Note: This web page was updated on 4/3/2008 to correct an error in the name of 'Alfred Deakin'. No other changes were made.
AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT
Prime Minister
The office of Prime Minister is not recognised by the Constitution, being a conventional part of the governmental arrangements. It is also a matter of convention that the Prime Minister is always a member of the House of Representatives.
After an election, the Governor-General sends for the leader of the party, or coalition, which has secured a majority in the House of Representatives, and commissions that person to assume the office of Prime Minister and to form a government.
The Prime Minister has the following powers:
- advising the Sovereign on the appointment of the Governor-General
- acting as the sole source of formal advice for the Governor-General
- advising the Governor-General as to when Parliament should be dissolved
- setting the date for House of Representatives elections
- allocating positions in the Cabinet
- chairing Cabinet meetings.
The Hon. JW Howard MP (Liberal Party of Australia) has been Prime Minister since 11 March 1996.
Pictures of all holders of the office of Prime Minister of Australia can be found below.
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Rt Hon Sir Edmund Barton,
GCMG, QC
First Prime Minister of Australia | Hon Alfred Deakin
| John Christian Watson,
1st Labor Party Prime Minister |
1901–03 | 1903–04, 1905–08, 1909–10 | 1904 |
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Rt Hon Sir George Houstoun Reid,
GCB, GCMG
Free Trade politician, Premier of NSW | Rt Hon Andrew Fisher,
Labor politician | Rt Hon Sir Joseph Cook,
GCMG
Conservative and Nationalist politician |
1904–05 | 1908–09, 1910–13, 1914–15 | 1913–14 |
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Rt Hon William Morris (Billy) Hughes,
CH, KC
Labor and Nationalist politician | Rt Hon Stanley Melbourne Bruce, 1st Viscount Bruce of Melbourne,
CH, MC, FRS, PC
Nationalist politician | Rt Hon James Henry Scullin,
Labor politician |
1915–23 | 1923–29 | 1929–32 |
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Rt Hon Joseph Aloysius Lyons,
CH
United Australia Party politician | Rt Hon Sir Earle Christmas Grafton Page,
Country Party politician, Caretaker Prime Minister | The Rt Hon Sir Robert Gordon Menzies,
KT, AK, CH, FRS, QC
United Party of Australia, later Liberal Party politician |
1932–39 | 1939 | 1939–41, 1949–66 |
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Rt Hon Sir Arthur William Fadden,
Country Party politician | Rt Hon John Joseph Curtin,
Labor politician | Rt Hon Francis Michael (Frank) Forde,
Labor politician, Caretaker Prime Minister in July |
1941 | 1941–45 | 1945 |
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Rt Hon Joseph Benedict (Ben) Chifley,
Labor politician | Rt Hon Harold Edward Holt,
CH
Liberal politician | Rt Hon Sir John (Jack) McEwen,
GCMG, CH
Country Party politician, Deputy Prime Minister 1958–71 and Caretaker Prime Minister for three weeks |
1945–49 | 1966–67 | 1967–68 |
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Rt Hon Sir John Grey Gorton,
GCMG, AC, CH
Liberal politician | Rt Hon Sir William McMahon,
GCMG, CH
Liberal politician | The Hon Edward Gough Whitlam,
AC, QC
Labor politician |
1968–71 |  1971–72 | 1972–75  |
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Rt Hon John Malcolm Fraser,
AC, CH
Liberal politician | Hon Robert James Lee (Bob) Hawke,
AC
Labor politician | The Hon Paul John Keating,
Labor politician |
1975–83 | 1983–91 | 1991–96 |
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Hon John Winston Howard,
Liberal politician | | |
1996– | | |
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LIST OF HONOURS, AND QUALIFICATIONS AWARDED TO AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTERS
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| Companion of the Order of Australia |
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| Knight of the Order of Australia |
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| Companion of Honour |
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| Fellow of the Royal Society |
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| Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
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| Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George |
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| Kings Council |
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| Knight of the Thistle |
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| Military Cross |
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| Privy Councillor |
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| Queens Council |
Ministers
The Prime Minister nominates members of his or her parliamentary party or coalition to serve as ministers, responsible for administering government departments such as the Treasury, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or the Department of Defence. The Constitution requires that all ministers be either a member of the House of Representatives or a Senator. If a new minister is not an MP, it is obligatory for that minister to become an MP within three months of his/her appointment. Ministers may be appointed or replaced at any time between elections.
From time to time certain members of the Commonwealth Parliament have been appointed by governments to assist ministers in their work. Such persons have been known by a variety of designations, including parliamentary under-secretary and assistant minister; the current term is parliamentary secretary.
The ministries since Federation are listed in table 4.1.
Cabinet
Senior ministers are members of the Cabinet, the meetings of which are chaired by the Prime Minister. Cabinet is not a body that is recognised by the Constitution, being a conventional part of the governmental arrangements. Despite this, Cabinet effectively controls not only a government's legislative program, but also government departments of state. In effect, therefore, Cabinet is the dominant political and administrative element in Australia's national government. The Governor-General does not attend Cabinet meetings.
Particulars of the Fourth Howard Ministry, comprising Cabinet ministers and the outer ministry, are shown in table 4.2.
The Opposition
In Westminster-derived governments, such as Australia's, the Opposition has a recognised and formal status, being recognised in the Standing Orders of the Parliament and in legislation. The Opposition is seen as the alternative government and typically forms a 'shadow Cabinet' of MPs who prepare themselves to take on the reins of government. The Opposition also has the role of acting as the main critic of the government and of offering to the community an alternative set of policies.
Mr KM Rudd MP (Australian Labor Party) has been Leader of the Opposition since 4 December 2006.
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