Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or the Federal Government, is the national government of the Commonwealth of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive government consists of the prime minister and other ministers that currently have the support of a majority of members of the House of Representatives[2] (the lower house) and in some contexts also includes the departments and other executive bodies that ministers oversee.[3] The current executive government consists of Anthony Albanese and other Australian Labor Party ministers, in place since the 2022 federal election.[5]
This article is about the federal government of Australia. For the political structure of Australia, see Politics of Australia. For the second level of government, see States and territories of Australia. For the third level, see Local government in Australia.Government of the Commonwealth
The prime minister is the head of the government and is appointed to the role by the governor-general (the King's representative).[6] The governor-general normally appoints the parliamentary leader who has the support of a majority of members in the House of Representatives.[7][8] By convention, the prime minister is a member of the lower house.[9]
The prime minister and cabinet ministers form the cabinet, the key decision-making organ of the government that forms policy and decides the agenda of the government.[2] Members of the government can exercise both legislative power (through their control of the parliament) and executive power (as ministers on behalf of the governor-general and the King).[10] However, in accordance with responsible government, this also requires the actions of the government in its executive capacity to be subject to scrutiny from parliament.[11]
The government is based in the nation's capital, Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory. The head offices of all sixteen federal departments lie in Canberra, along with Parliament House and the High Court.[12][13] The government must act in accordance with law and the Australian Constitution.
Name[edit]
The name of the government in the Constitution of Australia is the "Government of the Commonwealth".[14] This was the name used in many early federal government publications.[15]
However, in 1965 Robert Menzies indicated his preference for the name "Australian Government" in order to prevent confusion with the new Commonwealth of Nations.[16] The Whitlam government legislated the use of "Government of Australia" in 1973 in line with its policy of promoting national goals and aspirations.[17][15] However, academic Anne Twomey argues that the government was also motivated by a desire to blur the differences between the Commonwealth and the states in an attempt to increase federal power.[18] The Parliament of Australia website also notes that the name "Australian Government" is preferable in order to avoid confusion with the Commonwealth of Nations and the US federal government by those not familiar with Australia's system of government.[19] This terminology remains preferred by the government.[20] However, the terms Commonwealth Government and federal government are also common.[21]
In some contexts, the term "government" refers to all public agencies that exercise the power of the State, whether legislative, executive or judicial.[22][23]