Governor of Queensland
Coat of arms of Queensland
Flag of the governor of Queensland
Incumbent Jeannette YoungAC PSM since 1 November 2021
Viceregal
Style	Her Excellencythe Honourable
Residence	Government House, Brisbane
Appointer	Monarch on theadvice of thepremier (by commission under theroyal sign-manual)[1]
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure (typically 5 years)
Formation	10 December 1859
First holder	Sir George Bowen
Salary	£5,000 (1900)[a] A$488,686 (2019)[b]
Website	govhouse.qld.gov.au

Thegovernor of Queensland is the representative of the monarch, currentlyKing Charles III, in the state ofQueensland.^[6] In an analogous way to thegovernor-general at the national level, the governorperforms constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level. In particular, the governor has the power to appoint and dismiss thepremier of Queensland and all other ministers in theCabinet, and issue writs for elections of thestate parliament.

The current governor of Queensland, formerChief Health Officer of QueenslandJeannette Young, was sworn in on 1 November 2021.^[7]

The chief justice of theSupreme Court of Queensland, currentlyHelen Bowskill, acts in the position of governor in the governor's absence. In June 2014, QueenElizabeth II, upon the recommendation of then-PremierCampbell Newman, accorded all current, future and living former governors the titleThe Honourable in perpetuity.^[8]

The governor has resided atGovernment House, Brisbane since 1910. The mansion, set in 14 hectares (35 acres) of gardens and bushland in theBrisbane suburb of Paddington, is also known asFernberg.^[9] Unlike Fernberg, theoriginal Government House was purpose-built and was used from 1862 to 1910; the building still exists today on the grounds ofQueensland University of Technology'sCBD campus.^[10]

The office of the governor was initially established byletters patent issued by Queen Victoria on the founding of Queensland in 1867. However, up until 1977 the office was not formally recognised in Queensland legislation, with the powers of the governor set down in the letters patent and in an imperialorder in council which preserved the effect of theAustralian Constitutions Act 1842 (Imp) (the document that granted NSW a semi-elected assembly) as regard to the governor and restricted the power of the Queensland assembly to remove the position. However, following the1975 Dismissal crisis then premierSir Joh Bjelke-Peterson amended theConstitution Act 1867 (Qld) to replicate the provisions of the order in council. This was done as the order in council only applied due to the continuing authority of the British Parliament in regard to the states. It was feared that a futureCommonwealth government would either assert or acquire by consent the exiting powers of the imperial parliament over the states, giving them the power to either abolish the office or make it subordinate to the governor-general, allowing the Commonwealth to order the state governor to refuse royal assent to state bills. This amendment provision wasdoubly entrenched, requiring a referendum for the provisions about the governor to be amended or removed. Following the passage of theAustralia Act 1986, the power of the British Parliament to legislate for the states has been removed. However, there remains academic doubts of the legal effectiveness of the double entrenchment provisions.^[11]

TheConstitution Act 2001 consolidated the previous constitutional documents, including the most recent letters-patent, leaving the role of the governor fully defined by Australian law.^[12] However, the doubly entrenched provisions of the 1867 constitution remains in place as a referendum was not sought to amend them.^[11]

In accordance with the conventions of theWestminster system of parliamentary government, the governor nearly always acts solely on the advice of the head of the elected government, thePremier of Queensland. The governor may exercisereserve powers (powers able to be used in the absence of or contrary to advice) only in limited circumstances.

The Queensland Constitution expressly provides that the governor "is not subject to direction by any person and is not limited as to the Governor's sources of advice" on the appointment or dismissal of ministers (s 35), another provision inserted by the Bjelke-Petersen government in the wake of the 1975 federal dismissal. This provision worked against Bjelke-Petersen when, in the dying days of his government in November 1987, he tried and failed to convince governor SirWalter Campbell to remove several ministers to shore up his own support within Parliament. When the parliamentary wing of theNational Party deposed Bjelke-Petersen and elected one of the dissident ministers,Mike Ahern, as the new leader of the National Party, Bjelke-Petersen initially refused to resign as premier and Sir Walter resisted calls to dismiss him. Bjelke-Petersen elected to resign on 1 December 1987.^{[citation needed]}

The governor is head of theExecutive Council, a Queensland equivalent to theFederal Executive Council. The Council is composed of ministers from the government of the day. TheChief Justice of Queensland and other judges in the Queensland judicial system are appointed by the governor acting on the advice of the Executive Council.^{[citation needed]}

Although not a responsibility of the office of Governor of Queensland, governors of Queensland are - like allGovernors of the Australian states - normally given adormant commission toadminister the government of the Commonwealth of Australia in the absence from Australia, or the death, incapacity or removal from office of theGovernor-General by the Sovereign.^[13] Some Queensland governors are also appointed as aDeputy of the Governor-General^[14] to perform certain responsibilities of the Governor-General while the Governor-General is present in Australia, but unable to perform them personally.^[15]

Queensland

Standard of the governor of Queensland
Use	Other
Proportion	1:2
Adopted	1876; 149 years ago (1876)
Design	A Union Flag defaced with the state badge of Queensland surrounded by wreath of laurels

The governor's standard comprises aUnion Jack with a white roundel in the centre with the state badge of Queensland: a light blueMaltese cross, surmounted by a royal crown and surrounded by garland of laurel leaves.^[16]

The general design of standards for British governors was approved byQueen Victoria in 1869. The design for governors of Queensland was created and flown as a personal standard since 1876, when the Maltese cross was adopted as the colonial badge. The flag's design was updated in 1963 to change the depiction of the crown from theTudor Crown toSt Edward's Crown^[17][16]

If the standard is flying at Government House, on a vehicle or at an event, this indicates that the governor is present.^[16]

Past and present standards of the governor

• 
  1876–1963
• 
  1963–present

The first Australian born Governor of Queensland was Lieutenant-GeneralSirJohn Lavarack (appointed 1946). His successor, SirHenry Abel Smith, the husband of the niece of QueenMary, Lady May Abel-Smith, was British. All subsequent governors have been Australian-born, except forLeneen Forde, who was born inCanada but who emigrated to Australia at an early age.

Prior to theSeparation of Queensland in 1859, it was part ofNew South Wales under thegovernors of New South Wales.

There have been 26 past governors of Queensland, prior to the current governor:^[18]

No.	Portrait	Title Governor Office (Birth–Death)	Term of office		Monarch
1		SirGeorge Bowen (1821–1899)	10 December 1859	4 January 1868	Victoria (1837–1901)
			8 years and 26 days
2		Samuel Blackall (1809–1871)	14 August 1868	2 January 1871
			2 years and 142 days
3		George Phipps Earl of Mulgrave (1819–1890)	12 August 1871	12 November 1874
			3 years and 93 days
4		SirWilliam Cairns (1828–1888)	23 January 1875	14 March 1877
			2 years and 51 days
5		SirArthur Kennedy (1809–1883)	20 July 1877	2 May 1883
			5 years and 287 days
6		SirAnthony Musgrave (1828–1888)	6 November 1883	9 October 1888
			4 years and 339 days
7		Field Marshal SirHenry Norman (1826–1904)	1 May 1889	31 December 1895
			6 years and 245 days
8		Charles Cochrane-Baillie 2nd Baron Lamington (1860–1940)	9 April 1896	19 December 1901
			5 years and 255 days		Edward VII (1901–1910)
9		Lieutenant General SirHerbert Chermside (1850–1929)	24 March 1902	10 October 1904
			2 years and 201 days
10		Frederic Thesiger 3rd Baron Chelmsford (1868–1933)	30 November 1905	26 May 1909
			3 years and 178 days
11		SirWilliam MacGregor (1846–1919)	2 December 1909	16 July 1914
			4 years and 227 days		George V (1910–1936)
12		Major SirHamilton Goold-Adams (1858–1920)	15 March 1915	3 February 1920
			4 years and 326 days
13		Lieutenant Colonel SirMatthew Nathan (1862–1939)	3 December 1920	17 September 1925
			4 years and 289 days
14		Lieutenant General SirJohn Goodwin (1871–1960)	13 July 1927	7 April 1932
			4 years and 270 days
15		Lieutenant Colonel SirLeslie Wilson (1876–1955)	13 June 1932	23 April 1946	Edward VIII (1936)
			13 years and 315 days		George VI (1936–1952)
16		Lieutenant General SirJohn Lavarack (1885–1957)	1 October 1946	4 December 1957
			11 years and 65 days		Elizabeth II (1952–2022)
17		Colonel SirHenry Abel Smith (1900–1993)	18 March 1958	18 March 1966
			8 years and 1 day
18		SirAlan Mansfield (1902–1980)	21 March 1966	21 March 1972
			6 years and 1 day
19		Air Marshal SirColin Hannah (1914–1978)	21 March 1972	20 March 1977
			5 years and 0 days
20		Commodore SirJames Ramsay (1916–1986)	22 April 1977	21 July 1985
			8 years and 91 days
21		Flight Lieutenant SirWalter Campbell (1921–2004)	22 July 1985	29 July 1992
			7 years and 8 days
22		Leneen Forde (b. 1935)	29 July 1992	29 July 1997
			5 years and 1 day
23		Major General Peter Arnison (b. 1940)	29 July 1997	29 July 2003
			6 years and 1 day
24		Quentin Bryce (b. 1942)	29 July 2003	29 July 2008
			5 years and 1 day
25		Penelope Wensley (b. 1946)	29 July 2008	29 July 2014
			6 years and 1 day
26		Paul de Jersey (b. 1948)	29 July 2014	1 November 2021
			7 years and 96 days
27		Jeannette Young (b. 1963)	1 November 2021	Incumbent
					Charles III (2022–present)
			4 years and 23 days

Administrators andlieutenant-governors are deputy roles generally appointed to carry out the duties of the governor when the governor is unavailable, due to travel or illness. If one is not appointed, then the duties are carried out by theChief Justice of Queensland (or the most senior judge available).^[19] The following are the administrators and lieutenant-governors of Queensland:^[20]

• Fagan, David; King, Madonna (2021).The Governors Of Modern Queensland. University Of Queensland.ISBN 9780702263019.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toGovernors of Queensland.

• Official Website of the Governor of Queensland

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