Heatley, Alistair creator text xu| 1996 continuing ng p.54-64 This article reviews the evolution of administrative arrangements in the Northern Territory since the 1970s, covering both the devolutionary phase and, with somewhat more emphasis, the self-government period since 1978. The article centres on the theme of political management which, as in the recent works, has become a major focus in the study of Australian administrative reform. Political management involves a `modernising reform agenda ... internal in orientation and concerned mainly with making the organizational and human resources of the executive branch more responsive to the priorities of superordinates' (Halligan and Power 1992: 249). Particular attention here is given to the evolving pattern of relationships between the political and bureaucratic arms of the Northern Territory executive. - Reproduced Administrative reform Australian Journal of Public Administration 180718