The Australian Parliamentary System
Australia is a constitutional monarchy, with a monarch (the Queen of the United Kingdom and Australia) and a constitution that establishes
the parliamentary system and provides a legal framework for making laws. It is also a representative democracy and a federation of states. A representative democracy is political government carried out by elected representatives of the people.
Under the Australian federal system of government, the country is divided into states and territories. Each state and territory has its own
parliament, making a total of nine parliaments in Australia:
the parliamentary system and provides a legal framework for making laws. It is also a representative democracy and a federation of states. A representative democracy is political government carried out by elected representatives of the people.
Under the Australian federal system of government, the country is divided into states and territories. Each state and territory has its own
parliament, making a total of nine parliaments in Australia:
- the Commonwealth Parliament (the central parliament or federal parliament)
- six state parliaments
- two territory parliaments.
Commonwealth Parliament
The Commonwealth Parliament of Australia is a bicameral legislature (two Houses) with representatives elected to either the Senate (the Upper House) or the House of Representatives (the Lower House). The Senate consists of 76 senators - 12 from each state and 2 from each territory. The Senate conducts much of its work through an established committee system, including the budget estimates accountability process. The House of Representatives, known as the people's house, is where government is formed. It has 150 members and the party or parties able to gain the support of the majority of the House form government. The House's other roles are to debate proposed laws, watch over government expenditure, including through its committee system, and to provide a forum for public debate on issues of national importance. The Governor General represents the Crown in Australia.
Victorian Parliament
The Parliament of Victoria is a bicameral legislature (two Houses) with representatives elected to either the Legislative Council (the Upper House) or the Legislative Assembly (the Lower House). The Assembly has 88 Members and the Council has 40 Members. The Governor of Victoria represents the Crown and is the third arm of Parliament.
Principles of Parliament
Three main principles of the Australian parliamentary system are:
1. Representative government
2. Responsible government
3. Separation of powers
1. Representative government
2. Responsible government
3. Separation of powers
- Representative government refers to a government which represents the views of the majority of the people.
- Responsible government refers to the government’s responsibility to the public, ie in a democratically elected government it is accountable and answerable to the people.
- Separation of powers as a principal proposes that the power to govern should be divided between different groups, to avoid one group having all the power. The power is divided between the Parliament that makes laws (legislative power), the executive government that administers laws (executive power), and the courts that interpret and apply laws (judicial power)
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