Separation of Powers

• Separation of Powers: When a state’s government is divided into branches with their own powers and obligations → ensure one branch does not have conflict with the others

  • prevent abuse of power

• Parliament: amending and creating laws

• Executive: places law into motion

• Judiciary: makes judgments about the law

Constitution

• Australian Constitution: set of guidelines to establish how the Commonwealth System of Government is operated in Australia

• Determines establishment of laws

• Outlines division of powers: distrubuting powers betweem federal, state + local governments

• Divided into 8 chapters and 128 sections

  • Bicameral parliament: King (represented by Governor-General), House of Reps and the Senate

  • Separation of powers: legislative, executive and judiciary branches of government

  • Decides how laws and decisions are established

  • Division of powers at different levels of government (federal, state, local)

  • Six state governments that are in control of state affairs and matters

• Constitution leaves out aspects like the Prime Minister and federal Cabinet

• Omits the rights of citizens of Australia, unlike the Constitution of the United States

  • Protected by common (court) laws and statute laws (Parliament) instead

Role of the Governor-General

• Governor-General: authority to be involved in the government but not making decisions on the government’s behalf

• Constitutional role: making bills into laws through giving royal assent

• Designate + dismiss ministers

• Submit petitions for referendums

• Creating proclamations and regulations

• Establishes agencies for the government

• Making statutory appointments

Role of Prime Minister

• Leader of Australian Parliament

• Crucial role in debating, developing and enforcing Australian government policies

• Decisions made by the Prime Minister

  • Implementation of actions to protect the Australian environment

  • Supporting Australians in vulnerable circumstances

  • Migration to Australia → Australian citizenship

  • Treatment of First Nations people

  • Representing Australia in times of crisis (eg. armed conflict, global pandemics)

Role of Federal Cabinet

• Federal Cabinet: comprised of selected ministers who help the Prime Minister make decisions in constitutional terminology

• Helps the process of decision making and guides government policy on the Australian public’s behalf

  • Does not include representatives of the Crown (eg. Governor-General)

  • Adapted from the Westminster System from Britain → established in 1956 in Australia

  • Size of Federal Cabinet: 10-20 Ministers

    • Prime Minister is the head of the Cabinet

  • Cabinet meetings occur regularly

  • Members cooperate to examine and present issues and bills

  • Cabinet solidarity: aspect of the decision-making process

    • General consensus is reached for a specific issue

    • All Ministers have to come to a public display of support → regardless of personal viewpoints

Referendums and Plebiscites

• Referendum: A bill that must be submitted to the Australian Parliament before a constitutional amendment can be considered

  • If the bill is approved, a referendum is held to determine if the general public will support it

  • The referendum occurs 2-6 months after the bill’s passage

  • Parliament members must prepare arguments for or against the bill before the referendum

  • The government must abide by the results of referendums

• Plebiscites: Use to resolve national topics that has no connection to the Constitution

  • Decide if the general public will support the proposed government action

  • Has no legal weight, not governed by precise rules

    • Government not required to implement the results

Federal Party’s Structure

• House of Representatives: Also known as the lower house, has 151 members for each electorate, the members represent the population and bring forward citizen concerns + petitions in debates

• The political party with the majority of members forms the Australian government

  • The leader of the political party becomes the Prime Minister and other ministers are assigned from other party members.

• Main purpose is to pass new laws or make amendments to pre existing laws

  • Most bills are introduced in the House of Representatives and they must pass this house (along with the Senate) for it to become a law.

• The lower house scrutinises + debates government administration

  • Discusses Australia-wide issues and legislative and ministerial policy statements.

• Controls government funding and expenditure

• Elected through preferential voting → citizens rank candidates in order of preference

• Senate: Australia’s upper house comprised of 76 members, the members debate bills and hold the government accountable

  • Has constitutional powers → can discuss bills to become legislation

    • The upper house is the final house a bill has to pass before it receives royal assent from the Governor-General

  • Closely examines the government’s actions and policies to hold it accountable → known as the house of review

    • Debating ideas through the advocacy of policies from a member’s political party or reflecting the perspectives of community groups

  • Committees: There are committees within the senate that are select committees (temporary for a certain matter) or standing (permanent for the period Parliament commenced)

  • Voting system: Elected through preferential voting

Bills and Laws

• Bills: Drafts of a law, a proposal of law to Parliament

• How bills become laws:

1. For a bill to become a law they need someone or a group to propose a law and the government will discuss it in a room, usually called a cabinet.

2. If the suggestion is brought into consideration by the government, the government lawyer is requested to draft a bill.

3. Multiple duplicates will be handed out to all the members of the Lower House for them to read in their own time, this proceeding is called the ‘First Reading.’

4. After the ‘First Reading,’ the bill will have proceeded to the ‘Second Reading.’ During the second reading, a minister will state the benefits of the suggested bill when it is published to become law. Ministers from against and for will start to state their point of view, which leads to debate (it can take weeks to debate). After the debate, there will be a vote. If the majority votes for the bill, then the bill will proceed.

5. The bill will move on to Consideration in Detail in the House of Representatives. This is the part where the bill is debated in much more detail. This is also the process where changes to the bill can be established.

6. All the changes made in the bill during the Consideration in Detail will go to the ‘Third Reading.’ A vote will be performed. If the majority votes for the approval of the bill, the bill will have proceeded to the Senate.

7. The first reading to the third reading will be repeated in the Senate. However, it is the Committee of the Whole, instead of the Consideration in Detail. It is the same process but with different wordings. If there are any changes made in the Senate, then the bill will be taken back to the House of Representatives to discuss and debate. On some occasions, the Senate may disapprove the bill, however, if the Senate votes and the majority favors the bill, it will move on to the Governor General for the royal to accept.

8. When the Governor General signs the bill, called the Royal Assent. Then it will officially become a legal law for all Australian to follow.

Laws: Set rules that determine how people are expected to behave and they must be abided by

• Consequences of breaking the law: Individual will be found guilty → Judge determines if they have to pay for damages or be sentenced to prison

• Statute law: Orders made by the Parliament

• Delegated laws: Parliament giving power to a minister or government department to slightly alter existing laws without going through the bill process

  • Parliament can refuse changes made by delegated laws + dismiss it

• Common laws: Court made laws when there are no previous cases that align with the conditions

  • Statute laws overrule common law

Dominance of Major Parties

• Labor Party: Biggest party in Victoria, won past 3 elections under premiership of Daniel Andrews

  • 41% of the voting population giving him a first vote preference

• Liberal Party: Popular in late 90s under Jeff Kennet’s leadership

  • Came into power for one term in the early 2010s before losing to Labor

• National Party: Reforming and splitting with the Federal branch’s coalition multiple times over the 20th century

• The Greens: Left side of political spectrum, clash with Labor Party

  • Stronghold on inner city votes

• 19 other smaller parties that rarely hold power

Victorian Parliament Structure:

• Legislative Assembly: Lower house of Victoria’s legislature

• Legislative Council: Upper house of Victorian parliament

• Parliament may pass laws for issues affecting Victoria

  • Federal Government can overturn laws according to the Australian Constitution → restricting its power

• Premier: Senior elected official in Victoria’s executive government, head of ruling party

  • Governor appoints leader of majority party as the Premier → not directly elected by Victorians