OPENING HOURS
Open 10am to 4pm Sundays and Wednesdays.
Other times for group bookings.
Open 10am to 4pm Sundays and Wednesdays.
Other times for group bookings.
The Governor
After a state election, the Governor appoints the new government. At the request of the Premier, a Governor may travel overseas to represent Victoria in an apolitical way in other countries, and to build friendships and good relations. Sir Rohan Delacombe, Governor from 1963 to 1974, visiting the State Bank of Victoria to discuss new technology, c. 1970s. Governor Delacombe is third from the left in the photograph. State Bank Victoria Archives – Photographic Collection VPRS 8935/P1 unit 7 item 6251
Australia is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy. The Queen is formally Australia’s head of state and is represented by the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia and by a Governor in each Australian state.
The Governor of Victoria, like other state Governors, is no longer subject to direction, supervision or veto by the Queen or the British Government, instead exercising the powers of the office in accordance with the advice of the Victorian Premier or the Executive Council. The Governor represents and is responsible to the Victorian community.
The Executive Council, at which the Governor presides although not a member, meets on Tuesdays in the Executive Council Chamber in the Old Treasury Building. In advance of this weekly meeting, some sixty recommendations by government ministers – for Orders-in-Council to be made or other actions to be taken by the Governor in Council – are delivered to the Governor by the Clerk of the Executive Council.
A Bill passed by Parliament goes to the Attorney-General for signing, then to the Clerk, and finally to the Governor. The Governor gives a Bill royal assent by signing two copies, which are then sealed with wax. A Bill thus becomes an Act of Parliament.
