The Governor-General of Australia
Australia, as a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, is a self-governing independent nation with its own separate and distinct identity and with its own Head of State: the Governor-General of Australia. The Governor-General is appointed by the Queen on the advice of her Australian Prime Minister. If advised by the Prime Minister, the Queen would also dismiss the Governor-Governor. There is a clear division between the Queen's purely ceremonial role of appointing and dismissing the Governor-General, and the Governor-General's constitutional role as formal head of the executive.
The office of Governor-General is completely above politics bringing permanence and stability to our system of government. The Governor-General's formal roles are many. The Governor-General appoints the Prime Minister and, on his advice, appoints Ministers of the Crown to administer the government, he gives assent to legislation by giving Royal Assent in the Queens name, he authorises the dissolution of parliament - which initiates a general election - issues writs calling elections for both houses of parliament and certifies the election of successful candidates, opens parliament and gives legal effect to government decisions through the Federal Executive Council, which consists of the Prime Minister and the government ministers. The Governor-General is also the focus of loyalty within the services (with the Queen) as Comander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force.
Some of the Governor-General's other duties include; the state Opening of Parliament where he delivers the speech from the throne outlining the governments legislative agenda, Investitures where he invests recipients with the honours that have been conferred upon them. He also represents both Her Majesty and the Australian people on important national occasions such as ANZAC Day or Australia Day. The Governor-General also entertains important visitors such as members of the Royal Family, foreign Heads of State, Ambassadors, High Commissioners and other dignitaries. In addition the Governor-General holds receptions for many and varied sections of the Australian community.
Although it appears that the Governor-General has extensive powers under the Constitution, the powers are almost always by convention exercised on the advice of the Prime Minister or the Federal Executive Council. However, there are occasions where Governors-Generals are obliged to exercise their own discretion. This is essentially the Governor-General's role as constitutional umpire in situations of political and constitutional crisis.
Fundamentally, the Governor-General's role is to protect the Constitution, maintain continuous stable government and facilitate the work of Parliament and the government. He does this on behalf of not only the Queen and the government but also on behalf the Australian community.
Government House
Government House, the official Canberra residence of the Governor-General, is set in 53 hectares of gardens, lawns and parkland at Yarralumla. The property (which dates back to 1828) became the official residence of the Governor-General when the Australian capital moved from Melbourne, where it had been since federation, to Canberra in 1927.
Not only is Government House a private residence and a place where the Governor-General entertains important guests (the Queen stays at Government House whenever she visits Canberra) it is also the Governor-General's official office as well as the official home of the Order of Australia Secretariat. The other main residence of the Governor-General is Admiralty House, which is His Excellencies official Sydney Residence.
