South Australian Ministerial Reshuffle
22 September 2025
On Friday 19 September, South Australian Premier the Hon. Peter Malinauskas MLA announced a ministerial reshuffle. This comes following an announcement on Thursday that Deputy Premier Susan Close and Treasurer Stephen Mullighan will retire from politics at the 2026 state election.
The reshuffle is significant on several fronts. The cabinet appointment of first-term MPs Lucy Hood and Rhiannon Pearce makes the new Malinauskas Cabinet the first majority women cabinet in the state’s history. On his appointment as Deputy Premier, Kyam Maher becomes the first Indigenous person to hold the position in Australia’s history.
The key changes to the ministry are as follows:
- Kyam Maher has been appointed Deputy Premier, in addition to his existing portfolios of Attorney-General; Minister for Aboriginal Affairs; Industrial Relations and Public Sector; and Special Minister of State.
- Tom Koutsantonis has been appointed Treasurer, in addition to his existing portfolio for Mining and Energy.
- Lucy Hood has been appointed to cabinet as Minister for Climate, Environment and Water.
- Rhiannon Pearce has been appointed to cabinet as Minister for Emergency Services & Correctional Services, and Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing.
- Nadia Clancy has been appointed to the outer ministry as Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention.
The new ministry was sworn in at a ceremony at Government House on Friday. The full South Australian ministry is outlined in the table below.
The Premier’s media release can be found here.
Further information
For more information, please contact Hawker Britton’s Managing Director Simon Banks on +61 419 638 587.
Further Hawker Britton Occasional Papers on the activities of the South Australian Government are available here.
South Australian Ministry
| Title | Minister | Electorate |
| Premier of South Australia Minister for Defence and Space Industries | Hon Peter Malinauskas MLA | Member for Croydon |
| Deputy Premier Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Attorney-General Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector Special Minister of State | Hon Kyam Maher MLC | Member of the Legislative Council |
| Treasurer Minister for Energy and Mining | Hon Tom Koutsantonis MLA | Member for West Torrens |
| Minister for Tourism Minister for Multicultural Affairs | Hon Zoe Bettison MLA | Member for Ramsay |
| Minister for Health and Wellbeing | Hon Chris Picton MLA | Member for Kaurna |
| Minister for Child Protection Minister for Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Minister for Women | Hon Katrine Hildyard MLA | Member for Reynell |
| Minister for Human Services Minister for Seniors and Ageing Well | Hon Nat Cook MLA | Member for Hurtle Vale |
| Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Minister for Forest Industries | Hon Clare Scriven MLC | Member of the Legislative Council |
| Minister for Education, Training and Skills Minister for Police | Hon Blair Boyer MLA | Member for Wright |
| Minister for Small and Family Business Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs Minister for Arts | Hon Andrea Michaels MLA | Member for Enfield |
| Minister for Trade and Investment Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Minister for Local Government Minister for Veterans Affairs | Hon Joe Szakacs MLA | Member of Cheltenham |
| Minister for Housing and Urban Development Minister for Housing Infrastructure Minister for Planning | Hon Nick Champion MLA | Member for Taylor |
| Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Minister for Autism | Hon Emily Bourke MLC | Member of the Legislative Council |
| Minister for Emergency Services & Correctional Services Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing | Hon Rhiannon Pearce MLA | Member for King |
| Minister for Climate, Environment and Water | Hon Lucy Hood MLA | Member for Adelaide |
| Assistant Minister for Artificial Intelligence (AI), Digital Economy, Defence and Space Industries | Michael Brown MLA | Member for Florey |
| Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention | Nadia Clancy MLA | Member for Elder |