Australian-born Governors-General have come from four of the six states
(Victoria, New South Wales (NSW), Western Australia, Queensland). Five have
previously been parliamentarians and ministers, two at state level; four
have been superior court judges; two have been academic lawyers; and two
have had an army background. All but one have been men. Two (Sir John Kerr
and Bishop Hollingworth) have left office early, in controversial circum-
stances, but the most obvious adjective to describe the quality which seems
to be sought in Governors-General of Australia is‘sound’.
A conspicuous feature of Canadian practice has been an almost studied
alternation between those with an English-speaking background and those
from a French background. In this respect, the governor generalship has been
utilized to recognize and address national unity concerns. When Governors
General werefirst appointed from within Canada they brought diplomatic
experience; one was actually drawn from the diplomatic service. Thereafter,
there were several from politics; three had been presiding officers (two
Speakers of the House of Commons and another, a Speaker of the Senate),
two ministers, and another a provincial premier. The last three appointees
have included two journalists, both women and both born outside Canada,
and an academic lawyer and administrator, who had held top posts at univer-
sities in both Quebec and Ontario.
14.3 The Federal Executive Council and the Privy Councils
The Federal Executive Council is a further illustration of the sparseness of
Australian government institutions, especially in contrast to its illustrious UK
counterpart, Her Majesty’s Most Honourable Privy Council. The Constitution
deals briskly with the Executive Council:‘There shall be a Federal Executive
Council to advise the Governor-General in the government of the Common-
wealth.’Members are‘chosen and summoned’by the Governor General and
‘hold office during his pleasure’(section 62). The following section states that
‘The provisions of this Constitution referring to the Governor-General in
Council shall be construed as referring to the Governor-General acting with
the advice of the Federal Executive Council’(section 63).
Under section 64, officers appointed by the Governor-General to administer
departments‘shall be members of the Federal Executive Council, and shall be
the Queen’s Ministers of State for the Commonwealth’. Today, parliamentary
secretaries are also appointed to the Executive Council.
In the history of the Commonwealth, no one apart from a minister, assist-
ant minister, or parliamentary secretary has ever been appointed to the
Federal Executive Council. A number of judges of the High Court have
been members but only because they have previously been ministers; but,
Australia’s Distinctive Governance