27-741: The Treasurer of Australia , also known as the Federal Treasurer or more simply the Treasurer , is the minister of state of the Commonwealth of Australia charged with overseeing government revenue collection, federal expenditure and economic policy as the head of the Department of the Treasury . The current treasurer is Jim Chalmers , who was selected by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in May 2022 following
54-673: A Federal Executive Council meeting which the Governor-General presided over was the meeting on 11 September 2022, when the Executive Council advised the Governor-General David Hurley to proclaim Charles III as the new head of state of Australia. Department of Finance (Australia) The Department of Finance is a department of the Government of Australia that is charged with the responsibility of assisting
81-459: A Minister is appointed, that Minister shall also become a member of the Executive Council. There is no provision for such membership to come to an end, but only those Ministers in the current ministry who are invited to take part in meetings are in practice actually involved in Council activities. The Governor-General presides over meetings of the Executive Council but is not a member. A member of
108-592: A member of the Senate, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia had state Treasurers who had served as members of the Legislative Councils, the states' upper houses. Unlike the scenario in which a treasurer who is a senator cannot present the budget in the House of Representatives, state treasurers who have been members of upper houses have delivered their budgets in the respective lower houses. The treasurer
135-543: Is a body established by section 62 of the Australian Constitution to advise the governor-general of Australia , on the matters of the federal government. The council comprises, at least notionally, all current and former Commonwealth ministers and assistant ministers. As the Governor-General is bound by convention to follow the advice of the Executive Council on almost all occasions, the Executive Council has de facto executive power. In practice, this power
162-533: Is a very senior government post, usually ranking second or third in Cabinet. Historically, many treasurers have previously, concurrently or subsequently served as prime minister or deputy prime minister ; two subsequently served as Governor-General . Service as treasurer is seen as an important (though certainly not essential) qualification for serving as prime minister: to date, six treasurers have gone on to be prime minister. Paul Keating and Wayne Swan are currently
189-508: Is rarely exercised in practice. It might be exercised if, hypothetically, a minister or former minister were convicted of a serious criminal offence. One notable case was that of the Queensland Senator Glen Sheil . Malcolm Fraser 's government was re-elected at the 1977 election on 10 December, and on 19 December he publicly announced the ministry he would be recommending to the Governor-General, which included Senator Sheil as
216-618: Is the responsibility of the Department of the Treasury . The Treasurer has a wider range of powers and responsibilities than the Minister for Finance, who has a comparatively narrower portfolio. The head office of the department is located at One Canberra Avenue, in the Canberra suburb of Forrest . Formerly, it was located in the John Gorton Building, named after Australia's prime minister between 1968 and 1971 . The Department of Finance
243-460: Is used to legally enact the decisions already made by Federal Cabinet , due to the practices of the Westminster system making the cabinet a de facto authority in its own right. There are some laws that specifically require decisions or actions to be made by the "Governor-General in Council", which means that they must be effected by the Governor-General in the presence and with the authority of
270-571: Is within the Treasurer's direct responsibility, while monetary policy is implemented by the politically independent Reserve Bank of Australia , the head of which is appointed by the Treasurer. The Treasurer also oversees financial regulation . Each year in May, the Treasurer presents the Federal Budget to the Parliament. The Prime Minister and Treasurer are traditionally members of the House, but
297-610: The 2022 Australian federal election . The Treasurer implements ministerial powers through the Department of the Treasury and a range of other government agencies. According to constitutional convention, the Treasurer is always a member of the Parliament of Australia with a seat in the House of Representatives . The office is generally seen as equivalent to the Chancellor of the Exchequer in
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#1732891173116324-461: The Constitution does not have such a requirement. The tradition is due to the fact that under the constitution , appropriate bills have to originate from the House, and if the Treasurer is a senator, they would not be able to introduce the bills. This would also mean another minister would need to give the nationally televised budget speech and introduce the bills. While no Federal Treasurer has been
351-589: The United Kingdom or the Secretary of the Treasury in the United States or, in some other countries, the finance minister . It is one of only four ministerial positions (along with prime minister, Minister for Defence and Attorney-General ) that have existed since Federation . The Treasurer is the minister in charge of government revenue and expenditure. The Treasurer oversees economic policy : fiscal policy
378-425: The Cabinet is appointed to hold the position of Vice-President of the Executive Council to act as presiding officer of the Executive Council in the absence of the Governor-General, at no additional salary or allowance. However, the vice-president cannot sign Executive Council documents on behalf of the Governor-General. The Governor-General has the power to dismiss any member of the Executive Council, but that power
405-603: The Department of Finance are: Eleven organizations nominally fall under the auspices of the Australian Treasurer. The agencies undertake a range of activities aimed at achieving strong sustainable economic growth and the improved well-being of Australians. This entails the provision of policy advice to portfolio ministers who seek to promote a sound macroeconomic environment; effective government spending and taxation arrangements; and well-functioning markets. It also entails
432-505: The Executive Council, as opposed to by a minister acting alone. The matters that are typically required to be dealt with by the Governor-General in Council include: The Australian Federal Executive Council is the equivalent of executive councils in other Commonwealth realms , and is similar to the privy councils of Canada and the United Kingdom (although unlike the UK privy council, the Leader of
459-601: The Federal Executive Council. The Council acts as a formal ratification body for decisions of the Cabinet. In a parallel manner to the Royal Assent given to legislative Acts by the Governor-General after they have passed both Houses of Parliament, proposed executive actions will receive the approval of the Governor-General in Council after they have been agreed to by the Prime Minister and Cabinet. An example of
486-512: The Opposition is not typically a member). The Australian Federal Executive Council formally consists of all current and former Commonwealth Ministers and Assistant Ministers (previously called parliamentary secretaries ). Members of the Executive Council are referred to as Councillors and are entitled to the style ' The Honourable ' for life. Section 64 of the Constitution stipulates that when
513-461: The Treasury. The Treasurer together with these other ministers are known as the "Treasury Ministers". At present, the Treasury Minister positions are: The work of the Department of Finance is closely related to the work of the Department of the Treasury, with the former responsible for budget formation and operational management of government finances. The ministers who have responsibility for
540-412: The absence of the vice-president, quorum is three ministers, one of whom, a senior minister, will preside. In practice, meetings will only be attended by a small number of Councillors rather than the full Cabinet. Most of the powers vested in the Governor-General, such as appointments and the authorisation of budgets, are exercisable only by "the Governor-General in Council" – that is, under advice from
567-470: The effective implementation and administration of policies that fall within the portfolio ministers' responsibilities. The following individuals have been appointed as Treasurer of Australia: As of 27 November 2024, there are ten living former treasurers of Australia, the oldest being Ralph Willis (served 1991, 1993−1996, born 1938). The most recent treasurer to die was Bill Hayden (served 1975) on 21 October 2023. The most recently serving treasurer to die
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#1732891173116594-558: The government across a wide range of policy areas to ensure its outcomes are met, particularly with regard to expenditure, financial management, and the operations of government. The administrative head of the department is the Secretary of the Department of Finance, presently Jenny Wilkinson, who reports to the Federal Minister for Finance , presently Senator Katy Gallagher . Unlike in many countries, Australia's Department of Finance does not deal with general economic policy, which
621-516: The new Minister for Veterans' Affairs . Sheil was sworn in as an Executive Councillor but, prior to the scheduled swearing-in of the Ministry, he made public statements about apartheid that were at odds with the government's attitude to the issue. Fraser then advised Governor-General Sir Zelman Cowen not to include Sheil in the ministry—advice that Cowen was required by convention to follow. Sheil's appointment as an Executive Councillor without portfolio
648-610: The only two to have been named " Euromoney Finance Minister of the Year " by Euromoney magazine. Since 1958, Treasurers in Coalition governments have often but not always been the deputy leader of the Liberal Party. In contrast, only four Labor Treasurers have also been the deputy leader of the Labor Party. Along with the Treasurer, other ministers have responsibility for the Department of
675-484: Was John Kerin (served 1991) on 29 March 2023. [REDACTED] Australia [REDACTED] New South Wales [REDACTED] Queensland [REDACTED] South Australia [REDACTED] Tasmania [REDACTED] Victoria [REDACTED] Western Australia [REDACTED] Australian Capital Territory [REDACTED] Northern Territory Federal Executive Council (Australia) The Federal Executive Council
702-418: Was formed by way of an Administrative Arrangements Order issued on 18 September 2013 and replaced the functions previously performed by the former Department of Finance and Deregulation. In an earlier reconstruction, the department was called the Department of Finance and Administration. In the 18 September 2013 Administrative Arrangements Order, the functions of the department were broadly classified into
729-429: Was terminated on 22 December. Meetings of the Executive Council do not require the Governor-General's attendance, but the Governor-General must be notified of the meeting in order for it to be valid. A quorum for meetings is the Governor-General and two serving ministers or assistant ministers. If the Governor-General is not in attendance, quorum is the vice-president and two serving ministers or assistant ministers. In
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