Governor-General

Who is the Governor-General?

The Governor-General is the King’s representative in Australia. They are appointed by the King on the recommendation of the Prime Minister. The Governor-General is appointed at ‘the King’s pleasure’, that is, without a fixed term but governors-general are given a 5-year term that can be extended. The Governor-General has some responsibility for making sure Australia is governed according to the rules in the Australian Constitution.

Constitutional role

Australia is a constitutional monarchy. This means the King is our head of state but does not have absolute power; he must follow the Constitution. The King delegates his powers to the Governor-General.

Section 1 of the Australian Constitution says the Australian Parliament is made up of the King (represented by the Governor-General), the Senate and the House of Representatives. Section 61 of the Constitution says executive power is given to the King and delegated to the Governor-General. This means the Governor-General is a part of both the Parliament and the government, and carries out tasks on behalf of the King.
 
The Constitution gives the Governor-General the power to:

• give Royal Assent to a bill – proposed law – passed by the Senate and House of Representatives. The Governor-General may recommend changes to a bill; however, no Governor-General has ever refused to give Royal Assent.
• start the process for a federal election
• set times for the meeting of Parliament
• call a joint sitting of Parliament
• act as Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force.

The Governor-General also has reserve powers not included in the Constitution. They come from the authority of the King, who the Governor-General represents. The only guide to these powers is convention – tradition. The use of reserve powers by governors-general is rare and have only been used a handful of times. This means the exact nature and scope of these powers is open to debate.

The Governor-General’s reserve powers are generally agreed to include the power to:

• appoint a Prime Minister if an election has not resulted in a clear outcome
• dismiss a Prime Minister if they have lost the support of the majority of members of the House of Representatives
• refuse a request from a Prime Minister to call an election
• refuse a request for a double dissolution
• dismiss a Prime Minister or minister if they break the law.

Ceremonial role

The Governor-General's ceremonial and constitutional roles are closely related. The Governor-General's ceremonial duties include:

• attending the opening of a new Parliament and making a speech about what the new government wants to do
• administering the oath of office to the Prime Minister, ministers, judges and other officials
• meeting foreign heads of state and ambassadors
• attending Anzac Day ceremonies
• awarding special honours.

Civic role

The Governor-General engaging in ceremonial duties.

Office of the Governor-General

The Governor-General engaging in ceremonial duties.

Office of the Governor-General

Description

The Governor-General, wearing a suit and medals on the left side of his chest, talks to people in a crowd.

Copyright information

Permission should be sought from Government House for third-party or commercial uses of this image. To contact Government House fill in the form located at http://www.gg.gov.au/contact.php or phone: 02 6283 3533

 

An important part of the role of the Governor-General is engaging with the Australian community. Some of the ways the Governor-General does this include:

• visiting places hit by a national disaster, such as floods or fire
• opening and attending national and international meetings and conferences
• attending exhibitions, sporting events and functions as an official patron of organisations
• visiting regions or areas to meet people involved in a particular group or industry.