The 1975 Australian constitutional crisis culminated on 11 November with the removal of which Australian Labor Party Prime Minister by Governor-General Sir John Kerr, and the appointment of the Leader of the Opposition, Malcolm Fraser, as caretaker Prime Minister?
1975 Australian constitutional crisis 1975 Australian constitutional crisis The 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, also known simply as the Dismissal, has been described as the greatest political and constitutional crisis in Australian history. It culminated on 11 November 1975 with the dismissal from office of the Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), by Governor-General Sir John Kerr, who then commissioned the Leader of the Opposition, Malcolm Fraser of the Liberal Party, as caretaker Prime Minister. Whitlam's Labor government had been elected in 1972 with a small majority in the House of Representatives, but with the Opposition controlling the Senate. The Whitlam
Caretaker government of Australia of a caretaker government. The incumbent Prime Minister simply puts the government into "caretaker mode." During the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, the Governor-General, Sir John Kerr, appointed a new government headed by Malcolm Fraser, subject to Fraser's agreement that he would immediately advise a general election, and his government would operate on a caretaker basis in the meantime. It was a unique set of circumstances, leading to a unique solution. The caretaker convention also precludes public servants from making any political statements while the government is in caretaker mode. Australian constitutional practice calls for a government to continue in office