Give Canberra a fair go, PM told

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr has warned Malcolm Turnbull that Canberra-based national institutions are not a political plaything.

Jobs are tipped to go at six institutions, including the National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery and National Library, as they meet federal government imposed efficiency dividends.

"I have asked the prime minister for a fair go for Canberra," Mr Barr said on Friday, revealing he had personally written to Mr Turnbull.