Premier of Queensland

Template:Infobox official post The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland.

By convention, the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is appointed by the governor of Queensland.

The incumbent premier is David Crisafulli.

Constitutional role

Under section 43 of the Constitution of Queensland the premier and other members of Cabinet are appointed by the governor. They are collectively responsible to Parliament in accordance with responsible government. The text of the Constitution assigns to the premier certain powers, such as the power to assign roles (s 25) to assistant ministers (formerly known as parliamentary secretaries), and to appoint ministers as acting ministers (s 45) for a period of 14 days.

In practice, under the conventions of the Westminster System followed in Queensland, the premier's power is derived from two sources: command of a majority in the Legislative Assembly, and the premier's role as chair of Cabinet, determining the appointment and roles of ministers. Although ministerial appointments are the prerogative of the governor of Queensland, in normal circumstances the governor will make these appointments on the advice of the premier.

Immediately following an election for the Legislative Assembly, the governor will call on the leader of the party which commands a majority in the Legislative Assembly to become premier and ask them to commission a government. A re-elected government will be resworn, with adjustments to the ministry as determined by the premier.

Prior to the existence of political parties within the Leglislative Assembly, to become premier, that member had to be able to command the support of a majority of the individual members of the assembly; this group of members were known informally as Ministerialists, while those who did not support the member who became premier were known informally as Oppositionists (or the Opposition).

Premier's office

The premier has an office in the Executive Annexe of Parliament House, Brisbane, which is normally used while Parliament is sitting. Their main office is located in 1 William Street, a skyscraper across the road from Parliament House. The office faces south-west, with floor to ceilings windows granting an impressive view of the Brisbane and its surrounds.

List of premiers of Queensland

Before the 1890s, there was no developed party system in Queensland. Political affiliation labels before that time indicate a general tendency only. Before the end of the first decade of the twentieth century, political parties were more akin to parliamentary factions, and were fluid, informal and disorganised by modern standards.

No.	Portrait	Name	Election	Term of office			Political party	Constituency
				Took office	Left office	Term in office
1	File:Queensland State Archives 2954 Portrait of The Honourable Sir Robert George Wyndham Herbert Premier of Queensland c 1862.png	Robert Herbert (1831–1905)	1860 1863	10 December 1859	1 February 1866	Template:Ayd	Squatter Conservative	Leichhardt
2	File:Arthur Macalister.jpg	Arthur Macalister (1818–1883)	—	1 February 1866	20 July 1866	Template:Ayd	Independent	Town of Ipswich
(1)	File:Queensland State Archives 2954 Portrait of The Honourable Sir Robert George Wyndham Herbert Premier of Queensland c 1862.png	Robert Herbert (1831–1905)	—	20 July 1866	7 August 1866	Template:Ayd	Squatter Conservative	West Moreton
(2)	File:Arthur Macalister.jpg	Arthur Macalister (1818–1883)	—	7 August 1866	15 August 1867	Template:Ayd	Independent	Town of Ipswich
3	File:RobertRamsayMackenzie.jpg	Robert Mackenzie (1811–1873)	1867	15 August 1867	25 November 1868	Template:Ayd	Squatter Conservative	Burnett
4	File:Charles Lilley.jpg	Charles Lilley (1827–1897)	1868	25 November 1868	2 May 1870	Template:Ayd	Independent	Hamlet of Fortitude Valley
5	File:Arthur Hunter Palmer.jpg	Arthur Hunter Palmer (1819–1898)	1870 1871	3 May 1870	7 January 1874	Template:Ayd	Squatter Conservative	Port Curtis
(2)	File:Arthur Macalister.jpg	Arthur Macalister (1818–1883)	1873	8 January 1874	5 June 1876	Template:Ayd	Independent	Ipswich
6	File:George Thorn.jpg	George Thorn (1838–1905)	—	5 June 1876	8 March 1877	Template:Ayd	Independent	Ipswich
7	File:John Douglas.jpg	John Douglas (1828–1904)	—	8 March 1877	21 January 1879	Template:Ayd	Independent	Maryborough
8	File:Thomas McIlwraith.jpg	Sir Thomas McIlwraith (1835–1900)	1878	21 January 1879	13 November 1883	Template:Ayd	Conservative	Mulgrave
9	File:SGriff1.jpg	Sir Samuel Griffith (1845–1920)	1883	13 November 1883	13 June 1888	Template:Ayd	Liberal	North Brisbane
(8)	File:Thomas McIlwraith.jpg	Sir Thomas McIlwraith (1835–1900)	—	13 June 1888	30 November 1888	Template:Ayd	Conservative	Brisbane North
10	File:Boyd Morehead.jpg	Boyd Dunlop Morehead (1843–1905)	1888	30 November 1888	12 August 1890	Template:Ayd	Conservative	Balonne
(9)	File:SGriff1.jpg	Sir Samuel Griffith (1845–1920)	—	12 August 1890	27 March 1893	Template:Ayd	Liberal	North Brisbane
(8)	File:Thomas McIlwraith.jpg	Sir Thomas McIlwraith (1835–1900)	1893	27 March 1893	27 October 1893	Template:Ayd	Conservative	Brisbane North
11	File:Sir Hugh Nelson.jpg	Sir Hugh Nelson (1833–1906)	1896	27 October 1893	13 April 1898	Template:Ayd	Ministerial	Murilla
12	File:Thomas Joseph Byrnes.jpg	Thomas Joseph Byrnes (1860–1898)	—	13 April 1898	27 September 1898 (†)	Template:Ayd	Ministerial	Warwick
13	File:James Robert Dickson.jpg	James Dickson (1832–1901)	1899	1 October 1898	1 December 1899	Template:Ayd	Ministerial	Bulimba
14	File:AndersonDawson.jpg	Anderson Dawson (1863–1910)	—	1 December 1899	7 December 1899	Template:Ayd	Labour	Charters Towers
15	File:Queensland State Archives 3062 Portrait of The Honourable Sir Robert Philp Premier of Queensland c 1900 (cropped).png	Robert Philp (1851–1922)	1902	7 December 1899	17 September 1903	Template:Ayd	Ministerial	Townsville
16	File:Sir Arthur Morgan.jpg	Arthur Morgan (1856–1916)	1904	17 September 1903	19 January 1906	Template:Ayd	Liberal	Warwick
17	File:William Kidston.jpg	William Kidston (1849–1919)	1907	19 January 1906	19 November 1907	Template:Ayd	Labor	Rockhampton
(17)							Kidstonite
(15)	File:Queensland State Archives 3062 Portrait of The Honourable Sir Robert Philp Premier of Queensland c 1900 (cropped).png	Robert Philp (1851–1922)	—	19 November 1907	18 February 1908	Template:Ayd	Conservative	Townsville
(17)	File:William Kidston.jpg	William Kidston (1849–1919)	1908 1909	18 February 1908	7 February 1911	Template:Ayd	Kidston; Liberal	Rockhampton
18	File:Digby Denham.jpg	Digby Denham (1859–1944)	1912	7 February 1911	1 June 1915	Template:Ayd	Liberal	Oxley
19	File:TJRyanPortrait.jpg	T. J. Ryan (1876–1921)	1915 1918	1 June 1915	22 October 1919	Template:Ayd	Labor	Barcoo
20	File:Ted Theodore 1931.jpg	Ted Theodore (1884–1950)	1920 1923	22 October 1919	26 February 1925	Template:Ayd	Labor	Chillagoe
21	File:William Gillies 1920.jpg	William Gillies (1868–1928)	—	26 February 1925	22 October 1925	Template:Ayd	Labor	Eacham
22	File:William McCormack.jpg	William McCormack (1879–1947)	1926	22 October 1925	21 May 1929	Template:Ayd	Labor	Cairns
23	File:Arthur Edward Moore.jpg	Arthur Edward Moore (1876–1963)	1929	21 May 1929	17 June 1932	Template:Ayd	CPNP	Aubigny
24	File:William Forgan Smith.jpg	William Forgan Smith (1887–1953)	1932 1935 1938 1941	17 June 1932	16 September 1942	Template:Ayd	Labor	Mackay
25	File:Frank Cooper, circa 1949.jpg	Frank Arthur Cooper (1872–1949)	1944	16 September 1942	7 March 1946	Template:Ayd	Labor	Bremer
26	File:Queensland State Archives 4694 Premier Hanlon MLA c 1952.png	Ned Hanlon (1887–1952)	1947 1950	7 March 1946	15 January 1952 (†)	Template:Ayd	Labor	Ithaca
27	File:Queensland State Archives 4750 Hon VC Gair Premier of Queensland c 1953.png	Vince Gair (1901–1980)	1953 1956	17 January 1952	12 August 1957	Template:Ayd	Labor	South Brisbane
(27)							Queensland Labor
28	File:Frank Nicklin 1963.jpg	Frank Nicklin (1895–1978)	1957 1960 1963 1966	12 August 1957	17 January 1968	Template:Ayd	Country	Landsborough
29	File:Jack Pizzey 1968.jpg	Jack Pizzey (1911–1968)	—	17 January 1968	31 July 1968 (†)	Template:Ayd	Country	Isis
30	File:Gordon Chalk 1963.jpg	Gordon Chalk (1913–1991)	—	1 August 1968	8 August 1968	Template:Ayd	Liberal	Lockyer
31	File:Joh Bjelke-Petersen.jpg	Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen (knighted in 1984) (1911–2005)	1969 1972 1974 1977 1980 1983 1986	8 August 1968	1 December 1987	Template:Ayd	Country/National	Barambah
32	File:Mike Ahern, Parliament House, Brisbane City, October 1988.jpg	Mike Ahern (1942–2023)	—	1 December 1987	25 September 1989	Template:Ayd	National	Landsborough
33	File:No image.png	Russell Cooper (*1941)	—	25 September 1989	7 December 1989	Template:Ayd	National	Roma
34	File:Wayne Goss.png	Wayne Goss (1951–2014)	1989 1992 1995	7 December 1989	19 February 1996	Template:Ayd	Labor	Logan
35	File:No image.png	Rob Borbidge (*1954)	—	19 February 1996	20 June 1998	Template:Ayd	National	Surfers Paradise
36	File:Peter Beattie, BYCC, August 2013 (cropped).jpg	Peter Beattie (*1952)	1998 2001 2004 2006	20 June 1998	13 September 2007	Template:Ayd	Labor	Brisbane Central
37	File:Anna Bligh crop.jpg	Anna Bligh (*1960)	2009	13 September 2007	26 March 2012	Template:Ayd	Labor	South Brisbane
38	File:Campbell Newman being interviewed (cropped).jpg	Campbell Newman (*1963)	2012	26 March 2012	14 February 2015	Template:Ayd	Liberal National	Ashgrove
39	File:Annastacia Palaszczuk 2016.jpg	Annastacia Palaszczuk (*1969)	2015 2017 2020	14 February 2015	15 December 2023	Template:Ayd	Labor	Inala
40	File:Dr Steven Miles MP (cropped).jpg	Steven Miles (*1977)	—	15 December 2023	28 October 2024	Template:Ayd	Labor	Murrumba
41	File:David Crisafulli photo 2025.png	David Crisafulli (*1979)	2024	28 October 2024	Incumbent	Template:Ayd	Liberal National	Broadwater

See also

• List of premiers of Queensland by time in office
• Government of Queensland
• Politics of Queensland