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Section 128 Of The Australian Constitution
Chapter VIII of the Constitution of Australia contains only section 128, which describes the constitutional referendum process required for amending the Constitution. The amendment by referendum method described in the section was modelled on provisions in the Swiss Federal Constitution. Its inclusion was influenced also by the Swiss method being present in the constitutions of several U.S. states at the time of federation. Summary Section 128 stipulates that the constitution may only be amended by referendum, and describes the referendum process. The process A bill containing the change must be passed by the Commonwealth parliament. This bill must be passed by an absolute majority in both houses. If one house passes the bill containing the proposed change while the other refuses, it may attempt to pass the bill again. If the second house again refuses to pass it, the Governor-General (presumably on the advice of the Prime Minister) may still submit the proposed change for ...
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Constitution Of Australia
The Constitution of Australia (also known as the Commonwealth Constitution) is the fundamental law that governs the political structure of Australia. It is a written constitution, which establishes the country as a Federation of Australia, federation under a Monarchy of Australia, constitutional monarchy governed with a parliamentary system. Its eight chapters set down the structure and powers of the three constituent parts of the federal level of government: the Parliament of Australia, Parliament, the Australian Government, Executive Government and the Judiciary of Australia, Judicature. The Constitution was drafted between 1891 and 1898 at a series of Constitutional Convention (Australia), conventions conducted by representatives of the six self-governing British colonies in Australia: New South Wales, Victoria (state), Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania. This final draft was then approved by each state in a 1898–1900 Australian const ...
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Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Australia to the west (129th meridian east), South Australia to the south (26th parallel south), and Queensland to the east (138th meridian east). To the north, the Northern Territory looks out to the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria, including Western New Guinea and various other islands of the Indonesian archipelago. The NT covers , making it the third-largest Australian federal division, and List of country subdivisions by area, the 11th-largest country subdivision in the world. It is sparsely populated, with a population of only 249,000 – fewer than half the population of Tasmania. The largest population centre is the capital city of Darw ...
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Responsible Government
Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive branch) in Westminster democracies are responsible to parliament rather than to the monarch, or, in a colonial context, to the imperial government, and in a republican context, to the president, either in full or in part. If the parliament is bicameral, then the government is usually responsible first to the parliament's lower house, which is more representative than the upper house, as it usually has more members and they are always directly elected. Responsible government of parliamentary accountability manifests itself in several ways. Ministers account to Parliament for their decisions and for the performance of their departments. This requirement to make announcements and to answer questions in Parliament means that ministers must h ...
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Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is geographically divided among the Swiss Plateau, the Swiss Alps, Alps and the Jura Mountains, Jura; the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, whereas most of the country's Demographics of Switzerland, 9 million people are concentrated on the plateau, which hosts List of cities in Switzerland, its largest cities and economic centres, including Zurich, Geneva, and Lausanne. Switzerland is a federal republic composed of Cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons, with federal authorities based in Bern. It has four main linguistic and cultural regions: German, French, Italian and Romansh language, Romansh. Although most Swiss are German-speaking, national identity is fairly cohesive, being rooted in a common historical background, shared ...
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Popular Initiative
A popular initiative (also citizens' initiative) is a form of direct democracy by which a petition meeting certain hurdles can force a legal procedure on a proposition. In direct initiative, the proposition is put directly to a plebiscite or referendum, also called a ''popular initiated referendum'' or ''citizen-initiated referendum''. In an indirect initiative, the proposed measure is first referred to the legislature, and then if the proposed law is rejected by the legislature, the government may be forced to put the proposition to a referendum. The proposition may be on federal level law, statute, constitutional amendment, charter amendment, local ordinance, obligate the executive (government), executive or legislature to consider the subject by submitting it to the order of the day. In contrast, a popular referendum that allows voters only to repeal existing legislation.
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Constitutional Commission
A constitutional commission is a body of commissioners appointed by a government for the purpose of making or revising a constitution. The commissioners are typically experts. However, in a country governed by a military regime, the commissioners may be actual or alleged experts whose political opinions match those of that government, and in other countries there may perceptions or allegations that the commissioners include such persons. The commission may be advisory or preparatory to another body or to a referendum. A number of bodies have been called a Constitutional Commission. Afghanistan * Afghan Constitution Commission ** Timeline of the War in Afghanistan (August 2003) * Reigns of Nadir Shah and Zahir Shah Australia In 1985 a Constitutional Commission was established (by the Hawke Labor government) to review the Australian Constitution and reported in 1988. It was seen as too partisan by many Liberals and the eventual referendum questions were not supported; leadi ...
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Hawke Government
The Hawke government was the federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister Bob Hawke of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1983 to 1991. The government followed the Liberal-National Coalition Fraser government and was succeeded by another Labor administration, the Keating government, led by Paul Keating after an internal party leadership challenge in 1991. Keating was Treasurer through much of Hawke's term as prime minister and the period is sometimes termed the Hawke-Keating government. Background Bob Hawke was president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) from 1969 to 1980. On 14 October 1980, he was preselected as the Australian Labor Party candidate for the Seat of Wills and resigned from the ACTU. Hawke won the seat at the 1980 Election and was appointed as Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations, Employment and Youth Affairs by Opposition Leader Bill Hayden. In 1982, amongst the early 1980s recession, he initiated a leadersh ...
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1974 Australian Referendum (Mode Of Altering The Constitution)
The ''Constitution Alteration (Mode of Altering the Constitution) Bill 1974'', (Cth). was an unsuccessful proposal to alter the Australian Constitution to make it easier to amend the constitution and give voters in the Australian territories the right to vote in referendums. It was put to voters for approval in a referendum held on 18 May 1974. The bill to amend the constitution was passed by the House of Representatives however it was rejected by the Senate. Instead the referendum was put to voters using the deadlock provision in Section 128. Since federation, voters in territories had been excluded from voting in referendums. The proposal would have meant that their votes counted towards the national majority, but not towards any state total. Question ''Proposed law entitled "An Act to facilitate alterations to the Constitution and to allow electors in territories, as well as electors in the states, to vote at referendums on proposed laws to alter the Constitution".'' ''Do ...
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Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, and is the territory's primate city. It is located in southeastern Australian mainland as an enclave and exclave, enclave surrounded by the state of New South Wales (NSW). Exclaved from NSW after Federation of Australia, federation as the seat of government for the new nation, the territory hosts Parliament House, Canberra, parliament house, High Court of Australia and the head offices of many Australian Government agencies. On 1 January 1901, Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia was achieved. Section 125 of the new Constitution of Australia, Australian Constitution provided that land, situated in New South Wales and at least from Sydney, would be ceded to the new Government of Australia, federal government. Foll ...
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States And Territories Of Australia
The states and territories are the national subdivisions and second level of government of Australia. The states are partially sovereignty, sovereign, administrative divisions that are autonomous administrative division, self-governing polity, polities, having ceded some sovereign rights to the Australian Government, federal government. They have their own state constitutions in Australia, constitutions, Parliaments of the Australian states and territories, legislatures, Premiers and chief ministers of the Australian states and territories, executive governments, Judiciary of Australia#State and territory courts and tribunals, judiciaries and state police#Australia, law enforcement agencies that administer and deliver public policy, public policies and programs. Territories can be autonomous administrative division, autonomous and administer local policies and programs much like the states in practice, but are still legally subordinate to the federal government. Australia has si ...
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Referendums In Australia
In Australia, referendums (also spelt referenda) are referendum, public votes held on important issues where the electorate may approve or reject a certain proposal. In contemporary usage, polls conducted on non-constitutional issues are known as ''plebiscites'', with the term ''referendum'' being reserved solely for votes on constitutional changes, which is Chapter VIII of the Constitution of Australia, legally required to make a change to the Constitution of Australia. In the past, however the terms were used interchangeably, with the non-constitutional 1916 Australian conscription referendum and the 2009 Western Australian daylight saving referendum being examples. Voting in a referendum is compulsory for those on the electoral roll, in the same way that it is Compulsory voting, compulsory to vote in a Australian electoral system, general election. As of 2023, 45 nationwide referendums have been held, only eight of which have been carried. Of those eight, all but one had bi- ...
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1977 Australian Referendum (Referendums)
The 1977 Referendums question was a successful Referendums in Australia, amendment to the Constitution of Australia, Australian constitution that allowed Australians living in Australian territories, territories to vote on future referendums. This question was put to voters alongside 1977 Australian referendum, four others during 1977. With the success of the vote, the ''Constitution Alteration (Referendums) Bill 1977'' passed. In future referendums, the votes of electors in the territories would be counted towards the national total, but would not be counted toward any state total. Question ''It is proposed to alter the Constitution so as to allow electors in the territories, as well as electors in the states, to vote at referendums on proposed laws to alter the Constitution.'' ''Do you approve the proposed law?'' Results Discussion At the time of Federation the very few people who lived in the Northern Territory voted as residents of South Australia. Territorians could th ...
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