List of Australian Royal Commissions
Encyclopedia
This is a list of Royal Commission
s appointed by the Government of Australia
. Royal Commissions (sometimes called Commissions of Inquiry) have been held in Australia at a federal level since 1902, when the Royal Commissions Act 1902
was passed by the Parliament of Australia
. The governments of the States and territories of Australia
have also appointed Royal Commissions, although they are not included in this list unless they were appointed jointly by the Government of Australia and a State or Territory government.
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
s appointed by the Government of Australia
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
. Royal Commissions (sometimes called Commissions of Inquiry) have been held in Australia at a federal level since 1902, when the Royal Commissions Act 1902
Royal Commissions Act 1902
The Royal Commissions Act of 1902 is a piece of Australian legislation giving the Australian Governor-General the power to initiate an investigation, referred to as a Royal Commission. Royal Commissions are a major independent public inquiry into an issue, initiated by the government. They often...
was passed by the Parliament of Australia
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, largely modelled in the Westminster tradition, but with some influences from the United States Congress...
. The governments of the States and territories of Australia
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...
have also appointed Royal Commissions, although they are not included in this list unless they were appointed jointly by the Government of Australia and a State or Territory government.
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into and report upon the arrangements made for the transport of troops returning from service in South Africa in the S.S. "Drayton Grange" (1902)
- Royal Commission on sites for the seat of government of the Commonwealth (1903)
- Royal Commission on the Bonuses for Manufactures Bill (1903-1904)
- Royal Commission on the butter industry (1904-1905)
- Royal Commission on the Navigation Bill (1904-1906)
- Royal Commission on the affray at Goaribari Island, British New Guinea, on the 6th of March, 1904 (1904)
- Royal Commission on customs and excise tariffs (1904-1907)
- Royal Commission on old-age pensions (1905-1906)
- Royal Commission on the tobacco monopoly (1905-1906)
- Royal Commission on ocean shipping service (1906)
- British New Guinea—Royal Commission of inquiry into the present conditions, including the method of government, of the Territory of Papua, and the best means of their improvement (1906-1907)
- Royal Commission on secret drugs, cures, and foods (1906-1907)
- Royal Commission on postal services (1908-1910)
- Royal Commission on insurance (1908-1910)
- Royal Commission on stripper harvesters and drills (1908-1909)
- Royal Commission on Tasmanian customs leakage (1910-1911)
- Royal Commission on the sugar industry (1911-1912)
- Royal Commission on the pearl-shelling industry (1912-1916)
- Royal Commission on the fruit industry (1912-1914)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into certain charges against Mr. Henry Chinn (1913)
- Royal Commission on Northern Territory railways and ports (1913-1914)
- Royal Commission on powellised timber (1913-1914)
- Royal Commission upon the Commonwealth electoral law and administration (1914-1915)
- Royal Commission on meat export trade (1914)
- Royal Commission on food supplies and trade and industry during the war (1914)
- Royal Commission on mail services and trade development between Australia and the New Hebrides (1915)
- Royal Commission on Liverpool Military Camp, New South Wales (1915)
- Royal Commission on the charges made by D. L. Gilchrist concerning the construction of the western section of the Kalgoorlie to Port Augusta Railway (1916)
- Royal Commission to inquire into and report upon certain charges against the Administrator and other officers of the Northern Territory Administration (1916)
- Royal Commission on Federal Capital Administration (1916-1917)
- Royal Commission on Java and the East Indies, Singapore and the Straits Settlements (1917-1918)
- Royal Commission on Navy and Defence Administration (1917-1919)
- Royal Commission on the war—Australian Imperial Force. Report as to number of members fit for active service and number of reinforcements and enlistments required (1918)
- Royal Commission on Public Service administration, Commonwealth of Australia (1918-1920)
- Royal Commission upon the public expenditure of the Commonwealth of Australia with a view to effecting economies (1918-1921)
- Royal Commission on taxation of leasehold estates in Crown lands (1918-1919)
- Royal Commission on the sugar industry (1919-1920)
- Royal Commission on industrial troubles on Melbourne wharfs (1919-1920)
- Royal Commission on late German New Guinea (1919-1920)
- Royal Commission to inquire into complaints by the munition worker passengers to Australia by the transport "Bahia Castillo" (1919)
- Royal Commission on Northern Territory Administration (1919-1920)
- Royal Commission on the basic wage (1919-1920)
- Royal Commission on taxation (1920-1923)
- Royal Commission on the increase of the selling price of coal (1920)
- Royal Commission on the matter of uniform railway gauge (1921)
- Royal Commission on pillaging of ships' cargoes (1921)
- Royal Commission on Cockatoo Island Dockyard (1921)
- Royal Commission upon the loyalty to the British Crown of German Nationals resident in Australia whose property is liable to a charge created by the Treaty of Peace Regulations made under the Treaty of Peace (Germany) Act 1919–1920 (1921)
- Royal Commission on the circumstances attending the supposed loss at sea of the steamship "Sumatra" (1923)
- Royal Commission in connection with sugar purchases by the Commonwealth through Mr. W. E. Davies in September and October, 1920 (1923-1924)
- Royal Commission in connection with joinery supplied to the War Service Homes Commissioner in March, 1920 (1923-1924)
- Royal Commission on the Navigation Act (1923-1925)
- Royal Commission on national insurance (1923-1927)
- Royal Commission on the method for determining the unimproved value of land held under Crown leases (1924-1925)
- Royal Commission on the assessment of war service disabilities (1924-1925)
- Royal Commission to inquire into extracts from the reports in Parliamentary Debates of speeches made by Mr. Scullin in the House of Representatives on 7th and 19th August, 1924, in relation to land tax matters (1924-1925)
- Royal Commission on the finances of Western Australia , as affected by Federation (1924-1925)
- Royal Commission on health (1925-1926)
- Royal Commission on Norfolk Island affairs (1926)
- Royal Commission on certain matters in connexion with the British Phosphate Commission (1926)
- Royal Commission on wireless (1927)
- Royal Commission on the Edie Creek (New Guinea) leases (1927)
- Royal Commission on the moving picture industry in Australia (1927-1928)
- Royal Commission on the Constitution (Australia)|Royal Commission on the Constitution (1927-1929)
- Royal Commission on child endowment or family allowances (1927-1929)
- Royal Commission of inquiry into fatalities at Bundaberg (1928)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into statements in the press in regard to offers alleged to have been made to members to resign seats in the Federal Parliament (1928)
- Royal Commission on the finances of South Australia , as affected by Federation (1928-1929)
- Royal Commission on the coal industry (1929)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into allegations affecting members of the Parliamentary Joint Committee of Public Accounts in connexion with claims made by broadcasting companies against the Commonwealth Government (1930)
- Royal Commission on Jacob Johnson (1931)
- Royal Commission on performing rights (1932-1933)
- Royal Commission on taxation (1932-1934)
- Royal Commission on mineral oils and petrol and other products of mineral oils (1933-1935)
- Royal Commission on the wheat, flour and bread industries (1934-1936)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into and report upon the circumstances associated with the retirement of Lieutenant-Commander Alan Dermot Casey from the Royal Australian Navy (1934)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the monetary and banking systems at present in operation in Australia (1935-1937)
- Royal Commission on doctors' remuneration for national insurance service and other contract practice (1938)
- Royal Commission regarding the contract for the erection of additions to the General Post Office, Sydney (1939)
- Royal Commission to inquire into and report upon the contract or contracts with Abbco Bread Co. Pty. Limited for the supply of bread to the Department of the Army, and other matters (1941)
- Royal Commission to inquire into circumstances under which certain public monies were used and to whom, and for what purposes such moneys were paid (1941)
- Royal Commission in the matter of an inquiry into a statement that there was a document missing from the official files in relation to "The Brisbane LineBrisbane LineThe "Brisbane Line" was a controversial defence proposal allegedly formulated during World War II to concede the northern portion of the Australian continent in the event of an invasion by the Japanese...
" (1943) - Royal Commission to inquire into and report upon certain transactions of the Sydney Land Sales Control Office, and the Canberra Land Sales Control Office of the Treasury (1947)
- Royal Commission appointed to inquire into certain transactions in relation to timber rights in the Territory of Papua-New Guinea (1949)
- Royal Commission on the Port Augusta to Alice Springs Railway (1951-1952)
- Royal Commission on television (1953-1954)
- Royal Commission on espionage (1954-1955)
- Royal Commission on alleged improper practices and improper refusal to co-operate with the Victoria Police Force on the part of persons employed in the Postmaster-General's Department in Victoria in relation to illegal gambling (1962-1963)
- Royal Commission on loss of HMAS Voyager (1964)
- Royal Commission on the statement of Lieutenant Commander Cabban and matters incidental thereto (1967-1968)
- Royal Commissions into exploratory and production drilling for petroleum in the area of the Great Barrier Reef (1970-1975)
- Aboriginal Land Rights Commission (1973-1974)
- Australian Post Office Commission of inquiry (1973-1974)
- Commission of inquiry into land tenures (1973-1976)
- Royal Commission on petroleum (1973-1976)
- Commission of Inquiry into the maritime industry (1973-1976)
- Independent Inquiry into Frequency Modulation Broadcasting (1973-1974)
- Commission of Inquiry into transport to and from Tasmania (1974-1976)
- Royal Commission on Australian Government Administration (1974-1976)
- Royal Commission on human relationships (1974-1978)
- Royal Commission on intelligence and security (1974-1977)
- Royal Commission into alleged payments to maritime unions (1974-1976)
- Royal Commission to inquire into and report upon certain incidents in which Aborigines were involved in the Laverton area (1975-1976)
- Royal Commission on Norfolk Island (1975-1976)
- Australian Royal Commission of inquiry into drugs (1977-1980)
- Royal Commission of inquiry into matters in relation to electoral redistribution Queensland, 1977 (1978)
- Commission of inquiry into the efficiency and administration of hospitals (1979-1981)
- Commission of inquiry into the viability of the Christmas Island phosphate industry (1979-1980)
- Royal Commission on the activities of the Federated Ship Painters and Dockers Union (1980-1984)
- Royal Commission of Inquiry into Drug TraffickingRoyal Commission of Inquiry into Drug TraffickingThe Royal Commission of Inquiry into Drug Trafficking was also known as the "Stewart Royal Commission". It was headed by Justice Donald Stewart.-See also:* Royal Commission into Drug Trafficking, ,...
(1981-1983) - Royal Commission into the activities of the Australian Building Construction Employees' and Builders Labourers' Federation (1981-1982)
- Royal Commission into Australian meat industry (1981-1982)
- Royal Commission of inquiry into the activities of the Nugan Hand Group (1983-1985)
- Royal Commission on the use and effects of chemical agents on Australian personnel in Vietnam (1983-1985)
- Royal Commission on Australia's security and intelligence agencies (1983-1985)
- Commission of inquiry into compensation arising from social security conspiracy prosecutions (1984-1986)
- Royal Commission into British nuclear tests in AustraliaMcClelland Royal CommissionThe McClelland Royal Commission or Royal Commission into British nuclear tests in Australia was an inquiry by the Australian government in 1984-1985 to investigate the conduct of the British in its use, with the then Australian government's permission, of Australian territory and soldiers for...
(1984-1985) - Royal Commission of inquiry into alleged telephone interceptions (1985-1986)
- Royal Commission of inquiry into Chamberlain convictions (1986-1987)
- Royal Commission into grain storage, handling and transport (1986-1988)
- Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in CustodyRoyal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in CustodyThe Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody studied and reported on the high level of deaths of Aboriginal people whilst in custody after being arrested or convicted of committing crimes. This included suicide, natural causes, medical conditions and injuries caused by police...
(1987-1991) - Commission of inquiry into the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (1994-1995)
- Royal Commission of inquiry into the leasing by the Commonwealth of accommodation in Centenary House (1994)
- Commission of Inquiry into the relations between the CAA and Seaview Air (1994-1996)
- Royal Commission into HIH InsuranceHIH InsuranceHIH Insurance was Australia's second largest insurance company. It was placed into provisional liquidation on 15 March 2001. The demise of HIH is considered to be the largest corporate collapse in Australia's history, with liquidators estimating that HIH's losses totalled up to $5.3 billion...
(2001-2003) - Royal Commission into the Building and Construction IndustryRoyal Commission into the Building and Construction IndustryThe Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry was a Royal Commission established by the Australian government to inquire into and report upon alleged misconduct in the building and construction industry in Australia...
(2001-2003) - Royal Commission to Inquire into the Centenary House Lease (2004)
- Inquiry into certain Australian companies in relation to the UN Oil-For-Food ProgrammeCole InquiryThe Cole Inquiry, formally the Inquiry into certain Australian companies in relation to the UN Oil-For-Food Programme was a Royal Commission set up by the Government of Australia in November 2005...
(2005-2006) - Equine Influenza Inquiry (2008)
See also
- New South Wales royal commissions
- Queensland royal commissions
- South Australian royal commissions
- Victorian royal commissions
- Western Australian royal commissions