The following lists events that happened during 2015 in Australia.
Incumbents
Monarch – Elizabeth II
Governor-General – Sir Peter Cosgrove
Prime Minister – Tony Abbott (until 15 September), then Malcolm Turnbull
Deputy Prime Minister – Warren Truss
Opposition Leader – Bill Shorten
Chief Justice – Robert French
State and territory leaders
Premier of New South Wales – Mike Baird
Opposition Leader – Luke Foley (from 5 January) Premier of Queensland – Campbell Newman (until 14 February), then Annastacia Palaszczuk Opposition Leader – Annastacia Palaszczuk (until 14 February), then Lawrence Springborg Premier of South Australia – Jay Weatherill Opposition Leader – Steven Marshall Premier of Tasmania – Will Hodgman Opposition Leader – Bryan Green Premier of Victoria – Daniel Andrews Opposition Leader – Matthew Guy Premier of Western Australia – Colin Barnett Opposition Leader – Mark McGowan Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory – Andrew Barr Opposition Leader – Jeremy Hanson Chief Minister of the Northern Territory – Adam Giles Opposition Leader – Delia Lawrie (until 20 April), then Michael Gunner Chief Minister of Norfolk Island – Lisle Snell (until 17 June)
Governors and administrators
Governor of New South Wales – David Hurley
Governor of Queensland – Paul de Jersey
Governor of South Australia – Hieu Van Le
Governor of Tasmania – Kate Warner
Governor of Victoria – Alex Chernov (until 30 June), then Linda Dessau
Governor of Western Australia – Kerry Sanderson
Administrator of the Australian Indian Ocean Territories – Barry Haase
Administrator of Norfolk Island – Gary Hardgrave
Administrator of the Northern Territory – John Hardy
Events
January
2–9 JanuaryBushfires in the Adelaide Hills and the outer Adelaide metropolitan area destroy 32 houses; and 125 outbuildings. 5 January – Luke Foley is elected unopposed as Leader of the New South Wales Labor Party. 6 January – Queensland Premier, Campbell Newman, catches the state by surprise when he announces a 31 January election date—the shortest campaign period in the state's history. 8 January – Prime Minister Tony Abbott, speaking from the Adelaide Hills, outlines plans for Commonwealth recovery payments for victims of the 2015 Sampson Flat bushfires, amounting to $4 million. 10 January – A farewell is held at Cairns Convention Centre for the eight Cairns children who were killed in December. Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten are among the mourners. 15 January – Federal Health Minister, Sussan Ley, announces that the proposed $20 cut to rebates for short consultations with GPs have been taken "off the table" four days before it was due to take effect. 19 January – Queensland Police confirm that part of a skull found near at McGregor Creek in north Queensland is that of schoolgirl Marilyn Wallman, who vanished at the age of 14 while riding to school from the Mackay suburb of Eimeo in March 1972. 24 January – The families of Bali Nine members Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran make a televised plea for clemency against the death penalty. 25 January – Rosie Batty is announced as Australian of the Year. 26 January – Angus Houston and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh were appointed Knights of the Order of Australia in the 2015 Australia Day Honours. 28 January – The High Court of Australia rules that the Federal Government acted legally in detaining 157 Tamil asylum seekers aboard a Customs boat. 31 January – A state election is held in Queensland. The Labor Party led by Annastacia Palaszczuk forms a minority government with the support of an independent MP.