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Royal Commission on Northern Territory Administration

Ewing Royal Commission · Royal Commission on the Northern Territory (1919)

12 November 1919 – 21 May 1920

Justice Norman Ewing inquired into the administration of the Northern Territory after the unrest of 1918–19 that drove out the Administrator, Dr J. A. Gilruth.

How it came into existence

Appointed by Letters Patent dated 12 November 1919 by the Hughes government, with Norman Kirkwood Ewing, a judge of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, as royal commissioner. The commission was appointed and controlled by the Prime Minister's Department, which met its costs; representatives of Territory residents appeared before it.

Changes during its life

  1. 7 July 1920Correspondence relating to the report laid before Parliament.

How it ended

Ewing's report reached the government by late April 1920 and was laid before Parliament on 20 and 21 May 1920, ending the commission. Correspondence on the report was tabled in July 1920.

Main functions

  • Administration of the Northern Territory
  • Conduct of the Administrator and officials

Where it sits

Last in the portfolio of Prime Minister's Department.

Lineage

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Sources