Caroline Le Couteur, who was twice elected to the Legislative Assembly, said if the Greens were 100 per cent committed to one party, it became like a faction of the larger party.

Being part of the ACT government had also changed the ACT Greens, with the party's policies becoming less idealistic and closer to Labor's platform, she said.

"Partly this is capture by the ALP, partly it's recognising the practical issues of governing," Ms Le Couteur said.

"Voting for the ACT Greens in the ACT election has become voting for the status quo, or voting against the Liberal Party, not a protest vote seeking change."

In an essay for Green Agenda, an online publication linked to the Greens political party, Ms Le Couteur said it was in the Greens' interest to have public disagreements with all parties.

"When we are in government we should push policies that are needed, not just what we think will keep us in government, or get us in. We need to be clear about limitations to action and be bold in action," Ms Le Couteur said.

Ms Le Couteur said she had limited scope for action in the ninth Assembly after Shane Rattenbury entered cabinet and they believed they needed to vote together.

"It was very different from the 7th Assembly when the female-dominated party room of four MLAs were peers with equal voices and not answerable to the government," she said.

Cabinet solidarity rules should also be relaxed and Greens backbenchers should not be compelled to vote with and support cabinet decisions, she said.

"Given the importance of cabinet, the Greens having a seat at the table is an important goal. I think we should try to make it work better. This would mean making the relationships between minor and major party as well as minister and backbencher more equal," Ms Le Couteur wrote.

The Greens, she wrote, had been given some of the portfolios where chances of success were low - including homeless and housing complaints - and "the rest of cabinet is also doing its best to ensure that your party does not do well and loses votes".

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Ms Le Couteur also observed Chief Minister Andrew Barr was the minister for climate action, while Greens leader Shane Rattenbury is minister for water, energy and emissions reduction.

"You could say the Chief Minister does the popular policies and giveaways while the Greens do the heavy lifting," she said.

Ms Le Couteur also argued for greater cabinet transparency, and said submissions ought to be published after decisions had been taken.

Ms Le Couteur was elected at the 2008 election, lost her seat in 2012 and was re-elected in 2016. She said she did not stand at the 2020 election because she was getting "too cynical".

ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury defended the party's record, saying it was responsible for "major social and environmental victories in the ACT over the last decade which would never have happened without us".

"Through the ACT's unique two-party Government arrangement, the ACT Greens have consistently pushed ACT Labor to become much more green and progressive in all decisions and policies. It's critically important that the Greens continue to play this role both locally and nationally," Mr Rattenbury said.

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