The Australian Constitutions Act 1850 ( 13 & 14 Vict. c. 59), or the Australian Colonies Government Act 1850, was an act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

which was enacted to formally establish the

Colony of Victoria The Colony of Victoria was a historical administrative division in Australia that existed from 1851 until 1901, when it federated with other colonies to form the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the southeastern corner of the Australian ...

by separating the District of Port Phillip from the

Colony of New South Wales The Colony of New South Wales was a colony of the British Empire from 1788 to 1901, when it became a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. At its greatest extent, the colony of New South Wales included the present-day Australian states of New ...

. The act provided an initial constitution for Victoria, which included a bicameral parliament and a Lieutenant-Governor as its vice-regal representative. It also altered the constitution of the Colony of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, and provided for similar constitutions to be set up in

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

(Tasmania) and

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. It was given

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...

on 5 August 1850 and came into effect on 1 July 1851. The act received criticism in Australia for its perceived inadequacies, spearheaded in the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. Along with the New South Wales Legislative As ...

by the statesman William Wentworth.

Background

The act was a response to the demands of the

Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...

and Moreton Bay settlers, who felt inadequately represented in the New South Wales Legislative Council and who resented their taxes being channelled to

The act

The act named the colony and set out its provisional constitution, which included the proviso of a bicameral parliament. It created the

Parliament of Victoria The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria (state), Victoria that follows a Westminster System, Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the Monarchy in Australia, King, represent ...

, which initially consisted of the Victorian Legislative Council of 20 elected members and 10 members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor. This body was given jurisdiction over all but Australian lands and could pass any

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

not in conflict with the extant English laws. The act provided that the current arrangements would continue either until a charter of justice were issued, or until legislation was passed by the Victorian Legislative Council. Earl Grey, the British Secretary of State for War from 1846 to 1852, helped the passage of the bill through Parliament, as he wished to promote

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold Economic liberalism, economically liberal positions, while economic nationalist politica ...

and federal system of government in the colonies. The act also provided for similar constitutions to be applied to

and

, enabling the creation of new Australian colonies with a similar form of government to

, whose constitution it also altered. It changed the qualifications for franchise for the

, and enabled this body, together with the

Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the representative of the monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia, Governor-General of Australia at the national level, the governor ...

, to establish a bicameral parliament. The act, thus, had significant impact on the four colonies that were already established. The Colony of Western Australia had just started receiving convicts, making it the last remaining penal colony, and the act included special provisions which limited the rights of its citizens to participate in government.

Response

In April 1851, William Wentworth established a committee to formulate a motion against the perceived inadequacies of the act. The "Declaration and Remonstrance" declared, among other things, that "the Imperial Parliament has not, nor of right ought to have any power to tax the people of this Colony", and that "plenary powers of legislation should be conferred upon and exercised by the Colonial Legislature ... ndno bills should be reserved" for the Imperial Parliament unless they affected the Empire. Sir Henry Parkes later wrote of Wentworth that "His Declaration and Remonstrance is so important as one of the foundation-stones of the fabric of our constitutional liberties."

References

Citations

Notes

{{Notelist Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning Australia 1851 in Australia Democratization