The Administrator of the Northern Territory is an official appointed by the Governor-General of Australia to represent the government of the Commonwealth in the Northern Territory. He/She performs functions similar to those of a state governor.
Strictly speaking, the appointment of an Administrator is made by the Governor-General-in-Council, that is, the Governor-General acting on the advice of the Commonwealth Government, rather than the advice of the Government of the Northern Territory. The Northern Territory received self-government on 1 July 1978, in accordance with the provisions of the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act 1978 (Cth). Since then, the practice has arisen that in making an appointment the Governor-General-in Council will act on the recommendation of the Northern Territory Government.
Unlike an Australian State Governor, the Administrator is not the direct representative of the Queen in the Territory but is instead appointed by the Queen's representative in the Commonwealth, the Governor-General, to administer the Territory in accordance with the Act. In practice, however, the Administrator performs a similar constitutional role to that of a state governor and can be considered the Queen's indirect representative in the Territory.
The Administrator formally appoints the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory and the members of the Cabinet after every election. In all but a few cases, he or she is required by convention to act on the Cabinet's advice. The Administrator gives royal assent to all bills passed by the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. Although the Governor-General (in practice, the Commonwealth Government) has the power to veto any territorial bill, in practice this right is almost never exercised.
The office of the Deputy of the Administrator was created in 1997.
In 2014, the Governor-General granted current, future and living former Administrators the title of 'The Honourable' for life, following the lead of Governors-General and Governors of New South Wales in granting the title.
The present Administrator is John Hardy, OAM.
South Australia (1846 to 1912)
Government Residents of the Northern Territory when annexed to the colony (later state) of South Australia:
Commonwealth of Australia (1912 to present)
Administrators and Government Residents of the Northern Territory after transfer of control to the Commonwealth Government:
Administrator (1912 to 1919)
Director (1919 to 1921)
Administrator (1921 to 1927)
Government Resident (1927 to 1931)
There was a brief experiment splitting government with an additional Government Resident (Central Australia) in Alice Springs based at The Residency. Alice Springs was known as Stuart town from 1888 to 1933.
Administrator (1931 to present)
Deputy of the Administrator (1997 to present)
The office of the Deputy of the Administrator was established in 1997.
See also
- Government House, Darwin
- Governors of the Australian states
- Darwin Rebellion
References
External links
- Government House, Northern Territory, Office of the Administrator â€" official site