Central governmentDepartment of StateExists today
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
PM&C
12 March 1971 – present
The central policy department that advises the Prime Minister, services the Cabinet and coordinates policy across government; over time it has also held the arts, women's policy and Indigenous affairs.
How it came into existence
Formed on 12 March 1971, two days after William McMahon became Prime Minister, by merging the Prime Minister's Department and the Department of the Cabinet Office, with Sir John Bunting as secretary. The Prime Minister's Department's Aboriginal affairs and arts functions, together with the National Library and the Commonwealth Archives Office, went to the new Department of the Vice-President of the Executive Council.
- Policy advice and services to the Prime Minister
- Executive Council business
- Commonwealth–state relations
- Cabinet secretariat
Changes during its life
- 1974A Women's Affairs Section was set up in the department, the origin of the Commonwealth's women's policy office.
- 18 September 2013Indigenous affairs policy and programs from several departments were brought together in a new Indigenous Affairs Group within the department.
- 1 July 2014The Indigenous Advancement Strategy began, consolidating the Indigenous programs the department had taken over into five broad programs.
- Arts support (Australian Council for the Arts, Commonwealth Art Advisory Board, Commonwealth Literary Fund)
- Tariff Board (portfolio responsibility)
The Whitlam government placed the Tariff Board (and from 1974 its successor, the Industries Assistance Commission) in the Prime Minister's portfolio.
- Film production and film industry development
When the Fraser government abolished the Department of the Media, film making and film industry development went to the Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolio, which held the arts until December 1977.
- Women's affairs (Office of Women's Affairs)
The Office of Women's Affairs returned to Prime Minister and Cabinet in 1982 (possibly with the 7 May 1982 rearrangement) and became the Office of the Status of Women in 1983; the exact date is not confirmed.
- Youth affairs
- Took over functions from Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts · 14 September 2010
- Arts and cultural policy (Office for the Arts)
- Took over functions from Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport · 25 March 2013
- Arts and cultural policy (Office for the Arts)
- Took over functions from Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs · 18 September 2013
- Indigenous affairs policy and programs
- Women's policy (Office for Women)
- Took over functions from Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations · 18 September 2013
- Indigenous employment programs
- Indigenous education programs
- Took over functions from Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities · 18 September 2013
- Indigenous ranger program (Working on Country)
- Deregulation policy
- Office of Best Practice Regulation
- Monitoring of service delivery in remote Indigenous communities
- Cities policy
Cities policy sat in the Environment portfolio from September 2015 (Minister for Cities and the Built Environment) and was in Prime Minister and Cabinet by 2016, probably from the February 2016 ministry changes; the date of the move is not confirmed.
- Child safety policy (National Office for Child Safety)
- Commonwealth Archives Office
- National Library of Australia
Which department the archives and the National Library came from in December 1972 is not confirmed against the AAO; Wikipedia names only the Department of the Environment, Aborigines and the Arts as a preceding department.
- Women's affairs policy advice
- Support for the arts and letters
- National collections and museums
- Women's affairs (the women's affairs unit, which became the Office of Women's Affairs)
- Local government personal income tax sharing
- Part split off to form Department of Reconciliation and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs · 30 January 2001
- Indigenous affairs policy advice (Office of Indigenous Policy)
- Portfolio oversight of ATSIC
- Women's policy (Office of the Status of Women, renamed Office for Women)
- National water policy (Office of Water Resources)
- Portfolio oversight of the National Water Commission
- Climate change and emissions trading policy
Scope of the functions taken from the Prime Minister's department not confirmed.
- Part split off to form Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport · 14 December 2011
- Arts and cultural policy (Office for the Arts)
- National collecting institutions
- Northern Australia policy and coordination
The 2015 White Paper on Developing Northern Australia had been prepared in the Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolio; that the function came from that department is not confirmed by a source.
- Infrastructure financing advice
Developed from the department's Infrastructure Financing Unit.
- Counter-terrorism coordination
- Cyber security policy
- Part split off to form Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities · 20 December 2017
- Cities policy and City Deals
- Smart Cities program
- Public sector data sharing and release policy
- Indigenous Affairs Group
- Indigenous Advancement Strategy
- Community Development Program
- Regional network
- Data policy and support for the National Data Commissioner
- Net Zero Economy Taskforce
Main functions
- Policy advice to the Prime Minister
- Cabinet secretariat and Cabinet processes
- Whole-of-government coordination of economic, social, international and national security policy
- Federal Executive Council secretariat
- Women's policy (1974–1977, 1982–2004 and from 2013; Office of the Status of Women, Office for Women)
- Arts and film (1972–1977), arts (2010–2011 and 2013)
- Indigenous affairs (late 1990s–2001 and 2013–2019, then oversight of the National Indigenous Australians Agency)
- Commonwealth–state relations, honours and national symbols
Where it sits
- Type of body
- Non-corporate Commonwealth entity
- Portfolio
- Prime Minister and Cabinet
- Accountable authority
- Secretary of the Department – Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 section 12(2) item 1
- ABN
- 18 108 001 191
Bodies in this portfolio (57)
- Governor-General's Office 1901–1984
- Audit Office 1902–1998
- Commonwealth Literary Fund 1908–1973
- Commonwealth Art Advisory Board 1912–1973
- Tariff Board 1921–1974
- Public Service Board 1923–1987
- Special Advisory Authority 1962–1974
- Australian Council for the Arts 1968–1973
- Interim Council of the Australian National Gallery 1968–1975
- Aboriginal Hostels Limited 1973–present
- Remuneration Tribunal 1973–present
- Australian Science and Technology Council 1975–1997
- Advisory Council for Inter-government Relations 1976–1989
- Aboriginal Land Commissioner 1977–present
- Central Land Council 1977–present
- Northern Land Council 1977–present
- Tiwi Land Council 1978–present
- Office of National Assessments 1978–2018
- Office of the Status of Women 1983–2004
- Merit Protection and Review Agency 1984–1999
- Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor-General 1984–present
- Office of Multicultural Affairs 1987–1996
- Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council 1987–present
- Public Service Commission 1987–1995
- Resource Assessment Commission 1989–1993
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commercial Development Corporation 1990–2001
- National Australia Day Council Limited 1990–present
- Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies 1990–present
- Anindilyakwa Land Council 1991–present
- Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation 1991–2001
- Torres Strait Regional Authority 1994–present
- Public Service and Merit Protection Commission 1995–2002
- Indigenous Land Corporation 1995–2019
- Australian National Audit Office 1998–present
- Merit Protection Commissioner 1999–present
- Australia Business Arts Foundation 2000–2013
- Indigenous Business Australia 2001–present
- Australian Public Service Commission 2002–present
- Office for Women 2004–present
- COAG Reform Council 2006–2014
- Office of Best Practice Regulation 2006–2023
- Outback Stores Pty Ltd 2006–present
- Executive Director of Township Leasing 2007–present
- Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations 2007–present
- Old Parliament House 2008–2016
- Coordinator-General for Remote Indigenous Services 2009–2014
- Workplace Gender Equality Agency 2012–present
- Digital Transformation Office 2015–2016
- Office of National Intelligence 2018–present
- Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation 2019–present
- North Queensland Livestock Industry Recovery Agency 2019
- National Indigenous Australians Agency 2019–present
- National Drought and North Queensland Flood Response and Recovery Agency 2019–2021
- National Bushfire Recovery Agency 2020–2021
- Northern Territory Aboriginal Investment Corporation 2022–present
- Office of Impact Analysis 2023–present
- Net Zero Economy Agency 2023–2024
Lineage
Loading lineage…
Sources
Primary sources
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 19 December 1972 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 May 2025, as amended to 1 July 2025 (sets it out)
42 more Administrative Arrangements Orders set it out
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 22 December 1975 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 11 March 1983 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 11 March 1983, as amended to 30 January 1987 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 11 March 1996 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 26 November 2001 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 18 December 2003 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 26 October 2004 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 16 December 2004 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 21 September 2006 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 21 September 2006, as amended to 30 January 2007 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 3 December 2007 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 25 January 2008 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 14 September 2010 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 14 October 2010 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 14 December 2011 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 9 February 2012 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 16 May 2013 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 18 September 2013 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 12 December 2013 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 23 December 2014 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 9 July 2015 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 30 September 2015 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 30 September 2015, as amended to 18 February 2016 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 30 September 2015, as amended to 19 July 2016 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 1 September 2016 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 1 September 2016, as amended to 27 October 2016 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 1 September 2016, as amended to 13 April 2017 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 19 April 2018 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 19 April 2018, as amended to 28 August 2018 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 4 April 2019 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 29 May 2019 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 29 May 2019, as amended to 1 September 2019 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 5 December 2019 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 5 December 2019, as amended to 2 April 2020 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 18 March 2021 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 1 June 2022 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 23 June 2022 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 October 2022 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 October 2022, as amended to 8 June 2023 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 October 2022, as amended to 3 August 2023 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 October 2022, as amended to 29 July 2024 (sets it out)
- Administrative Arrangements Order of 13 May 2025 (sets it out)
- List of Commonwealth entities and companies under the PGPA Act, 1 July 2026 (Department of Finance)
- Australian Government Organisations Register (Department of Finance, data.gov.au) (listed from 11 December 2014 to the latest release (30 June 2026))
Government records and websites
Some dates or links for this organisation are not fully confirmed. Corrections are welcome.