| Government of the Australian Capital Territory | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Established |
|
| Polity | Australian Capital Territory |
| Leader | Chief Minister (Andrew Barr) |
| Appointed by | Legislative Assembly |
| Main organ | Cabinet |
| Ministries | 9 government directorates |
| Responsible to | Legislative Assembly |
| Annual budget | A$8.4 billion (2023–2024)[1] |
| Headquarters | 220London Circuit,Canberra |
| Website | act |
TheGovernment of the Australian Capital Territory, also known as theAustralian Capital Territory Government orACT Government, is theexecutive branch of theAustralian Capital Territory. The leader of the party or coalition that holds theconfidence of theAustralian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly forms government. Unlike the Australian states and theNorthern Territory, the Legislative Assembly directly elects one of its number to serve asChief Minister as the head of the government, rather than being appointed by a Governor or Administrator.[2]
Since December 2014, the Chief Minister has beenAndrew Barr, leader of theLabor Party. Following the2024 ACT election, Labor formed a minority government of 10 members, after theGreens moved to the crossbench and, dissolving thecoalition that had been in place since 2012.[3]
Ministers are appointed by the Chief Minister.[4] The currentministry of the Australian Capital Territory (Fourth Barr Ministry) consists of eight of the 25 members of the Legislative Assembly.[5]
The ACT has internal self-government, butAustralia'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.[6] Nonetheless, theACT is governed according to the principles of theWestminster System, a form of parliamentary government based on the model of theUnited Kingdom.
Legislative power rests with theunicameralAustralian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly.
Executive power rests formally with the executive, which consists of the chief minister and ministers, and is informally called theCabinet.
Judicial power is exercised by theSupreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory and a system of subordinate courts, but theHigh Court of Australia 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 oflocal government such as that seen in the Australian States and theNorthern Territory. In the ACT, government functions that would usually be handled by local government are instead directly handled by the territory government.
The current arrangement of the incumbentministry (Fourth Barr Ministry) of the ACT was appointed on 6 November 2024, comprising eightLabor Party members. The current arrangement of the incumbent shadow ministry was announced on 18 November 2024, comprising sevenLiberal Party members.[5][7]
| Party | Portrait | Minister | Portfolio | Opposition counterpart | Portfolio | Portrait | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | .jpg) | Andrew Barr |
| Leanne CastleyMLA |
|  | Liberal | ||
 | Yvette Berry |
| Jeremy HansonMLA |
|  | ||||
 | Rachel Stephen-Smith |
| James MilliganMLA |
| | ||||
 | Chris Steel |
| Ed CocksMLA |
|  | ||||
 | Tara Cheyne |
| Peter CainMLA |
| | ||||
 | Suzanne Orr |
| Deborah MorrisMLA |
| | ||||
 | Michael Pettersson |
| Chiaka BarryMLA |
| | ||||
 | Marisa Paterson |
| |||||||
The ACT Government is served by a unified ACTPublic 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.
As of November 2020[update], there are nine directorates:[8]
The ACT Government also has a number of public authorities and territory-owned corporations:[9]
The following are officers of theAustralian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly:
| Directorates |
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|---|---|
| Agencies |
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Governments ofAustralian states and territories | ||
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| States and mainland territories |  | |
| External territories | ||
