Administrator of the Northern Territory


The Administrator of the Northern Territory is an official appointed by the Governor-General of Australia to represent the government of the Commonwealth in the Northern Territory. He or she performs functions similar to those of a state governor.
Strictly speaking, the appointment of an Administrator is made by the Governor-General-in-Council, that is, the Governor-General acting on the advice of the Commonwealth Government, rather than the advice of the Government of the Northern Territory. The Northern Territory received self-government on 1 July 1978, in accordance with the provisions of the Northern Territory Act 1978 . Since then, the practice has arisen that in making an appointment the Governor-General-in-Council will act on the recommendation of the Northern Territory Government.
Unlike an Australian State Governor, the Administrator is not the direct representative of the Queen in the Territory but is instead appointed by the Queen's representative in the Commonwealth, the Governor-General, to administer the Territory in accordance with the Act. In practice, however, the Administrator performs a similar constitutional role to that of a state governor and can be considered the Queen's indirect representative in the Territory. This is light of the fact that territories are not sovereign in the same way as states, there being no 'Crown in right of the NT'.
The Administrator formally appoints the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory and the members of the Cabinet after every election. In all but a few cases, he or she is required by convention to act on the Cabinet's advice. The Administrator gives royal assent to all bills passed by the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. Although the Governor-General has the power to veto any territorial bill, in practice this right is almost never exercised.
The office of the Deputy of the Administrator was created in 1997.
In 2014, the Governor-General granted current, future and living former Administrators the title of 'The Honourable' for life, following the lead of Governors-General and Governors of New South Wales in granting the title.
The present Administrator is Vicki O'Halloran, AO.

Crest of Administrator

The crest of Administrator of the Northern Territory which is similar to the one used by the Governor-General of Australia except that the flower below the St Edward's Crown is the Sturt Desert Rose which is the floral emblem of the Northern Territory.

South Australia (1863 to 1912)

On 6 July 1863, land now known as the Northern Territory was annexed to the Colony of South Australia. Legislation regulating the sale of land in the Northern Territory which was given assent on 12 November 1863 included provision for both the appointment of a Government Resident and a description of the powers of this office.
No.Government ResidentFromTo
1The Hon. Boyle Travers Finniss3 March 18644 November 1865
James Stokes Millner MDJanuary 1870April 1870
2William Bloomfield Douglas27 April 1870June 1873
James Stokes Millner MDJune 1873October 1873
3George Byng Scott6 October 187330 June 1876
4Edward William Price1 July 18766 March 1883
Gilbert Rotherdale McMinnMarch 1883March 1884
5John Parsons19 March 188414 February 1890
6John Knight FRIBA16 July 189010 January 1892
7Charles James Dashwood24 February 189231 January 1905
8Charles Edward Herbert1 February 19058 February 1910
9The Hon. Samuel Mitchell1 April 191025 March 1912

Commonwealth of Australia (1912 to present)

Administrators and Government Residents of the Northern Territory
after transfer of control to the Commonwealth Government:

Administrator (1912 to 1919)

No.AdministratorFromTo
1John Gilruth FRSE MRCVS25 March 19121 August 1919

Director (1919 to 1921)

No.DirectorFromTo
1Henry Ernest Carey1 August 191917 January 1921

Administrator (1921 to 1927)

No.AdministratorFromTo
1Frederic Urquhart17 January 19211 March 1927

Government Resident (1927 to 1931)

From 1926 to 1931, the Northern Territory was divided into the territories of Central Australia and North Australia, with the border at the 20th parallel south. Each territory was administered by a Government Resident located respectively in Alice Springs and in Darwin.
Both territories were reincorporated as the Northern Territory in 1931.
No.Government Resident FromTo
1Robert Weddell1 March 192712 June 1931

No.Government Resident FromTo
1John Cawood1 March 192711 December 1929
2Victor Carrington MBE11 December 192912 June 1931

Administrator (1931 to present)

No.AdministratorPost-
Nominal		FromTo
1Robert Weddell12 June 193129 March 1937
2The Hon. Aubrey Abbott29 March 19371 July 1946
3Arthur DriverBEM1 July 19461 July 1951
4The Hon. Frank WiseAO1 July 19511 July 1956
5James ArcherOBE1 July 19561 April 1961
6Roger NottCBE1 April 19611 October 1964
7Roger DeanCBE1 October 19644 March 1970
8The Hon. Sir Frederick ChaneyKBE AFC4 March 197010 December 1973
9Jock Nelson10 December 197312 November 1975
10John EnglandCMG1 June 19781 January 1981
11Commodore Eric JohnstonAO OBE RAN1 January 19811 July 1989
12The Hon. James MuirheadAC QC1 July 19891 March 1993
13The Hon. Austin AscheAC QC1 March 199317 February 1997
14The Hon. Dr. Neil ConnAO17 February 199728 November 2000
15The Hon. John AnictomatisAO28 November 200030 October 2003
16The Hon. Ted EganAO31 October 200331 October 2007
17The Hon. Tom PaulingAO QC31 October 200731 October 2011
18The Hon. Sally ThomasAC31 October 201110 November 2014
19The Hon. John HardyAO10 November 201430 October 2017
20The Hon. Vicki O'HalloranAO31 October 2017Present

Deputy of the Administrator (1997 to present)

The office of the Deputy of the Administrator was established in 1997.
No.Deputy of the AdministratorFromTo
1Minna Sitzler AM17 February 199730 November 2001
2Pat Miller AO20 September 2002present