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Essay on federalism in australia
Advantages of proportional representation
Australian bicameral system
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SHOULD THE SENATE BE ABOLISHED? I INTRODUCTION The Senate has been one of the most contested and over-analysed areas of the Australian political system. The more controversial of the two houses, it was greatly debated even before the inception of the Parliament and is likely to continue to be a point of debate in the future. This essay will examine the question as to whether the senate should be abolished or retained. It will draw upon the main values of Australian Public Law to suggest that … In section I, the essay will cover the background and role of the Senate. Section II covers an explanation on the unicameral parliament as an alternative. In section III the Senate’s implications on a representative and responsible government is examined. This essay concludes that while the Senate may be inefficient and expensive it affords representation to the states and protection for the populace that overshadow any arguments that it ought to be abolished. II BACKGROUND Australia owes its bicameral structure to its heritage that the federal government was formed from a collection of independent English colonies (now states). Each state was and remains comprised of a …show more content…
An upper house is critical to ensure that those state rights are not diminished without consent. Australia is a large country albeit with a relatively small population. Its size gives rise to differences among the population that require representation. A bicameral system ensures that the needs of the more populated states do not dominate others. This requirement is not unique to Australia and it is not surprising that the vast majority of federal governments apply a bicameral system. B Simple versus
The decision for Australia to adopt the Federal system was on the principle of which the State’s governments wanted to keep their power. For this reason there was the separation of powers between the newly formed Commonwealth government and the existing State governments. At a constitutional level, there are rulings in which the powers are separated, these rulings due to disputes have slightly changed since 1901. These changes all fell towards the one government, the Commonwealth (Federal) government. However this was not just a landslide event, the Constitution of Australia set up this imbalance of powers between the Commonwealth and State governments. We will explore this further in the points discussed later in this essay.
Therefore, it is clear that a monarchy in Australia should remain. Even though he led the Republican Movement for the 1999 referendum at the time, it has been stated explicitly by the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull that a republican Australia will only occur if there is widespread public momentum for the change. Thus, there is today not enough interest in changing our system of government, so why bother with it if the people do not want it? Becoming a republic requires constitutional change, and thus means two-thirds of people in a majority of states must be supportive for a monarch to be replaced by a republic. Traditionally, senior citizens have not been in support of topics such as a republican movement; thus, those who emigrated from England and the United Kingdom would predominantly reject a republic. Hence, the younger generations in society are the citizens in which usually are more divisive or willing to all options. “Many young Australians just don’t see the point of conducting a referendum.” These young Australians also hold the belief that by becoming a republic, the financial detriment will prove to be far too much of a burden and are not in favour of the switch to an untried system from one in which functions effectively now. Moreover, since Australia has always been with the Commonwealth, and having been required
A Constitution is a set of rules put in place to govern a country, by which the parliament, executive and judiciary must abide by in law making and administering justice. In many countries, these laws are easily changed, while in Australia, a referendum process must take place to alter the wording of the Constitution (Commonwealth of Australia, date unknown, South Australian Schools Constitutional Convention Committee 2001). Since the introduction of the Australian Constitution in January 1901, there have been sufficient proposals to alter and insert sections within the body to reflect the societal values of the day, ensuring the Constitution remains relevant to the Australian people. Although Constitutional reform can be made on a arrangement of matters, the latest protests on Indigenous recognition and racial references within the body of the Constitution has called into question the validity of racial inclusion, and whether amendments should be made to allow for recognition. This essay will focus on the necessity of these amendments and evaluate the likelihood of change through the process of referenda.
Although there are similarities and differences in lever of party discipline between the MPs and the Senate, they both work and are effective. For the MPs, levers such as collective responability, the danger of being re-elected or suspension, and control over Question Period help in securing high party discipline and unity by defining a stiff boundary and pulled them together. While the Senate does not face the problem of being removed from the party for displeasing their party leaders as the MPs do, the very method of being appointed directly by the Governor General (under the advice of the PM) and their background similarities ensure that they think alike and therefore have high party discipline. In contrast, MPs have a relatively more individualistic reasons for maintaining high party discipline while the motive for the Senate is more group-oriented.
no author. (2011). New Australian of the Year Wants to Debate an Australian Republic. Available: http://www.republic.org.au/story/new-australian-year-wants-australians-debate-australian-republic-courier-mail-26111. Last accessed 20th June 2011.
House of Representatives. (1965, April 29). Retrieved March 16, 2014, from Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates: http://www.dva.gov.au/commems_oawg/commemorations/education/Documents/avw_topic1.pdf
Today, there is a major issue about Parliament related to Senate. The Senate usually examine bills to make sure that they are the most benefitting choice. They are also in charge of protecting the rights and interests of Canadians. As a result, Senate can be referred as a "sober second thought." However, a large number of Canadians disagree this and think that Senate should be abolished. Certainly, Senate is the useless system which rather affects society in a negative way. This is because the Senate costs lots of money, it is unfair system and the Senators do not perform any significant actions.
Byrd, Robert C. The Senate, 1789-1989: Addresses on the History of the US Senate, Vol. 1. (New York: Bernan Associates, 1989).
In perhaps one of the most iconic films featuring the United States Senate, the naïve Washington outsider, Jefferson Smith, finds himself pitted against political graft and special interests from his first day as U.S. Senator. Out of options and fully opposed, Mr. Smith is forced to utilize the filibuster until complete exhaustion in order to convince unsympathetic Senators of his principle, as well the standards that the Senate should operate under. This classic film, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, highlights many aspects of the Senate, most especially the merit of the filibuster in aiding in the protection of the little guy, the minority. Yet the filibuster throughout American history has evolved from this early notion of minority protection into a political gambit used by Senators to actually oppose debate. “The practice has gotten out of hand, leaving bills gridlocked in an oft-feuding Senate and stalling important votes for purely partisan gain” (TimeRe). The need for reform, constitutional reform, is evident by evaluating the essence of the problem itself. The problem, best understood in context to the filibuster’s historical development and the structural differences between the two chambers of congress, accentuates the need for reform, not abolishment of this extra-constitutional development. The filibuster has merit, but by introducing a constitutional amendment to make this senatorial policy more efficient and privy to democracy, the consequences prove to be overwhelming positive. As will be articulated below, a shifting cloture rule, as well as debate limitations will provide the ideal solution to what has become a growing, debilitating problem.
Stilborn, Jack. Senate Reform: Issues and Recent Developments. Ottawa: Parliamentary Information and Research Service, 2008.
Cases on the foundations of a constitutional order, such as parliamentary sovereignty, tend to be rare in any event. But what makes R (Jackson) v. Attorney General [2005] U.K.HL. 56; [2006] 1 A.C. 262 a significant case, is the dicta regarding constitutional issues mentioned by the judges in relation to parliamentary sovereignty. The discussions of the central issues in the case are in many ways constitutionally orthodox, treating the primary concerns as that of statutory interpretation and adopting a literal interpretation of the 1911 Act. By contrast, the discussion of the wider issues suggest that the judiciary may have support for what could be classed as unorthodox opinions on the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty. The concept of parliamentary sovereignty is to be considered as a mere ideology in the eyes of the legislature, as the modern day practical sovereign parliament is far from that of the theory.
When many people hear the words the Senate and the House of Representative they might think of Congress. They do not truly go into depth of what those two departments mean, and they do not understand how vital they are to our own government. Congress is part of the Legislative Branch and is a bicameral legislature. Which means that is a legislature that is separated into two houses, and in that case is the House of Representatives and the Senate. Many know the words "The Senate" and "The House of Representatives" but they do not truly know what those words entail, many do not know the contrast and comparisons of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
As mentioned earlier, the Senate considers and revises legislations. This is one major role they play in the parliament as a bill cannot be passed as a law without their approval. When bills are in discussion they are rarely ever rejected by the Senate as they have constantly been approved within the years. If the Senate is going to endlessly approve every single bill and never the less, make any revision to old legislation to modernize with the world today, then what is the point of having the Senate? They are a useless extra step taken before a bill can be passed.
For years, countries have had different legislatures bicameral and unicameral. The features of each legislatures are distinct from one another. It even accounts to various vices and virtues. Both legislatures exist in various countries in the world. The reason to which varies in each place. Legislatures are essential for a society to perform politically well. However, the political structure of every nations varies thus, there exist no simple generalization. The structural arrangements of different legislatures are distinct in relation to their number of chambers available. (Danziger, J. N. (1996))
Kirby, M. 1997, ‘Bill of Rights for Australia – But do we need it?’, viewed 30 March 2014, < http://www.lawfoundation.net.au/ljf/app/&id=/A60DA51D4C6B0A51CA2571A7002069A0>