#electionprep101

AUSTRALIA: A NEW FEDERATION

i. Australia was not a nation

ii. Was just a mere six British colonies, subject to their law-making powers

iii. Partly self-governing - by which each colony had its own government and laws, including its own railway system, postage stamps and taxes (DA COOL SHIT)

BEFORE 1901:

BUT…

…this was all highly problematic and people began to think about the benefits of uniting

as one nation.

i. During the 1890s, each colony sent representatives to conventions

ii. Delegates agreed and made a draft constitution

iii.The people of the colonies voted in a series of referendums to accept this new Australian Constitution

AND THEREFORE:

i. Passed as a British Act of Parliament in 1900

ii. Called the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act

iii. Came into effect on 1 January 1901

iv. AND IS: the written set of rules by which our fine nation is governed.

8 chapters

128 sectionsKEY FEATURES

i. Sets up a federal Parliament and government

ii. A bicameral Parliament

iii. Six state governments

iv. The power-sharing arrangements between the federal and state parliaments

What’s not in it?

The Prime Minister:While central to the way government works,

the Prime Minister operates by convention

Rights of the Australian people:Unlike the United States’ Constitution,

Australia’s does not include a bill of rights, such as the right to free speech

A proposed change must be approved by the Parliament and then be put to Aussies in a referendum, for their approval

HOW DA FUCK WE CHANGE IT?

Each level of government has its own responsibilities, although in

some cases these responsibilities overlap.

FEDERALISM

over 560 local councils—make local laws, called by-

laws, for their region or district

LOCAL COUNCILS

STATESsix state and two mainland territory parliaments—

make laws for their state or territory

SEPARATION OF POWERS

POWER ROLE COMPOSITION

PARLIAMENT Makes and amends the law

Parliament is made up of the Queen, the Senate and the House of Representatives

EXECUTIVE Puts the law into action

The Executive is made up of the Prime Minister and ministers

JUDICIARY Makes judgments about and interprets the law

The Judiciary is made up of the High Court and other federal courts

PARLIAMENT

i. In Australia the term 'parliament' refers to an assembly of elected representatives

ii. makes laws for the country or state/territory

Our parliament has a head of

state—the Queen, who is

represented by the Governor-

General

BICAMERALISM

226 members in total

This means it consists of two houses: the Senate and the House of

Representatives

i. Has 150 members

ii. Each member represents one of the 150 electorates in Australia.

iii. On average, 94 000 voters live in each electorate.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

i. Made up of 76 senators

ii. Twelve senators represent each state and two senators represent each territory

SENATE

Responsible government means that at an election, the party (or coalition of parties) with the the majority of members elected to the House of Representatives becomes the government.

EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT The separation of powers works

together with another principle known

as responsible government.

And that party must maintain the support of the majority of members of the House of Representatives in order to remain in

government.

i. The leader of the Australian Government and the leader of the nation.

ii. By convention, the Prime Minister is a member of the House of Representatives who leads the parliamentary party with the support of the majority of members in the House.

PRIME MINISTER

i. The Prime Minister is chosen by a vote of the members of the government (their colleagues)

ii. The Prime Minister can keep their job as long as they are a member of parliament and retain the support of the government.

iii. Australia has no maximum period of service for a Prime Minister

CHOOSING THE PRIME

MINISTER?

KEY ROLES:

- chairing meetings where the government discusses policies and examines bills

- selecting members of the government to be ministers

- leading Cabinet (Prime Minister and ministers) in deciding government policy

The Prime Minister is the most powerful person in Parliament.

- acting as the chief government spokesperson (here and abroad)

- advising the Governor-General about important issues such as the appointment of ambassadors and heads of government department

- deciding when to call a federal election and leading the government in the election.

The PM, continued

Ministers are members of the government who have been allocated an area of responsibility for how Australia is run; a portfolio.

The Prime Minister and ministers make up executive government. The executive is responsible for developing government policy and putting government decisions into action.

MINISTERS

“WHY?!” I HEAR YOU ASK GLEEFULLY

Well, they could form government if it they were to win the support of the majority of members in the House of Representatives.

THE OPPOSITION

These guys are basically the alternative government.

i. scrutinizing the work of the government

ii. debating bills (proposed laws) in the Parliament

iii. working on committees that examine bills and important national issues

iv. providing alternatives to government policies.

OPPOSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

The minister responsible for economic and financial policy, and who prepares the government’s Budget

They are in charge of the government department known as the Treasury

The Treasurer

i. is the federal government’s annual statement

of how it plans to collect and spend money.

ii. since 1994, it has been handed down on the

second Tuesday of May

iii. I like to call the day B-DAY

THE BUDGET

**USELESS BUT DELICIOUS EXTRA INFORMATION:

Section 81 of the Australian Constitution states that all money collected by the government must be paid into a consolidated revenue fund. According to section 83 of the Constitution, this money can only be spent with the agreement of the Parliament.

i. sets out the government’s priorities and policies for the coming year

ii. how the government intends to raise money

iii. how much money is expected to be raised

iv. how the government intends to spend this money

v. the allocation of money to government departments

vi. The Treasurer works with other ministers to develop spending policies for each government department. The Cabinet (Prime Minister and ministers) must approve the Budget before it is introduced into the Parliament.

DOES WHAT?!?!?!?!!!1111

The Open Budget Project

VOTING, BITCHES

From Cathy Wilcox, The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 September 2013

HOW TO BECOME A POLITICAL PARTY:

is formed when two or more political parties join together.

In a parliament, parties may form a coalition to create a bigger group and gain more power.

Each party in a coalition usually holds separate party meetings.

_________________________

The Liberal Party of Australia and the Nationals have formed the longest-running coalition in the federal Parliament.

A coalition

Minor parties only have a small number of members elected to Parliament. They may form part of the government or the opposition through a coalition or agreement with another party.

Sometimes minor parties can hold the balance of power. This means that their vote may decide the outcome of an issue if the government and opposition disagree.

Minor parties

House of RepresentativesSection 28 of the Australian

Constitution states that House of Representatives elections must be held at least every three years.

The Prime Minister decides the date for an election. This could be at any time during the three-year term.

Voting in the House

Victorian Preferences, visualised

Twelve senators are elected to represent each state and two senators are elected to represent each territory.

Elected for a period of six years using a system of rotation that ensures that only half the state senators end their term every three years.

Territory senators are elected for a period of three years at the same time as the members of the House of Representatives and half of the Senate.

Half-Senate elections are usually held at the same time as House of Representatives elections, though they do not have to be.

SenateVoting in the Senate

Voting below the line in Victoria

From David Rowe, The Australian Financial Review, 3 September 2013