1.
Australia
–
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the worlds sixth-largest country by total area, the neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australias capital is Canberra, and its largest urban area is Sydney, for about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored, on 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard, Australia has the worlds 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income. With the second-highest human development index globally, the country highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom. The name Australia is derived from the Latin Terra Australis a name used for putative lands in the southern hemisphere since ancient times, the Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south. On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted, in 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia. The first official published use of the term Australia came with the 1830 publication of The Australia Directory and these first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturists, the northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Maritime Southeast Asia. The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon. He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent New Holland during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement. William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688, in 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. The first settlement led to the foundation of Sydney, and the exploration, a British settlement was established in Van Diemens Land, now known as Tasmania, in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the part of Western Australia in 1828. Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales, South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, the Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia
Australia
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Aboriginal rock art in the
Kimberley region of Western Australia
Australia
Australia
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Portrait of Captain
James Cook, the first European to map the eastern coastline of Australia in 1770
Australia
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Tasmania's
Port Arthur penal settlement is one of eleven UNESCO World Heritage-listed
Australian Convict Sites.
2.
Politics of Australia
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The politics of Australia takes place within the framework of a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Australia largely operates as a two-party system in which voting is compulsory, the Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, and has influenced both by the Westminster system and United States federalism. Under Section 1 of the Constitution of Australia, Parliament consists of three components, the Monarch, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, the Australian Parliament is the worlds sixth oldest continuous democracy. Voting within each electorate utilises the instant-runoff system of preferential voting, the party or coalition of parties which commands the confidence of a majority of members of the House of Representatives forms government. The Australian Senate has 76 members, the six states return twelve senators each, and the two mainland territories return two senators each, elected through the single transferable voting system. Senators are elected for flexible terms not exceeding six years, with half of the senators contesting at each federal election, as such, the Senate has the power to bring down the government, as occurred during the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis. Such deadlocks are resolved under section 57 of the Constitution, under a procedure called a double dissolution election. Such elections are rare, not because the conditions for holding them are seldom met, of the six double dissolution elections that have been held since federation, half have resulted in the fall of a government. The most recent double dissolution election was in July 2016, with the government holding a slim majority, arguably, the trigger bills did not have much prominence throughout the campaign. The role of head of state in Australia is divided between two people, the monarch of Australia and the Governor-General of Australia. The functions and roles of the Governor-General include appointing ambassadors, ministers, the Governor-General is the President of the Federal Executive Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force. These posts are held under the authority of the Australian Constitution, in practice, barring exceptional circumstances, the Governor-General exercises these powers only on the advice of the Prime-Minister. As such, the role of Governor-General is often described as a ceremonial position. The Prime Minister of Australia is Malcolm Turnbull, leader of the Cabinet and head of government, the office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful political office in Australia. Despite being at the apex of executive government in the country, barring exceptional circumstances, the prime minister is always the leader of the political party or coalition with majority support in the House of Representatives. The only case where a senator was appointed minister was that of John Gorton. The Cabinet of Australia is the council of ministers responsible to Parliament
Politics of Australia
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Parliament House, Canberra.
Politics of Australia
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Australia
Politics of Australia
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Government House, Canberra, also known as "Yarralumla", is the official residence of the
Governor-General.
Politics of Australia
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High Court building, view from the lake
3.
Constitution of Australia
–
The Constitution of Australia is the supreme law under which the government of the Commonwealth of Australia operates, including its relationship to the States of Australia. The most important is the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900 became law on 9 July 1900, and entered into force on 1 January 1901. Other pieces of legislation have constitutional significance for Australia, even though the same person, Queen Elizabeth II, is the monarch of both countries, she acts in a distinct capacity as monarch of each. Under Australias common law system, the High Court of Australia and their decisions determine the interpretation and application of the constitution. However, the Constitution has continued to develop since then, with two laws having particularly significant impact on the status of the nation. However, impetus came from Britain and there was only lacklustre local support. These difficulties led to the failure of attempts to bring about federation in the 1850s and 1860s. The Federal Council could legislate on certain subjects, but did not have a permanent secretariat, the absence of New South Wales, the largest colony, also diminished its representative value. By the 1891 conference, significant momentum had been built for the federalist cause, under the guidance of Sir Samuel Griffith, a draft constitution was drawn up. However, these meetings lacked popular support, furthermore, the draft constitution sidestepped certain important issues, such as tariff policy. The draft of 1891 was submitted to colonial parliaments but lapsed in New South Wales, in 1895, the six premiers of the Australian colonies agreed to establish a new Convention by popular vote. The Convention met over the course of a year from 1897 to 1898, the meetings produced a new draft which contained substantially the same principles of government as the 1891 draft, but with added provisions for responsible government. To ensure popular support, the draft was presented to the electors of each colony, after one failed attempt, an amended draft was submitted to the electors of each colony except Western Australia. After ratification by the five colonies, the Bill was presented to the British Imperial Parliament with an Address requesting Queen Victoria to enact the Bill, finally, the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1900. Western Australia finally agreed to join the Commonwealth in time for it to be an member of the Commonwealth of Australia. In 1988, the copy of the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900 from the Public Record Office in London was lent to Australia for the purposes of the Australian Bicentenary. As a result, since Australia was still legally a colony and this was resolved by the Statute of Westminster 1931, adopted by the Commonwealth via the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942. The Statute of Westminster freed the Dominions, including the Commonwealth, legally, this is often regarded as the moment of Australias national independence
Constitution of Australia
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Australia
4.
Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942
–
The Statute of Westminster allowed the Dominion parliaments and governments to act independently of the British Parliament and Government. The Act is more important for its symbolic value than for the effect of its provisions. While Australias growing independence from the United Kingdom was well accepted and it also symbolised the shift in Australias foreign policy from a focus on the United Kingdom to the United States. Australias progression to independence was gradual and largely without incident. New South Wales was founded as a British colony in Sydney in 1788, other colonies split away from New South Wales or were separately established over the Australian continent in the ensuing decades. This accorded Australia somewhat greater independence and this was an important international demonstration of the independence of the Dominions. The Statute of Westminster 1931 gave legal effect to the Balfour Declaration, most importantly, it declared that the Parliament of the United Kingdom no longer had any legislative authority over the Dominions. Previously, the Dominions were legally colonies of the United Kingdom, the Statute made the Dominions de jure independent nations. The Statute took effect immediately over Canada, South Africa and the Irish Free State, however, Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland had to ratify the Statute through legislation before it would apply to them. Canada also requested certain exemptions from the Statute in regard to the Canadian Constitution, Australian politicians initially resisted ratification of the Statute. Latham had attended both the 1926 Imperial Conference and the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, and he had experience in international affairs. He preferred that the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Dominions not be codified in legislation, however, other politicians supported the Statute, and the new independence it gave to Australia. In 1930, shortly before the Statute was enacted, the Labor Prime Minister James Scullin recommended Sir Isaac Isaacs as the Governor-General of Australia, although King George V disapproved of Isaacs, the 1930 Imperial Conference upheld the procedure under the declaration, and so the King appointed Isaacs. The other Dominions supported this demonstration of political independence, four successive Prime Ministers – James Scullin, Joseph Lyons, Robert Menzies and Arthur Fadden – did not adopt the Statute. Before the 1940s, the United Kingdom had managed Australias foreign relations as a matter of course, curtins decision to formally adopt the Statute of Westminster in late 1942 was a demonstration to the international community that Australia was an independent nation. Since 7 November 1939, the Royal Australian Navy had operated subject to British imperial law, adopting the Statute of Westminster, so that Australia became able to amend applicable imperial law, avoided a potential repetition of this situation. The mens sentences were later further reduced, for a simple Act, it had a significant effect. Section 4 of the Statute provided that made by the Parliament of the United Kingdom would only have effect on a Dominion at the request of the government of that Dominion
Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942
5.
Australia Act
–
While each Act gives its short title as Australia Act 1986, in Australia they are referred to, respectively, as the Australia Act 1986 and the Australia Act 1986. These nearly identical Acts were passed by the two parliaments, to come into effect simultaneously, because of uncertainty as to which of the two parliaments had the authority to do so. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 by federation of six British colonies, the Commonwealth Constitution provided for a Commonwealth Parliament, with legislative power on a range of specified topics, leaving the residue of legislative power to the States. That constitution was contained in a British statute, the United Kingdom Parliament retained ultimate legislative power in relation to Australia. The UK Parliaments power to legislate with effect for the Commonwealth itself was mostly ended with the Statute of Westminster 1931, when adopted by Australia in 1942 retroactive to 1939. The Statute provided that no future UK Act would apply to a Dominion as part of its law unless the Act expressly declared that the Dominion had requested and consented to it. Until then, Australia had legally been a colony of the United Kingdom. However, s 4 of the Statute only affected UK laws that were to apply as part of Australian Commonwealth law, thus, the Parliament of the United Kingdom still had the power to legislate for the states and territories. In practice, however, this power was almost never exercised, for example, in a referendum on secession in Western Australia in April 1933, 68% of voters favoured seceding from Australia and becoming a separate Dominion. As a result of decision in London, no action was taken in Canberra or Perth. The Australia Act ended all power of the UK Parliament to legislate with effect in Australia – that is, as part of the law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory. State laws would no longer be subject to disallowance or suspension by the Queen – a power that, anomalously, similarly, the Australia Act removed the power of the British government to be involved in the governing of an Australian State. Specifically, only the State Premier could now advise the Queen on appointment or removal of a State Governor, nonetheless, the Queen could still exercise any of her powers with respect to the State if she was personally present in the State. At federation in 1901, the court of each colony became the supreme court of that State. In 1903, a High Court of Australia was established, one of whose functions was to hear appeals from the State supreme courts, however, the British insisted on a compromise. Section 74 of the Constitution as enacted by the Imperial Parliament, and there could be an appeal with permission of the Privy Council. The Commonwealth Parliament was empowered to legislate to limit the path and it did so in 1968 and 1975. Predictably, the High Court proved reluctant to grant certificates for appeal to the Privy Council, the discretion was exercised only once, in 1912
Australia Act
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Photo of the Australia Act 1986 (United Kingdom) document located in
Parliament House, Canberra
Australia Act
–
Australia
6.
The Crown
–
The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their sub-divisions, although the term is not only a metonym for the State. The Crown is a sole that represents the legal embodiment of executive, legislative. These monarchies are united by the union of their monarch. The concept of the Crown developed first in the Kingdom of England as a separation of the crown and property of the nation state from the person. The concept spread through English and later British colonisation and is now rooted in the lexicon of the other 15 independent realms. In this context it should not be confused with any physical crown, the concept of the Crown took form under the feudal system. Though not used this way in all countries that had this system, in England, all rights, land, for instance, was granted by the Crown to lords in exchange for feudal services and they, in turn, granted the land to lesser lords. One exception to this was common socage—owners of land held as socage held it only to the Crown. The Crown as ultimate owner of all property also owns any property which has become bona vacantia, the monarch is the living embodiment of the Crown and, as such, is regarded as the personification of the state. He office cannot exist without the office-holder, the Crown also represents the legal embodiment of executive, legislative, and judicial governance. While the Crowns legal personality is usually regarded as a sole, it can, at least for some purposes. Historically, the Crown was considered to be indivisible, two judgments—Ex parte Indian Association of Alberta and Ex parte Quark —challenged that view. The Crown in each of the Commonwealth realms is a similar, because both Canada and Australia are federations, there are also crowns in right of each Canadian province and each Australian state. The Succession to the Crown Law 2013 defined the Crown, for the purposes of implementing the Perth Agreement in Jersey law, as the Crown in right of the Bailiwick of Jersey. Legislation in the Isle of Man also defines the Crown in right of the Isle of Man as being separate from the Crown in right of the United Kingdom and this constitutional concept is also worded as the Crown in right of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. The reserve powers of the Crown for each territory are no longer considered to be exercisable on the advice of the UK government, often cases are brought by the Crown according to the complaint of a claimant. The title of the case follows the pattern of R v Y. Thus R v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union is R v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, where Miller is Gina Miller, in Scotland, criminal prosecutions are undertaken by the Lord Advocate in the name of the Crown
The Crown
–
Australia
7.
Monarchy of Australia
–
The monarchy of Australia is a form of government in which a hereditary king or queen serves as the nations sovereign. The present monarch is Elizabeth II, styled Queen of Australia and she is represented in Australia by the governor-general, in accordance with the Australian constitution and letters patent from the Queen. In each of the states, the monarch is represented by a governor, the Australian monarch, besides reigning in Australia, separately serves as monarch for each of 15 other Commonwealth nations known as realms. This developed from the colonial relationship between these countries and the United Kingdom, but they are now independent of each other and are legally distinct. Likewise, on all matters relating to any Australian state, the monarch is advised by the ministers of the Crown of that state, the British government is thus considered a foreign power in regard to Australias domestic and foreign affairs. The sovereigns Australian title is currently Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God Queen of Australia and Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth. Typically, the monarch is styled King or Queen of Australia and is addressed as such when in Australia or performing duties on behalf of Australia abroad, prior to 1953, the title had simply been the same as that in the United Kingdom. Australia, however, wished to have the United Kingdom mentioned as well, thus, the resolution was a title that included the United Kingdom but, for the first time, also separately mentioned Australia and the other Commonwealth realms. The passage of a new Royal Style and Titles Act by the Parliament of Australia put these recommendations into law, Queen Elizabeth II signed her assent at Government House, Canberra, on 19 October 1973. Australia does not pay any money to the Queen, either for personal income or to support the royal residences outside Australia, only when the Queen is in Australia does the Australian government support her in the performance of her duties. This rule applies equally to members of the Royal Family. Succession is according to British laws that have incorporated into Australian law. By adhering to the Statute of Westminster in 1942, Australia agreed to change its rules of only in agreement with the UK. Parallel proclamations are made by the governors in each state, regardless of any proclamations, the late sovereigns heir immediately and automatically succeeds, without any need for confirmation or further ceremony. After an individual ascends the throne, he or she continues to reign until death. The legal personality of a component of the Australian state is expressed by reference to the sovereign. In criminal prosecutions, the state as a party is named as The Queen—for instance. However, the prosecutors themselves are referred to as representing the Crown, more commonly and conveniently, however, the entity is referred to directly—for example, as The Commonwealth or The State of New South Wales or simply New South Wales
Monarchy of Australia
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Queen of Australia
Monarchy of Australia
Monarchy of Australia
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Postage stamp with portrait of the Queen, 1953
Monarchy of Australia
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Charles, Prince of Wales, is the
heir apparent to succeed the Queen.
8.
Elizabeth II
–
Elizabeth II has been Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand since 6 February 1952. Elizabeth was born in London as the eldest child of the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth and her father acceded to the throne on the abdication of his brother Edward VIII in 1936, from which time she was the heir presumptive. She began to undertake duties during the Second World War. Elizabeths many historic visits and meetings include a visit to the Republic of Ireland. She has seen major changes, such as devolution in the United Kingdom, Canadian patriation. She has reigned through various wars and conflicts involving many of her realms and she is the worlds oldest reigning monarch as well as Britains longest-lived. In October 2016, she became the longest currently reigning monarch, in 2017 she became the first British monarch to commemorate a Sapphire Jubilee. Elizabeth has occasionally faced republican sentiments and press criticism of the family, however, support for the monarchy remains high. Elizabeth was born at 02,40 on 21 April 1926, during the reign of her paternal grandfather and her father, Prince Albert, Duke of York, was the second son of the King. Her mother, Elizabeth, Duchess of York, was the youngest daughter of Scottish aristocrat Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and she was delivered by Caesarean section at her maternal grandfathers London house,17 Bruton Street, Mayfair. Elizabeths only sibling, Princess Margaret, was born in 1930, the two princesses were educated at home under the supervision of their mother and their governess, Marion Crawford, who was casually known as Crawfie. Lessons concentrated on history, language, literature and music, Crawford published a biography of Elizabeth and Margarets childhood years entitled The Little Princesses in 1950, much to the dismay of the royal family. The book describes Elizabeths love of horses and dogs, her orderliness, others echoed such observations, Winston Churchill described Elizabeth when she was two as a character. She has an air of authority and reflectiveness astonishing in an infant and her cousin Margaret Rhodes described her as a jolly little girl, but fundamentally sensible and well-behaved. During her grandfathers reign, Elizabeth was third in the line of succession to the throne, behind her uncle Edward, Prince of Wales, and her father, the Duke of York. Although her birth generated public interest, she was not expected to become queen, many people believed that he would marry and have children of his own. When her grandfather died in 1936 and her uncle succeeded as Edward VIII, she became second-in-line to the throne, later that year, Edward abdicated, after his proposed marriage to divorced socialite Wallis Simpson provoked a constitutional crisis. Consequently, Elizabeths father became king, and she became heir presumptive, if her parents had had a later son, she would have lost her position as first-in-line, as her brother would have been heir apparent and above her in the line of succession
Elizabeth II
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The Queen in March 2015
Elizabeth II
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Princess Elizabeth aged 3, April 1929
Elizabeth II
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Princess Elizabeth aged 7, painted by
Philip de László, 1933
Elizabeth II
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Elizabeth in
Auxiliary Territorial Service uniform, April 1945
9.
Governor-General of Australia
–
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia of the Australian monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. The Governor-General is appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister of Australia, when travelling abroad, the Governor-General is seen as the representative of Australia, and of the Queen of Australia, so is treated as a head of state. The Governor-General is supported by a staff headed by the Official Secretary to the Governor-General, a Governor-General is not appointed for a specific term, but is generally expected to serve for five years subject to a possible short extension. Since 28 March 2014, the Governor-General has been General Sir Peter Cosgrove, from Federation in 1901 until 1965,11 out of the 15 Governors-General were British aristocrats, they included four barons, three viscounts, three earls, and one prince. Since then, all but one of the Governors-General have been Australian-born, as of 2017, only one Governor-General, Dame Quentin Bryce, was a woman. The selection of a Governor-General is a responsibility for the Prime Minister of Australia, the candidate is approached privately to confirm whether they are willing to accept the appointment. The prime minister advises the monarch to appoint his nominee. This has been the procedure since November 1930, when James Scullins proposed appointment of Sir Isaac Isaacs was fiercely opposed by the British government, Scullin was equally insistent that the monarch must act on the relevant prime ministers direct advice. Both of these appointments had been agreed to despite British government objections, despite these precedents, George V remained reluctant to accept Scullins recommendation of Isaacs and asked him to consider Field Marshal Sir William Birdwood. However, Scullin stood firm, and, on 29 November, the King agreed to Isaacss appointment and this right to not only advise the monarch directly, but also to expect that advice to be accepted, was soon taken up by all the other Dominion prime ministers. This, among other things, led to the Statute of Westminster 1931, having agreed to the appointment, the monarch then permits it to be publicly announced in advance, usually several months before the end of the current Governor-Generals term. During these months, the person is referred to as the Governor-General-designate, the actual appointment is made by the monarch. Governors-General have during their tenure the style His/Her Excellency the Honourable, since May 2013, the style used by a former Governor-General is the Honourable, it was at the same time retrospectively granted for life to all previous holders of the office. From the creation of the Order of Australia in 1975, the Governor-General was, ex officio, Chancellor and Principal Companion of the Order, and therefore became entitled to the post-nominal AC. In 1986 the Letters Patent were amended again, and Governors-General appointed from that time were again, ex officio, until 1989, all Governors-General were members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and thus held the additional style the Right Honourable for life. The same individuals were also usually either peers, knights, or both, in 1989, Bill Hayden, a republican, declined appointment to the British Privy Council and any imperial honours. Dame Quentin Bryce was the first Governor-General to have had no title or pre-nominal style. Until 2015, the honour continued after the retirement from office of the Governor-General, formerly, the Governor-General automatically became a knight or dame upon being sworn in
Governor-General of Australia
–
The
letters patent issued by Queen Victoria in 1900 creating the office of governor-general
Governor-General of Australia
–
Flag of the Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
–
Governor-general's
Holden WM Caprice with St. Edward's Crown on the number plate
Governor-General of Australia
–
The
Earl of Hopetoun, the first governor-general, 1901–1903
10.
Peter Cosgrove
–
General Sir Peter John Cosgrove, AK, MC is a retired senior Australian Army officer and the 26th and current Governor-General of Australia. A graduate of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, Cosgrove fought in the Vietnam War, from 1983 to 1984, he was commander of the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, and he later served as commander of the 6th Brigade and the 1st Division. Cosgrove rose to prominence in 1999, when he served as commander of the International Force for East Timor, Cosgrove was Australias Chief of Army from 2000 to 2002, and then Chief of the Defence Force from 2002 to 2005, receiving corresponding promotions to lieutenant general and general. In January 2014, Cosgrove was named to succeed Dame Quentin Bryce as Governor-General of Australia and he was sworn in on 28 March 2014, and created a Knight of the Order of Australia on the same date. Cosgrove was born in Sydney, New South Wales, on 28 July 1947 and he was educated at Waverley College in Sydney, then followed his father, a warrant officer, into the Australian Army by attending the Royal Military College, Duntroon in 1965. Lieutenant Peter Cosgrove was commissioned on 11 December 1968 and was allotted to the Royal Australian Infantry and he arrived in Vietnam on 3 August 1969 and was posted to 9th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment on 20 August 1969. On 10 October 1969, Lieutenant Cosgrove was commanding 5 Platoon, the platoon located an occupied bunker system in an area where, because of the proximity of allied troops, indirect fire support was difficult to obtain. In spite of this, he led his platoon in an assault on the bunkers without indirect fire support, capturing the system, on 16 October 1969,5 Platoon located another bunker system occupied by about a platoon of enemy. Lieutenant Cosgrove silently deployed his own platoon for an attack and his assault completely surprised the enemy causing them to flee, abandoning large quantities of food, stores and documents. The following day in the bunker system a party of enemy approached his right forward section and was engaged by the sentry. Knowing that the remainder of the section was elsewhere on other tasks, Lieutenant Cosgrove ran to the contact area, as a result of his actions, two enemy were killed and three weapons and four packs containing rice were captured. He was awarded the Military Cross for these actions, in 1980 he was awarded the National Medal. In the mid-1980s he commanded the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, Cosgrove came to national fame in 1999 when, as a major general, he led the international forces in a peacekeeping mission to East Timor. The missions success made him one of Australias most respected and popular military leaders and he was promoted in 2000 to lieutenant general as Chief of the Army and in 2002 to general as Chief of the Defence Force. In 2004, the Foreign Minister Alexander Downer queried the judgement of Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty. Following a joint interview with the then Defence Minister Robert Hill, Cosgrove was accused of playing politics when he said that, on this occasion, however, Cosgrove expressed strong support for the Police Commissioner in his Australian best selling autobiography, My Story, published in 2006. On 3 July 2005, Cosgroves three-year appointment as Chief of the Defence Force was completed, Cosgrove served on the board of Australias main airline Qantas between July 2005 and January 2014 and is on numerous other boards as chairman or member. He served as Chancellor of the Australian Catholic University between November 2010 and January 2014, and is Honorary Patron in Chief of the ACT Veterans Rugby Club, Peter Cosgrove was appointed as Patron to the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Association in 2015
Peter Cosgrove
–
His Excellency General The Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove
AK,
MC
Peter Cosgrove
–
Cosgrove at the Centenary of the
Kangaroo March launch in 2013.
Peter Cosgrove
–
Swearing in as Governor-General
Peter Cosgrove
–
Peter and Lynne Cosgrove.
11.
Government of Australia
–
The Government of the Commonwealth of Australia is the government of the Commonwealth of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, the terms of this contract are embodied in the Australian Constitution, which was drawn up at a Constitutional Convention and ratified by the people of the colonies at referendums. Separation of powers is implied by the structure of the Constitution, the Australian system of government combines elements of the Westminster and Washington systems with unique Australian characteristics, and has been characterised as a Washminster mutation. Section 51 of the Constitution provides for the Commonwealth Governments legislative powers and allocates certain powers, all remaining responsibilities are retained by the six States. Further, each State has its own constitution, so that Australia has seven sovereign Parliaments, the High Court of Australia arbitrates on any disputes which arise between the Commonwealth and the States, or among the States, concerning their respective functions. The Commonwealth Parliament can propose changes to the Constitution, the Commonwealth Constitution also provides that the States can agree to refer any of their powers to the Commonwealth. This may be achieved by way of an amendment to the Constitution via referendum, more commonly powers may be transferred by passing other acts of legislation which authorise the transfer and such acts require the legislative agreement of all the state governments involved. This transfer legislation may have a clause, a legislative provision that nullifies the transfer of power after a specified period. In addition, Australia has several territories, two of which are self-governing, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory, Australian citizens in these territories are represented by members of both houses of the Commonwealth Parliament. The territory of Norfolk Island was self-governing from 1979 until 2016, the other territories that are regularly inhabited—Jervis Bay, Christmas Island and the Cocos Islands—have never been self-governing. The federal nature of the Commonwealth and the structure of the Parliament of Australia were the subject of protracted negotiations among the colonies during the drafting of the Constitution, the House of Representatives is elected on a basis that reflects the differing populations of the States. Thus New South Wales has 48 members while Tasmania has only five, but the Senate is elected on a basis of equality among the States, all States elect 12 Senators, regardless of population. This was intended to allow the Senators of the smaller States to form a majority, the ACT and the NT each elect two Senators. The third level of government after Commonwealth and State/Territory is Local government, in the form of shires, towns, the Councils of these areas are composed of elected representatives, usually serving part-time. Their powers are devolved to them by the State or Territory in which they are located, with this act, Australian law was made unequivocally sovereign, and the High Court of Australia was confirmed as the highest court of appeal. The theoretical possibility of the British Parliament enacting laws to override the Australian Constitution was also removed, the Legislature makes the laws, and supervises the activities of the other two arms with a view to changing the laws when appropriate. The Australian Parliament is bicameral, consisting of the Queen of Australia, a 76-member Senate, twelve Senators from each state are elected for six-year terms, using proportional representation and the single transferable vote, with half elected every three years. In addition to the state Senators, two senators are elected by voters from the Northern Territory, while another two senators are elected by the voters of the Australian Capital Territory
Government of Australia
–
Government House, Canberra
Government of Australia
–
Australia
Government of Australia
–
Parliament House,
Canberra: the seat of the Parliament of Australia
12.
Prime Minister of Australia
–
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the head of government of Australia. The individual who holds the office is the most senior Minister of the Crown, the leader of the Cabinet, the office is not mentioned in the Constitution of Australia and exists only through longstanding political convention and tradition. Despite this, in practice it is the most powerful position in Australia. The individual who holds the office is commissioned by the Governor-General of Australia, almost always and according to convention, the Prime Minister is the leader of the majority party or largest party in a coalition of parties in the House of Representatives. However, there is no requirement that the prime minister sit in the House of Representatives. The only case where a member of the Senate was appointed minister was John Gorton. Malcolm Turnbull has held the office of Prime Minister since 15 September 2015, the Prime Minister and Treasurer are traditionally members of the House, but the Constitution does not have such a requirement. Before being sworn in as a Minister of the Crown, a person must first be sworn in as a member of the Federal Executive Council if they are not already a member. Membership of the Federal Executive Council entitles the member to the style of The Honourable for life, the senior members of the Executive Council constitute the Cabinet of Australia. The Prime Minister is, like ministers, normally sworn in by the Governor-General. When defeated in an election, or on resigning, the Prime Minister is said to hand in the commission, in the event of a Prime Minister dying in office, or becoming incapacitated, the Governor-General can terminate the commission. Despite the importance of the office of minister, the Constitution does not mention the office by name. The conventions of the Westminster system were thought to be entrenched in Australia by the authors of the Constitution that it was deemed unnecessary to detail them. The formal title of the portfolio has always been simply Prime Minister, except for the period of the Fourth Deakin Ministry, Page was the leader of the smaller party in the governing coalition, the Country Party. He held the office for three weeks until the UAP elected a new leader, Robert Menzies, in August 1941 Menzies resigned as prime minister. In July 1945 John Curtin died suddenly and his deputy, Frank Forde, was sworn in the next day as prime minister, although the Labor Party had not had an opportunity to meet and elect a new leader. Forde served for eight days until Ben Chifley was elected leader, Chifley was then sworn in, replacing Forde, who became Australias shortest-serving prime minister. Harold Holt disappeared while swimming on 17 December 1967 and was declared presumed dead on 19 December, the governor-general, Lord Casey, commissioned the Leader of the Country Party, John McEwen, to form a government until the Liberal Party elected a new leader
Prime Minister of Australia
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Incumbent
Malcolm Turnbull since 15 September 2015
Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
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The first Prime Minister of Australia, Edmund Barton (sitting second from left), with his Cabinet, 1901.
Prime Minister of Australia
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Prime Ministers
Curtin,
Fadden,
Hughes,
Menzies and Governor-General
The Duke of Gloucester 2nd from left, in 1945.
13.
Malcolm Turnbull
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Malcolm Bligh Turnbull is the 29th and current Prime Minister of Australia. The Turnbull Government was re-elected at the 2016 federal election though with a bare one-seat majority, Turnbull attended Sydney Grammar School before going to the University of Sydney, where he attained a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws. Turnbull then attended Brasenose College, Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, elevated to the Howard Cabinet in January 2007, he briefly served as Minister for the Environment and Water. Following the defeat of the Liberal Government at the 2007 federal election, Turnbull declared himself a candidate in the subsequent leadership election, following a period of poor opinion polling, Turnbull challenged and defeated Nelson by four votes and became Leader of the Opposition. This led to persistent tensions within the Liberal Party, with Turnbulls support for the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme proposed by the Rudd Government in late 2009 eventually causing a split. Tony Abbott, who was opposed to the Scheme, subsequently challenged Turnbull, Turnbull was subsequently sworn in as Prime Minister of Australia the following day and formed the Turnbull Government. However, at the closest federal majority result since the 1961 election, Malcolm Turnbull was born in Sydney on 24 October 1954 to Bruce Bligh Turnbull and Coral Magnolia Lansbury. Turnbulls maternal grandmother, May Lansbury, was born in England, Turnbulls father was a hotel broker. Turnbulls mother was an actor, a writer, an academic. Turnbull suffered asthma as a young child, Turnbulls parents separated when he was nine, with Turnbulls mother leaving first for New Zealand, and then the United States. Turnbull was then raised by his father, Turnbull is of direct paternal Scottish descent, his great-great-great grandfather John Turnbull arrived in 1802 in New South Wales and became a tailor. During his childhood, he practised Presbyterianism before becoming a Roman Catholic, Turnbull spent his first three years of school at Vaucluse Public School. He then attended the St Ives preparatory school at Sydney Grammar School as a boarder, in senior school he was a boarder at the former Randwick campus of the school while attending classes at the main College Street campus on a partial scholarship. He was senior school co-captain in 1972, as well as winning the Lawrence Campbell Oratory Competition, excelling particularly in the subjects such as English. However, contrary to certain sources, Turnbull was not the dux of his year at Sydney Grammar. In 1987, in memory of his father, he set up the Bruce Turnbull means-tested scholarship at Sydney Grammar. In 1973, Turnbull attended the University of Sydney and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1977, during his studies, he was active in student politics, serving as board director of the University of Sydney Union. He also worked as a political journalist for Nation Review, Radio 2SM, in 1978, Turnbull won a Rhodes Scholarship and attended Brasenose College, Oxford, where he studied for a Bachelor of Civil Law degree from 1978 to 1980, graduating with honours
Malcolm Turnbull
–
The Honourable Malcolm Turnbull
MP
Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull
–
Turnbull in 2005
Malcolm Turnbull
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Turnbull (centre) with
Helen Coonan (left) and
Julie Bishop (right) in July 2009.
14.
Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
–
The Deputy Prime Minister of Australia is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Australia. The office of Deputy Prime Minister was created as a portfolio in 1968. The Deputy Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister, the current Deputy Prime Minister of Australia since 18 February 2016 is Barnaby Joyce. He is the National Party leader in the Parliament of Australia and they are the junior party in a coalition with the Liberal Party of Australia, led by Prime Minister of Australia and Liberal Party leader Malcolm Turnbull. Originally the position of deputy Prime Minister was an unofficial or honorary position, the unofficial position acquired more significance following the 1922 federal election, which saw the governing Nationalist Party lose its parliamentary majority. While Pages only official title was Treasurer, he was considered as a deputy to Bruce, until 1968 the term was used unofficially for the second-highest ranking minister in the government, especially while the Coalition was in government. Under the Coalition agreement between the Liberals and Country Party, when in government, the position was held by the leader of the Country Party and that continues to be case when the Coalition is in government. In the case of Labor governments, the deputy leader was. McEwen was sworn in as Prime Minister on the understanding that his commission would continue only so long as it took for the Liberals to elect a new leader, the Liberal leadership ballot was rescheduled for 9 January 1968. As it turned out, McMahon did not stand, and Senator John Gorton was elected, McEwen reverted to his previous status as the second-ranking member of the government, as per the Coalition agreement. Since 1968 only two Deputy Prime Ministers have gone on to become Prime Minister, Paul Keating and Julia Gillard, in November 2007, when the Australian Labor Party won government, Julia Gillard became Australias first female, and first foreign-born, Deputy Prime Minister. In practice, only National party leaders or Labor Party deputy leaders have held the position, the duties of the Deputy Prime Minister are to act on behalf of the Prime Minister in his or her absence overseas or on leave. The Deputy Prime Minister has always been a member of the Cabinet and this has not occurred since the office was created as a portfolio in 1968. The most recent former deputy minister to die was Lionel Bowen. The official site of the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
–
Incumbent
Warren Truss since 18 September 2013
Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
15.
Barnaby Joyce
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He was sworn in as Minister for Agriculture in the Abbott Government on 18 September 2013. Water Resources was added to his portfolio on 21 September 2015 in the Turnbull Government, prior to entering Parliament Joyce worked as an accountant. At the 2004 Federal Election Joyce was elected as a Senator and he became leader of The Nationals in the Senate on 17 September 2008, succeeding Nigel Scullion. As a senator, Joyce crossed the floor nineteen times during the term of the Howard Government, in April 2013 Joyce was pre-selected by the National Party to contest the House of Representatives seat of New England in New South Wales for the 2013 federal election. He resigned from the Senate on 8 August 2013 to contest the election and won New England for the Nationals with a margin of 21.1 percent. Joyce is the person in the history of the Australian Parliament to have represented one state in the Senate. Joyce was born in Tamworth, New South Wales, and raised in Woolbrook, as one of six children from a sheep and cattle farming family. His father, James Joyce, was born in New Zealand and moved to Australia to study science at the University of Sydney. He served in the Australian Army Reserve from 1994 to 1999, at university Joyce met his wife, Natalie, and they married in 1993. After graduating, Joyce moved around northern New South Wales and Queensland and he worked in the accounting profession from 1991 to 2005 until he became a senator. He is a fellow of CPA Australia and he and his wife have four daughters and live just outside of Tamworth, New South Wales. Joyce was elected to the Senate in the 2004 election representing the National Party, his term commenced on 1 July 2005 and ran until 30 June 2011. He was re-elected at the 2010 election as a member of the Liberal National Party, Joyce regained the seat that the Nationals lost to the One Nation Party in 1998, defeating the One Nation Senator Len Harris. The Liberals won three seats in Queensland, Joyce won 6.5 percent of the vote on first preferences, well short of the 14. One Nation, the Liberal Party and the Democrats had sitting Senators, Joyce said before taking his seat in July 2005 that he would not be a cipher and that the government should not take his support for granted. Because the Liberals campaigned against Joyce, he never felt bound to the Liberal Party, Joyces maiden speech to the Senate on 16 August 2005 was widely reported in the Queensland media. He expressed his desire to see the power of Australias retailing duopoly, Coles Myer and Woolworths Limited, reduced so as to small business. He also espoused the virtues of free enterprise, particularly at the small business, on 17 August 2005 the government announced a package of A$30 billion to improve telecommunications services in regional and rural areas
Barnaby Joyce
–
The Honourable Barnaby Joyce
MP
Barnaby Joyce
–
Barnaby Joyce's old office in
St George
Barnaby Joyce
–
Cabinet
Barnaby Joyce
16.
Federal Executive Council (Australia)
–
The Federal Executive Council is a body established by the Constitution of Australia to advise the Governor-General. The Governor-General is bound by convention to follow the advice of the Executive Council on almost all occasions and this power is used to legally enact the decisions of the Cabinet, which has no de jure authority. The Federal Executive Council is the Australian equivalent of Executive Councils in other Commonwealth realms, and is similar to the councils of Canada. The Federal Executive Council consists of all current and former Commonwealth ministers, membership is governed by Section 64 of the Constitution, which stipulates that once appointed to a ministerial role, a person shall also be a member of the Executive Council. Membership is usually for life, however only those serving in the current ministry are actually involved in Council activities, members of the Executive Council are entitled to the style The Honourable. The Governor-General presides over meetings of the Executive Council, but is not a member, the position of Vice-President of the Executive Council is usually given to a Member of the Cabinet, and no additional salary or allowance is paid. The appointment of Sir James Killen to this post in 1982 was controversial because the office was seen as a given that he held no Ministerial portfolio. He was nevertheless considered a member of the Ministry by virtue of this office, the Governor-General has the power to dismiss any member of the Executive Council, but that power is rarely exercised in practice. It might be exercised if, hypothetically, a minister or former minister were convicted of a criminal offence. One notable case was that of the Queensland Senator Glen Sheil, fraser then advised Governor-General Sir Zelman Cowen not to include Sheil in the ministry—advice that Cowen was required by convention to follow. Sheils appointment as an Executive Councillor without portfolio was terminated on 22 December, meetings do not require the Governor-Generals attendance, but the Governor-General must be notified of the meeting in order for it to be valid. A quorum for meetings is the Governor-General and two serving ministers or assistant ministers, if the Governor-General is not in attendance, quorum is the Vice-President and two serving ministers or assistant ministers. In the absence of the Vice-President, quorum is three ministers, one of whom, a minister, will preside. In practice, meetings will only be attended by a number of Councillors rather than the full Cabinet. The Council acts as a formal ratification body for decisions of the Cabinet
Federal Executive Council (Australia)
–
Commonwealth
17.
Cabinet of Australia
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The Cabinet of Australia is the Australian Governments council of senior Ministers of the Crown, responsible to Parliament. The ministers are appointed by the Governor-General, on the advice of the Prime Minister, Cabinet meetings are strictly private and occur once a week where vital issues are discussed and policy formulated. The Cabinet is also composed of a number of Cabinet committees focused on governance, outside the Cabinet there is an Outer Ministry and also a number of Assistant Ministers, responsible for a specific policy area and reporting directly to a senior Cabinet minister of their portfolio. The Cabinet, the Outer Ministry, and the Assistant Ministers collectively form the full Commonwealth Ministry of the government of the day, the Constitution of Australia does not recognise the Cabinet as a legal entity, it exists solely by convention. Its decisions do not in and of themselves have legal force, however, it serves as the practical expression of the Federal Executive Council, which is Australias highest formal governmental body established by Chapter II of the Constitution of Australia. In practice, the Federal Executive Council meets solely to endorse, all members of the Cabinet are members of the Executive Council. While the Governor-General is a presiding officer, they almost never attend Executive Council meetings. A senior member of the Cabinet holds the office of Vice-President of the Executive Council, until 1956 Cabinet comprised all ministers. This practice has continued by all governments since, with the exception of the Whitlam Government. When the Labor Party first held office under Chris Watson, Watson assumed the right to choose members of the Cabinet. In 1907, however, the party decided that future Labor Cabinets would be elected by members of the Parliamentary Labor Party, the Caucus, the Prime Minister retained the right to allocate portfolios. In practice, Labor Prime Ministers exercised a predominant influence over who was elected to Labor Cabinets, before the 2007 election, Kevin Rudd announced that if Labor won the election he would dispense with this tradition and appoint the ministry himself. In fact, the Caucus rule requiring the election of ministers remains in place, at the first Caucus meeting after the election, Rudd announced the members of his chosen ministry, and the Caucus then elected them unopposed, thus preserving the outward form of Caucus election. Following the 2010 federal election the Australian Labor Party secured the support of three independents and one Green member of the House of Representatives to enable it to form a government. On 11 September 2010, the Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced her new Cabinet which included the former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd as Minister for Foreign Affairs, members of both the House of Representatives and Senate are eligible to serve as ministers and parliamentary secretaries. A minister does not have to be a member of either house, the Prime Minister and Treasurer are traditionally members of the House of Representatives, but the Constitution does not have such a requirement. As amended in 1987, the Minister of State Act 1952 permits up to 30 ministers, as members of one house cannot speak in the other, ministers in each house serve as representatives of colleagues in the other for answering questions and other procedures. As of December 2016 every government since federation has had senators serve as ministers, the Senate typically provides one-quarter to one-third of the ministry
Cabinet of Australia
–
20th century
18.
Parliament of Australia
–
It consists of three elements, the Queen of Australia, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Queen is represented by the Governor-General, through both Houses, however, there is a fused executive, drawn from the Westminster System. The upper house, the Senate, consists of 76 members, twelve for each state, Senators are elected using the single transferable vote proportional representation system and as a result, the chamber features a multitude of parties vying for power. The governing party or coalition rarely has a majority in the Senate and usually needs to negotiate with other parties and this tends to lead to the chamber being dominated by two major parties, the Liberal/National Coalition and the Labor Party. The government of the day must achieve the confidence of this House in order to gain and remain in power, although elections can be called early, each 3 years the full House of Representatives and half of the Senate is dissolved and goes up for reelection. The two Houses meet in separate chambers of Parliament House on Capital Hill in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, the Commonwealth of Australia came into being on 1 January 1901 with the federation of the six Australian colonies. The inaugural election took place on 29 and 30 March and the first Australian Parliament was opened on 9 May 1901 in Melbourne by Prince George, Duke of Cornwall and York, later King George V. The only building in Melbourne that was enough to accommodate the 14,000 guests was the western annexe of the Royal Exhibition Building. After the official opening, from 1901 to 1927, the Parliament met in Parliament House, Melbourne and it had always been intended that the national Parliament would sit in a new national capital. This was a compromise at Federation due to the rivalry between the two largest Australian cities, Sydney and Melbourne, which wished to become the new capital. The site of Canberra was selected for the location of the capital city in 1908. A competition was announced on 30 June 1914 to design Parliament House, however, due to the start of World War I the next month, the competition was cancelled. It was re-announced in August 1916, but again postponed indefinitely on 24 November 1916, in the meantime, John Smith Murdoch, the Commonwealths Chief Architect, worked on the design as part of his official duties. He had little enthusiasm for the project, as he felt it was a waste of money. Nevertheless, he designed the building by default, the construction of Old Parliament House, as it is called today, was commenced on 28 August 1923 and completed in early 1927. It was built by the Commonwealth Department of Works, using tradesmen, the final cost was about £600,000, which was more than three times the original estimate. It was designed to house the parliament for a maximum of 50 years until a permanent facility could be built, the building was opened on 9 May 1927 by the Duke and Duchess of York. The opening ceremonies were both splendid and incongruous, given the sparsely built nature of Canberra of the time and its small population, the building was extensively decorated with British Empire and Australian flags and bunting
Parliament of Australia
Parliament of Australia
Parliament of Australia
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The Big Picture, opening of the Parliament of Australia, 9 May 1901, by Tom Roberts
Parliament of Australia
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Canberra from
Mount Ainslie: across the lake is
Old Parliament House and then the new
Parliament House
19.
Senate (Australia)
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The Australian Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Chapter I, there are a total of 76 senators,12 senators are elected from each of the six states and two from each of the two autonomous internal territories. Senators are popularly elected under the single vote system of proportional representation. As a result of proportional representation, the features a multitude of parties vying for power. Senators normally serve fixed terms, unless the Senate is dissolved earlier in a double dissolution. Following a double half the state senators serve terms ending on the third 30 June following the election with the rest serving three years longer. The term of the territory senators expires at the time as there is an election for the House of Representatives. The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act of 1900 established the Senate as part of the new system of government in newly federated Australia. From a comparative perspective, the Australian Senate exhibits distinctive characteristics. Unlike upper Houses in other Westminster system governments, the Senate is not a body with limited legislative power. Rather it was intended to play – and does play – an active role in legislation, the Constitution intended to give less populous states added voice in a Federal legislature, while also providing for the revising role of an upper house in the Westminster system. In practice, however, most legislation in the Australian Parliament is initiated by the Government and it is then passed to the Senate, which has the opportunity to amend the bill or refuse to pass it. In the majority of cases, voting takes place along party lines, since 2015, armed officers of the Australian Federal Police have been placed on duty to protect both chambers of the Federal Parliament. The system for electing senators has changed several times since Federation, the original arrangement involved a first-past-the-post block voting or winner takes all system, on a state-by-state basis. This was replaced in 1919 by preferential block voting, block voting tended to produce landslide majorities and even wipe-outs. For instance, from 1920 to 1923 the Nationalist Party of Australia had 35 of the 36 senators, and from 1947 to 1950, the Australian Labor Party had 33 of the 36 senators. From the 1984 election, group ticket voting was introduced in order to reduce a high rate of voting that arose from the requirement that each candidate be given a preference. As a result of the changes, voters may assign their preferences for parties above the line, or individual candidates below the line, both above and below the line voting now use optional preferential voting
Senate (Australia)
Senate (Australia)
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Australian Senate
Senate (Australia)
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Entrance to the Senate
20.
Stephen Parry (politician)
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Stephen Shane Parry is an Australian politician and the incumbent President of the Australian Senate. He has represented the state of Tasmania in the Australian Senate as a member of Liberal Party of Australia since July 2005, Parry was born on 31 October 1960 in Burnie, Tasmania, to William Stephen Parry and Patricia Dawn Evans. He was educated at Burnies Marist Regional College after which he enrolled at the Tasmanian Police Academy in Hobart, Parry was employed as an officer with the Tasmanian Police from 1977 to 1986, and was promoted to Detective in 1983. Parry performed a significant role in the wake of the Port Arthur Massacre, Parry was also president of the Burnie Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 2000 to 2004, and a director of the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 2000 to 2005. In 2004, Parry was elected to the Australian Senate for the state of Tasmania as a member of the Liberal Party of Australia and he was elected Government Deputy Whip in the Senate in November 2006 and Government Whip in April 2007 in succession to the late Senator Jeannie Ferris. Senator Parry was elected Opposition Whip after the 2007 federal election and on 16 February 2009, in addition to his role as Whip, on 4 July 2011, Parry was elected by the Senate as the Deputy President and Chairman of Committees, replacing Alan Ferguson. On 7 July 2014 the Senate elected him as its President, Stephen Parry is married with two adult sons. Stephen Perry personally opposes same-sex marriage, thinks they will cause the end of the world, Stephen Parry, Senate Biography Summary of parliamentary voting for Senator Stephen Parry on TheyVoteForYou. org. au
Stephen Parry (politician)
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Senator The Honourable Stephen Parry
21.
House of Representatives (Australia)
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The Australian House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the Parliament of Australia. It is referred to as the house, with the Senate being referred to as the upper house. The House is almost always dissolved earlier, usually alone but sometimes in a double dissolution of both Houses, a member of the House may be referred to as a Member of Parliament, while a member of the Senate is usually referred to as a Senator. The government of the day and by extension the Prime Minister must achieve, the House of Representatives currently consists of 150 members, elected by and representing single member districts, known as electoral divisions. The number of members is not fixed, but can vary with boundary changes resulting from electoral redistributions, the most recent overall increase in the size of the House, which came into effect at the 1984 election, increased the number of members from 125 to 148. It reduced to 147 at the 1993 election, returned to 148 at the 1996 election, each division elects one member using full-preference Instant-runoff voting. This was put in place after the 1918 Swan by-election, which Labor unexpectedly won with the largest primary vote, the Nationalist government of the time changed the lower house voting system from first-past-the-post to full-preference preferential voting, effective from the 1919 general election. This system has remained in place since, allowing the Coalition parties to safely contest the same seats, the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act of 1900 established the House of Representatives as part of the new system of dominion government in newly federated Australia. The House is presided over by the Speaker, Members of the House are elected from single member electorates. One vote one value legislation requires all electorates to have approximately the number of voters with a maximum 10% variation. However, the quota for the number of voters in an electorate is determined by the number of voters in the state in which that electorate is found. Meanwhile, all the states except Tasmania have electorates approximately within the same 10% tolerance, voting is by the preferential system, also known as instant-runoff voting. A full allocation of preferences is required for a vote to be considered formal and this allows for a calculation of the two-party-preferred vote. Under Section 24 of the Constitution, each state is entitled to members based on a quota determined from the latest statistics of the Commonwealth. These statistics arise from the census conducted under the auspices of section 51, the parliamentary entitlement of a state or territory is established by the Electoral Commissioner dividing the number of the people of the Commonwealth by twice the number of Senators. This is known as the Nexus Provision, the reasons for this are twofold, to maintain a constant influence for the smaller states and to maintain a constant balance of the two Houses in case of a joint sitting after a double dissolution. The population of state and territory is then divided by this quota to determine the number of members to which each state. Under the Australian Constitution all original states are guaranteed at least five members, the Federal Parliament itself has decided that the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory should have at least one member each
House of Representatives (Australia)
House of Representatives (Australia)
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Australian House of Representatives
House of Representatives (Australia)
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House of Representatives' entrance
House of Representatives (Australia)
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Inside the House of Representatives
22.
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
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The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Parliament of Australia. The presiding officer in the house is the President of the Senate. The office of Speaker was created by section 35 of the Constitution of Australia, the authors of the Constitution intended that the House of Representatives should as nearly as possible be modelled on the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The Speaker is the officer of House of Representatives debates. The Speaker is also responsible for maintaining order during debate, the office of Speaker is currently held by Tony Smith since 10 August 2015. The Deputy Speaker is Mark Coulton, who was elected Deputy Speaker on 30 August 2016, if the Speaker is absent the Deputy Speaker becomes the Acting Speaker. The Second Deputy Speaker is Rob Mitchell, the Clerk of the Australian House of Representatives conducts the election. In accordance with longstanding tradition, the MPs who move and second the nomination of the successful candidate drag him or her to the chair after his election, unlike the Speaker of the House of Commons in Britain, the Speaker generally remains an active member of their party. If a party member, the Speaker will continue to party meetings. There were two exceptions to this, the first Speaker, Frederick Holder and Peter Slipper, who resigned from their respective parties upon election as Speaker, and sat as independents. A Speaker ceases to hold office if, for any reason. Because the Speaker is always the nominee of the governing party, while the Opposition usually nominates one of its own members for Speaker after a general election, this is understood to be a symbolic act, and party discipline is always followed in any ballot. By reason of section 40 of the Constitution, while in the Chair, a Speaker does not have a vote, but if there is a tie in votes. Most Speakers have been senior backbenchers of the party holding office at the start of a new Parliament, two were former state premiers, Holder and Watt. Bronwyn Bishop was elected Speaker on 12 November 2013, as the Coalitions first female Speaker of the House, the Parliament was the first Australian federal parliament to have had three Speakers, Harry Jenkins, Peter Slipper, and Anna Burke. The name Speaker originates from olden times in the United Kingdom House of Commons, mr Speaker was a description rather than a title, the speaker being the Member of Parliament chosen to speak for them to the king. The first recorded use of the term Speaker was in 1377, during earlier times when the king was very powerful, he would usually only call the Parliament together to get it to agree to levy taxes. The speaker would report parliaments decisions to the king, which proved to be if it was not what the king wanted to hear
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
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The Speaker's chair in the House of Representatives
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
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Australia
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
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George Mackay as Speaker (1932–1934), wearing the full traditional dress.
23.
List of Australian Leaders of the Opposition
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This is a list of Australian Leaders of the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition in Australian Federal Politics is a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives, the position is held by the leader of the party not in government that has the most seats in the House. When in parliament, the Leader of the Opposition sits on the side of the centre table, in front of the Opposition. The Opposition Leader is elected by his or her party according to its rules, a new Opposition Leader may be elected when the incumbent dies, resigns, or is challenged for the leadership. The Commonwealth of Australia is a monarchy with a parliamentary system and is based on the Westminster model. The term Opposition has a meaning in the parliamentary sense. It is an important component of the Westminster system, with the Opposition directing criticism at the Government and attempts to defeat, the Opposition is therefore known as the Government in waiting and it is a formal part of the parliamentary system. It is in opposition to the Government, but not to the Crown, to date there have been 33 Opposition Leaders,18 of whom have served terms as Prime Minister. The current Leader of the Opposition is Bill Shorten of the Australian Labor Party, following an election of the new Parliamentary Labor Leader by caucus and ALP members on 13 October 2013. The current Deputy Leader of the Opposition is Tanya Plibersek of the Australian Labor Party, Tanya Plibersek is the fourth woman to hold the position of Deputy Opposition Leader. List of Prime Ministers of Australia Politics of Australia
List of Australian Leaders of the Opposition
–
In the
Australian House of Representatives, the Leader of the Opposition sits at the front table to the left of the Speaker's Chair (on the right-hand side in this photo).
24.
Bill Shorten
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Shorten led Labor at the 2016 federal election at which the Liberal/National Coalition retained majority government. Following the 2010 federal election he was elevated to Cabinet and served as Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, from June 2013 he served as Minister for Education and Minister for Workplace Relations until the defeat of the Rudd Government later that year. Prior to entering Parliament, he was the secretary of the Australian Workers Union from 2001 to 2007. He was also the president of the Labor Party in his state of Victoria. Shorten was born in Melbourne, where his father, William Robert Shorten—from Tyneside, England—was a waterside worker and his mother, Ann Shorten, was a lawyer and university academic of Irish descent. Shorten has a brother, Robert. Shorten was educated at St Marys Catholic Primary School in Malvern East, Xavier College and Monash University and he also gained a Master of Business Administration from Melbourne Business School at the University of Melbourne in 2001. In 1994, Shorten began his career as a trainee organiser under the ACTUs Organising Works program at the AWU. Before taking this post, Shorten had decided to enter Victorian state politics, however, he quickly gave this up to pursue his career with the union. His time as secretary was marked by a reform of the unions structures, Shorten was elected as the AWUs national secretary in 2001 and was re-elected in 2005. He resigned as Victorian state secretary of the AWU in August 2007 and he was an active member of the Labor Party and was a member of the partys national executive until 2011, as well as the administrative committee of the Victorian branch. He was also director of the Superannuation Trust of Australia and the Victorian Funds Management Corporation, from December 2005 until May 2008 he was the Victorian state president of the Labor Party. He was also a member of the Australian Council of Trade Unions executive, until early 2006, he was a board member of GetUp. org. au. During his time as AWU national secretary, Shorten was the chief executive of the Australian Netball Players Association. Shorten also served on the board of the Australian Cricketers Association. Shorten became active in the Labor Party while still a student, working part-time for federal Labor Minister Gareth Evans and he also worked for Bill Landeryou, Minister and later Leader of the Government in the Victorian Legislative Council during the Kirner Labor Government. After graduating, he worked for eighteen months as a lawyer for Maurice Blackburn Cashman, in 2005, Shorten announced that he would seek selection as the Labor candidate for the seat of Maribyrnong, which was already held by Labor MP and Shadow Minister Bob Sercombe. Justifying his challenge to an incumbent Labor MP, Shorten said. we havent won an election since 1993
Bill Shorten
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The Honourable Bill Shorten
MP
Bill Shorten
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Shorten speaking at the launch of the ALP's campaign for the 2014 West Australian senate election
Bill Shorten
–
Anthony Albanese
Bill Shorten
25.
Shadow Cabinet of Australia
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Neither the Shadow Cabinet nor the Shadow Ministers have any official status in the Parliament of Australia. The Shadow Cabinets membership is determined by the rules and practices of the Opposition party, since the 2013 Labor leadership ballot resulting from the 2013 Australian federal election, the Shadow Cabinet has been led by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten of the Australian Labor Party. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of the Liberal/National Coalition has led the Turnbull Government since the 2015 Liberal leadership ballot, following the narrow defeat at the 2016 election, the Australian Labor Party reelected Bill Shorten and Tanya Plibersek as leader and deputy leader respectively. On 23 July 2016, the Shadow Cabinet was announced
Shadow Cabinet of Australia
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Commonwealth
26.
Judiciary of Australia
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The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as the court of appeal on matters of both federal and State law. The large number of courts in Australia have different procedural powers and characteristics, different jurisdictional limits, different remedial powers, under the Australian Constitution, federal judicial power is vested in the High Court of Australia and such other federal courts as may be created by the federal Parliament. These courts include the Federal Court of Australia, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, Federal jurisdiction can also be vested in State courts. The Supreme Courts of the states and territories are courts of record with general. They can try any justiciable dispute, whether it be for money or not, like the Supreme Courts, the Family Court and Federal Court are superior courts of record, which means that they have certain inherent procedural and contempt powers. But unlike their Supreme Court counterparts, their subject matter jurisdiction must be granted by statute, the High Court has limited trial powers, but very rarely exercises them. It has ample power to transfer cases started there to another, more appropriate court, common law and equity are administered by the same courts, in a manner similar to that of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873. Legal and equitable remedies may be pursued in the one action in the one court, judges are appointed by the executive government, without intervention by the existing judiciary. Once appointed, judges have tenure and there are restrictions on their removal from office, for example, a federal judge may not be removed from office except by the Governor-General upon an address of both Houses of Parliament for proved misbehavior. Judges in Australia are appointed by the Executive government of the relevant jurisdiction, Federal judges may only serve until age 70. There is no limit on the length of service of State court judges. For example, in New South Wales, judges must retire at age 72, the hierarchy consists of a variety of courts and tribunals at both the federal and state and territory levels, with the High Court being the highest court in the Australian judicial system. The High Court has described the concept of a court as having no ready application in Australia to federal courts. Despite this, Australian courts are frequently characterised as either superior or inferior, the Federal Court and the Supreme Courts of each State and Territory are generally considered to be superior courts. There is no definition of the term superior court. In many respects Australian superior courts are similar to the Senior Courts of England, inferior courts are those beneath superior courts in the appellate hierarchy, and are generally seen to include the Magistrates and District Court of each State as well as the Federal Circuit Court. These courts among them have jurisdiction over Commonwealth law, that is, the High Court is the highest court in Australia
Judiciary of Australia
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Australia
27.
High Court of Australia
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The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. The High Court is mandated by Constitution section 71, which vests in it the power of the Commonwealth of Australia. The Court was constituted by, and its first members were appointed under and it now operates under Constitution sections 71 to 75, the Judiciary Act, and the High Court of Australia Act 1979. It is composed of seven Justices, the Chief Justice of Australia, currently Susan Kiefel and they are appointed by the Governor-General of Australia, on the advice of the federal government, and under the constitution must retire at age 70. Since 1979, The High Court has been located in Canberra, the majority of its sittings are held in the High Court building, situated in the Parliamentary Triangle, overlooking Lake Burley Griffin. With an increasing utilisation of video links, sittings are also held in the state capitals. The High Court exercises both original jurisdiction and appellate jurisdiction, the High Court is the court of final appeal with the ability to interpret the common law for the whole of Australia, not just the state or territory in which the matter arose. The High Courts broad jurisdiction is similar to that of the Supreme Court of Canada, as such, the court is able to develop the common law consistently across all the states and territories. This role, alongside its role in constitutional interpretation, is one of the courts most significant and this broad array of jurisdiction enables the High Court to take a leading role in Australian law and contributes to a consistency and uniformity among the laws of the different states. The original jurisdiction of the High Court refers to matters that are heard in the High Court. The Constitution confers actual and potential original jurisdiction, Section 75 of the Constitution confers original jurisdiction in regard to all matters, The conferral of original jurisdiction creates some problems for the High Court. For example, challenges against immigration-related decisions are brought against an officer of the Commonwealth within the original jurisdiction of the High Court. However, the inclusion of constitutional matters in section 76, rather than section 75, in practice, section 75 and section 75 are broad enough that many constitutional matters would still be within jurisdiction. The 1998 Constitutional Convention recommended an amendment to the constitution to prevent the possibility of the jurisdiction being removed by Parliament, failure to proceed on this issue suggests that it was considered highly unlikely that Parliament would ever take this step. The requirement of a matter in section 75 and section 76 of the means that a concrete issue must need to be resolved. The High Courts appellate jurisdiction is defined under Section 73 of the Constitution, however, section 73 allows the appellate jurisdiction to be limited with such exceptions and subject to such regulations as the Parliament prescribes. Parliament has prescribed a large limitation in section 35A of the Judiciary Act 1903 and this requires special leave to appeal. Special leave is granted only where a question of law is raised that is of public importance, therefore, while the High Court is the final court of appeal, it cannot be considered a general court of appeal
High Court of Australia
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High Court entrance
High Court of Australia
High Court of Australia
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High Court building
High Court of Australia
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Sir Samuel Griffith, first
Chief Justice of Australia
28.
Australian court hierarchy
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The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as the court of appeal on matters of both federal and State law. The large number of courts in Australia have different procedural powers and characteristics, different jurisdictional limits, different remedial powers, under the Australian Constitution, federal judicial power is vested in the High Court of Australia and such other federal courts as may be created by the federal Parliament. These courts include the Federal Court of Australia, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, Federal jurisdiction can also be vested in State courts. The Supreme Courts of the states and territories are courts of record with general. They can try any justiciable dispute, whether it be for money or not, like the Supreme Courts, the Family Court and Federal Court are superior courts of record, which means that they have certain inherent procedural and contempt powers. But unlike their Supreme Court counterparts, their subject matter jurisdiction must be granted by statute, the High Court has limited trial powers, but very rarely exercises them. It has ample power to transfer cases started there to another, more appropriate court, common law and equity are administered by the same courts, in a manner similar to that of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873. Legal and equitable remedies may be pursued in the one action in the one court, judges are appointed by the executive government, without intervention by the existing judiciary. Once appointed, judges have tenure and there are restrictions on their removal from office, for example, a federal judge may not be removed from office except by the Governor-General upon an address of both Houses of Parliament for proved misbehavior. Judges in Australia are appointed by the Executive government of the relevant jurisdiction, Federal judges may only serve until age 70. There is no limit on the length of service of State court judges. For example, in New South Wales, judges must retire at age 72, the hierarchy consists of a variety of courts and tribunals at both the federal and state and territory levels, with the High Court being the highest court in the Australian judicial system. The High Court has described the concept of a court as having no ready application in Australia to federal courts. Despite this, Australian courts are frequently characterised as either superior or inferior, the Federal Court and the Supreme Courts of each State and Territory are generally considered to be superior courts. There is no definition of the term superior court. In many respects Australian superior courts are similar to the Senior Courts of England, inferior courts are those beneath superior courts in the appellate hierarchy, and are generally seen to include the Magistrates and District Court of each State as well as the Federal Circuit Court. These courts among them have jurisdiction over Commonwealth law, that is, the High Court is the highest court in Australia
Australian court hierarchy
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Courtroom 1 in the High Court in
Canberra.
Australian court hierarchy
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In
Melbourne, the Federal Courts are housed in the Commonwealth Law Courts Building on the corner of
La Trobe Street and
William Street.
