Governors of The Australian States - Contemporary Changes and Prospects

Contemporary Changes and Prospects

The Northern Territory received self-government in 1979 under its own Administrator appointed by the Governor-General. The Commonwealth Prime Minister, not the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, advises the governor-general on the appointment of the Administrator.

Recent proposals for an Australian Republic have indirectly involved the office of state governor. In the lead up to the 1999 republican referendum, state governments were required to consider state links to the Crown and thus the validity of appointing the Governor through the Queen. At a constitutional convention in Gladstone, Queensland, the states indicated that, if the referendum was successful, governors should be appointed by the parliament, although agreement on the exact method of appointment was not reached. As the referendum failed, no state altered the appointment method.