The Government of the Australian Capital Territory, also referred to as the Australian Capital Territory Government or ACT Government, is the

executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

of the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

. The leader of the party or coalition with the

confidence Confidence is the feeling of belief or trust that a person or thing is reliable. * * * Self-confidence is trust in oneself. Self-confidence involves a positive belief that one can generally accomplish what one wishes to do in the future. Sel ...

of the

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory, known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly, is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building, Canberra, Leg ...

forms government. Unlike the Australian states and the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

, the Legislative Assembly directly elects one of their number to be the

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

as the head of the government, rather than being appointed by a Governor or Administrator. Since December 2014, the Chief Minister has been Andrew Barr, leader of the Labor Party. Following the 2024 ACT election, Labor formed a minority government of 10 members, after the Greens moved to the crossbench and dissolved the

coalition A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...

that had been in place since 2012. Ministers are appointed by the Chief Minister. The current ministry of the Australian Capital Territory ( Fourth Barr Ministry) comprises eight of the 25 members of the Legislative Assembly.

Constitutional framework

The ACT has internal self-government, but Australia's Constitution does not afford the territory government the full legislative independence provided to Australian states. Government for the Australian Capital Territory is outlined in Commonwealth legislation; the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988. Nonetheless, the ACT is governed according to the principles of the

Westminster System The Westminster system, or Westminster model, is a type of parliamentary system, parliamentary government that incorporates a series of Parliamentary procedure, procedures for operating a legislature, first developed in England. Key aspects of ...

, a form of parliamentary government based on the model of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Legislative power rests with the

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

. Executive power rests formally with the executive, which consists of the chief minister and ministers, and is informally called the Cabinet. Judicial power is exercised by the

Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory The Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory is the highest court of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It has unlimited jurisdiction within the territory in civil matters and hears the most serious criminal matters. The court ha ...

and a system of subordinate courts, but the

High Court of Australia The High Court of Australia is the apex court of the Australian legal system. It exercises original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified in the Constitution of Australia and supplementary legislation. The High Court was establi ...

and other federal courts have overriding jurisdiction on matters which fall under the ambit of the Australian Constitution. The ACT does not have a separate system of

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

such as that seen in the Australian States and the

. In the ACT, government functions that would usually be handled by local government are instead directly handled by the territory government.

Current ministry

The current arrangement of the incumbent ministry ( Fourth Barr Ministry) of the ACT was appointed on 6 November 2024, comprising eight Labor Party members. The current arrangement of the incumbent shadow ministry was announced on 18 November 2024, comprising seven

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

members.

ACT Government directorates

Access Canberra shopfront in Belconnen August 2022

The ACT Government is served by a unified ACT Public Service agency, reporting to a single Head of Service. Administrative units, known as directorates, are grouped under areas of portfolio responsibility. Each directorate is led by a director-general who reports to one or more ministers. , there are nine directorates: *Canberra Health Services * Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate (CMTEDD) *Community Services Directorate *Education Directorate * Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate (EPSDD) *Health Directorate *Justice and Community Safety Directorate *Infrastructure Canberra * Transport Canberra and City Services Directorate (TCCS)

Agencies and authorities

*City Renewal Authority *Suburban Land Agency

Independent authorities

*Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission *Office of the Work Health and Safety Commissioner

Public authorities and territory-owned corporations

The ACT Government also has a number of public authorities and territory-owned corporations: * ACT Building & Construction Industry Training Fund Board: providing funding for the training of eligible workers in the ACT building and construction industry. *ACT Long Service Leave Authority: administers portable long service leave schemes. *ACT Teacher Quality Institute: an independent

statutory authority A statutory body or statutory authority is a body set up by law (statute) that is authorised to implement certain legislation on behalf of the relevant country or state, sometimes by being empowered or delegated to set rules (for example reg ...

established to build the professional standing of ACT teachers and to enhance the community's confidence in the teaching profession through professional regulation and practical initiatives to raise teacher quality. * Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) is the ACT Government operated vocational educational provider. *Cultural Facilities Corporation: manages the Canberra Theatre Centre; the Canberra Museum and Gallery (CMAG). *EvoEnergy: owns and operates the ACT electricity and gas networks as well as gas networks in Queanbeyan and Palerang shires and Nowra. *Icon Water Limited: providing drinking water and wastewater services to the ACT and surrounding regions. The following are officers of the

: *ACT Audit Office: responsible for the audit of all ACT public sector agencies. * ACT Electoral Commission: an independent statutory authority responsible for conducting elections and referendums for the

. * ACT Integrity Commission: responsible for investigating alleged corrupt conduct in the Legislative Assembly and the ACT Public Sector. *ACT Ombudsman: manages complaints about unfair treatment by ACT Government agencies.

References

External links

*https://www.act.gov.au/ ACT Government website *https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/acta1988482/index.html#s24/ The Self-Government Act 1988 (Cth) in

AustLII The Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII) is an institution operated jointly by the Faculties of Law of the University of Technology Sydney and the University of New South Wales. Its public policy purpose is to improve access to just ...

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