Parliament
How many seats in the house of representatives?
151
What section outlines the process to change the constitution?
s128
Identify the 3 arms of government
Parliament, Executive, Judiciary
Where is the High Court of Australia?
Canberra, ACT
How was eighteenth-century international law used to dispossess Aboriginal people of their land?
Terra Nullis - no mans land
What is the role of the Senate?
House of Review
Initiate Bills
Represent the states' interests
Explain why a double majority is an important safeguard when changing the Australian Constitution
A double majority is: a national majority of voters in the states and territories. a majority of voters in at least 4 out of 6 states.The constitution is a fundamental legal document that represents Australian values, therefore should be difficult to amend. It also protects smaller states being dominated by the wishes of the larger ones.
What does 'reserve powers' mean?
The Governor-General’s reserve powers are not included in the Australian Constitution. They come from the authority of the King, who the Governor-General represents. The only guide to these powers is convention – tradition. This means the exact nature and scope of these powers is arguable.
Explain the role of the high court
They are to ensure that law-making in parliament is constitutional. They can declare legislation ultra vires if legislation made is outside what parliament can make
List 3 exclusive powers
Minting money
Taxation
Money
Military
Foreign Affairs
Explain the role of the Governor General
Royal Assent - the GG will provide royal assent for a bill to become legislation
Explain how section 44 of the Constitution has been problematic for some elected representatives in both houses of the federal parliament
Section 44 is directed to eligibility for election to the Parliament. It sets out a list of five disqualifications for being a member of the Commonwealth Parliament.
The part of Section 44 that is the primary issue at the moment is Section 44(i), which deals with the question of allegiance and includes a disqualification for those who are dual citizens.
What is the purpose of the separation of powers?
It prevents one arm of government becoming too powerful. Acts as checks and balances against corruption and abuse of coercive power.
List 3 high court cases that were significant
Roach v AEC
Australian Capital Television v Commonwealth
R v Brislan
Tasmania Dams
etc
Distinguish between exclusive powers and concurrent powers.
Exclusive powers are powers that are exclusively the federal government, where concurrent powers are powers both federal and state parliaments can make laws on.
Discuss weaknesses in parliament in law-making if both houses in parliament have a majority of the same party
however, there is no proper review or scrutiny as the upper house will essentially "rubber stamp" laws created in the lower house as both houses are controlled by the same party
Explain the significance of s109 of the Australian Constitution
Section 109 of the Australian Constitution provides that: ‘when a law of a State is inconsistent with a law of the Commonwealth, the latter shall prevail, and the former shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be invalid’
List 2 express rights
The Constitution defines and protects express rights in relation to freedom of religion, discrimination between the States, the right of Australian citizens to trial by jury, free trade among the States and the acquisition of property.
Discuss the role of the High Court on parliament as a check
The High Court of Australia ensures that legislation that is passed is constitutional and will interpret legislation when an issue arises,
However, the High Court are not proactive in their approach as an issue needs to go to the High Court first to be resolved, which may intimidate people due to costs being potentially too high.
Why is a government-introduced bill more likely to pass through parliament in Queensland than in other states of Australia?
The Queensland Parliament is unicameral, meaning it has only one parliamentary chamber, the Legislative Assembly. Other states are bicameral meaning they have both upper and lower house. Therefore bills are passed quicker and with less scrutiny as they only need to go through one house.
Evaluate the bicameral system as a check on parliament in law-making
This allows for representative government as people who are elected represent an electorate, and will represent the views of their communities. If they do not represent the views of the communities, they will be voted out as this provides MPs with a level of accountability.
However, the members of parliament can also be bound by party views, which may conflict with good-lawmaking in Australia, and the views of their community.
If Senate is controlled by an upper house, this could cause a hostile upper house, and legislation will not pass.
Evaluate the significance of s128 and it's ability for the Australian people to protect or change the constitution
The referendum process allows the Australian people to be consulted before a change in the constitution occurs,
However, the double majority requirement may be considered too stringent as only 4 proposed changes out of 44 have been implemented.
What are some of the Governor Generals reserve powers?
The Governor-General’s reserve powers are generally agreed to include:
Evaluate the High Court's ability to interpret s7 and 24 of the Australian Constitution, referring to one case study
The Constitution does not clearly outline that voting in Australia is a right for citizens. In Roach v AEC, firstly an assumption is made that "chosen by the people" means that elections are held, and the people include Australian adults. The Commonwealth made amendments to legislation that all prisoners cannot vote, where Roach argued that "people" included prisoners. The High Court rolled back legislation as a result and prisoners serving up to a 3 year sentence were able to vote, meaning that amendments to legislation were unconstitutional from the interpretations made by the court.
Discuss the significance of the High Court Interpretation of s51(xxix) in the Tasmania dams case for law-making in Australia and the states
Australia entered into an international agreement declaring the Franklin River area as a protected area with the UNESCO World Heritage Protected site, which Australia passed the World Heritage Properties Conservation Act 1983 (Cth). Tasmania believed that Australia did not have powers to create legislation as they wanted to clear the river area to create a Dam. They disputed whether Australia had the constitutional power to create this legislation, however Australia argued that they had the power to create legislation based on external affairs power in s51(xxix). The High Court's interpretation meant that Australia is able to create legislation based on international treaties it enters into. Theoretically, Australia can create legislation based on any residual power and can expand their power through the external affairs power.