Darwin, Northern Territory - Law and Government

Law and Government

The Darwin City Council (Incorporated under the Northern Territory Local Government Act 1993) governs the City of Darwin which takes in the CBD and the suburbs. The Darwin City Council has governed the City of Darwin since 1957. The Darwin City Council consists of 13 elected members, the Lord Mayor and 12 aldermen.

The City of Darwin electorate is organised into four electoral units or wards. The names of the wards are Chan, Lyons, Richardson, and Waters. The constituents of each ward are directly responsible for electing three aldermen. Constituents of all wards are directly responsible for electing the Lord Mayor of Darwin. The current mayor is Graeme Sawyer after council elections in March 2008 replacing Garry Lambert, who took over from previous mayor Peter Adamson.

The rest of the Darwin area is divided into 2 local government areas. One of these is designated as a City, and the second, which is on the city's outer fringe, has the title of Shire. These areas have elected councils which are responsible for functions delegated to them by the Northern Territory Government, such as planning and garbage collection.

The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory convenes in Darwin in the Northern Territory Parliament House. Government House, the official residence of the Administrator of the Northern Territory, is located on The Esplanade.

Also located on the Esplanade is the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory. Darwin has a Magistrate's Court also which is located on the corner of Cavenagh and Bennett Streets quite close to the Darwin City Council Chambers. Darwin's police force are members of the Northern Territory Police Force. Darwin's Mitchell Street, with its numerous pubs, clubs and other entertainment venues, is policed by the CitySafe Unit. The CitySafe unit was recently credited with reducing violent crime in and around Darwin City. Darwin has a long record of alcohol abuse and violent crime with 6000 assaults in 2009, of which 350 resulted in broken jaws and noses – more than anywhere else in the world, according to the Royal Darwin Hospital.