimed to be on a special talent visa that entitled her to the insurance when she was not.
She was charged by the CCC on Monday and is expected to appear before Brisbane Magistrates Court next month.
A spokesman for the CCC, which is separate from the police, said: ‘A senior government employee was charged with fraud following an investigation by the CCC.
‘The alleged fraud relates to a fraudulent claim for private health insurance.’
It is understood the former St Andrews University geology student has been suspended on full pay – around £240,000 a year – from both senior roles.
She is also director of the World Science Festival in Brisbane, which attracts 180,000 visitors a year.
Officials in Queensland yesterday reacted with shock to the allegations. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said: ‘I was shocked just like everybody else, but the allegations need to run their natural course through the justice system.’
Queensland Museum chairman David Conry said: ‘As soon as we were made aware of the allegations, board and staff immediately co-operated with the authorities and we continue to do so.’
Professor Miller moved from Scotland to Australia in 2007 to become director of the South Australian Museum in Adelaide. She was appointed director of the Queensland Museum Network in 2013, before becoming chief scientist last year.
In Scotland, she lived in Pittenweem, Fife, with husband Keith Halden, a freelance television producer. She was keeper of natural sciences at the National Museum of Scotland for 12 years.
She could not be reached for comment last night.