Government contracting is often characterised as a private function of government. Largely because any effect on the rights and obligations of parties to the contract derive from contractual, or private law, obligations, there have been limited avenues for judicial review based on public law norms. However, this article considers several recent High Court cases that have renewed focus on the representative accountability of government decision making, at least at the Commonwealth level, and reduced the emphasis on characterising the interests of those affected by such decisions. The result may subject government contracting to greater judicial scrutiny in the future.