The 1913 Australian referendum was held on 31 May 1913. It contained six referendum questions and was held in conjunction with the
1913 federal election.
Background
Having failed with the
1911 referendum, the
Attorney-General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
,
Billy Hughes
William Morris Hughes (25 September 1862 – 28 October 1952) was an Australian politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923. He led the nation during World War I, and his influence on national politics s ...
, tried again, breaking each of the changes into separate questions. The changes were said to be necessary because the Commonwealth's powers had been cut down by successive decision of the
High Court in applying the
inter-governmental immunities and
reserved state powers
The reserved powers doctrine was a principle used by the inaugural High Court of Australia in the interpretation of the Constitution of Australia, that emphasised the context of the Constitution, drawing on principles of federalism, what the Cour ...
doctrines until they were said to be futile. The cases referred to by the Attorney-General were:
::*
Union label case (1908) - trade marks
::*
Huddart, Parker & Co Ltd v Moorehead (1909) - control of corporations
::*
SS Kalibia v Wilson (1910) - navigation power
::*
Melbourne Steamship Co Ltd v Moorehead (1912) - trade & commerce power
::*
Railway servants Case (1906) - State railways employees could not be part of an interstate industrial dispute
::*
Jumbunna Coal Mine NL v Victorian Coal Miners’ Association (1908) - appeal from the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
::*
R v Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration; Ex parte BHP (1909) - prohibition against the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
::*
Federated Sawmill Employees Association v James Moore & Sons Pty Ltd (1909) - federal award could not be inconsistent with a State wages board determination
::*
Australian Boot Trade Employees' Federation v Whybrow & Co
''Australian Boot Trade Employees Federation v Whybrow & Co'', commonly known as Whybrow's case or the Boot Trades case, was the third of a series of decisions of the High Court of Australia in 1910 concerning the boot manufacturing industry a ...
(1910) - Court of Conciliation and Arbitration could not make a common-rule award to prevent industrial disputes
::*
Federated Engine Drivers' & Firemen's Association of Australasia v Broken Hill Pty Co Ltd (1911) - a union in different industries could not be registered
::*
R v Barger (1908) - the new Protection policy, in which protection was linked to paying fair & reasonable wages, was invalid
The results
Aftermath
Writs were issued for a further referendum to be held on 11 December 1915 to cover substantially the same questions as were rejected in 1911 and 1913, however the referendum was cancelled and the writs withdrawn.
See also
*
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 a ...
*
Politics of Australia
The politics of Australia operates under the written Australian Constitution, which sets out Australia as a constitutional monarchy, governed via a parliamentary democracy in the Westminster tradition. Australia is also a federation, where pow ...
*
History of Australia
The history of Australia is the history of the land and peoples which comprise the Commonwealth of Australia. The modern nation came into existence on 1 January 1901 as a federation of former British colonies. The human history of Australia, ...
References
Further reading
*
* .
* Australian Electoral Commission (2007)
Referendum Dates and Results 1906 – Present' AEC, Canberra.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Referendum, 1913
1913 referendums
1913
Events January
* January – Joseph Stalin travels to Vienna to research his ''Marxism and the National Question''. This means that, during this month, Stalin, Hitler, Trotsky and Tito are all living in the city.
* January 3 &ndash ...
Plebiscite
A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or adv ...
May 1913