In Australia, power is divided between federal, state and territory governments Federal laws made by parliament must pass through both the House of Representatives and the Senate and be signed by the Governor-General.
The House of Representatives, often called the Lower House, is comprised of members from electorates across Australia It determines the government, passes laws, monitors administration and debates issues of national importance. After an election, government is formed by the party who has the most representatives in the Lower House.
The leader of the party with the most representatives in the Lower House becomes the Prime Minister. The Senate, often called the Upper House, is comprised of 76 members - twelve from each of the six states and two from each of the two territories Its main role is to review legislation that comes from the Lower House.
Senators serve a six-year term with half the Senate elected every three years during the federal election. Section of the Constitution gives the federal Parliament the power to make laws for the territories.
Until they were granted self-government, the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory were administered - managed - by the federal government. Most have an appointed Administrator. State and territory parliaments make laws that are enforced within their state or territory. By defining federal powers, the Australian Constitution reserved - left - most other law-making powers to the states. These are called residual powers.
As a rule, if it is not listed in sections 51 and 52 of the Constitution, it is an area of state responsibility. State laws relate to matters that are primarily of state interest such as:. Section of the Constitution allows the Parliament to override a territory law at any time. The federal Parliament has only used its power under section a few times and only in cases where the territory law has created much debate or controversy within the Australian community. Up until the self-government Acts covering the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory gave federal ministers the right to veto or change territory laws without approval of federal Parliament.
Federal Parliament has now amended the self-government Acts so the federal Parliament must vote to veto a territory law. The law-making powers of the state parliaments. The territory law allowed terminally ill patients to decide when to die. After a free vote the federal Parliament passed the Euthanasia Laws Act As a result of this law, the self-government Acts of the territories were changed to stop the territory parliaments making laws about euthanasia.
There are over local government bodies across Australia. They are often called councils, municipalities or shires. Local governments consist of 2 groups who serve the needs of local communities:. On average each council has 9 elected members who are usually called councillors or aldermen, while the chair or head of the council is usually called the mayor or president.
These smaller legislative bodies make by-laws about local matters and provide services. For example, councils are responsible for:. One of the main tasks of local government is to regulate - manage - services and activities. For example, councils are responsible for traffic lights, and dog and cat registration. These tasks would be difficult for a state government to manage because they are local issues.
Councils can deliver services adapted to the needs of the community they serve. For instance, the needs of residents in inner-city Brisbane might be different to those of people living in rural Queensland.
By providing these services and facilities, councils make sure local communities work well from day-to-day. From the s colonial parliaments began to hand over responsibility for local issues to local councils. The first council was established in Adelaide in , followed in by the City of Sydney and Town of Melbourne councils. From the s onwards, the number of elected councils grew rapidly.
Today, local authorities include city councils in urban centres, and regional and shire councils in rural areas. On average each council looks after about 28 people.
The largest council by population is Brisbane City Council which is responsible for a population of nearly 1. Local councils are not mentioned in the Australian Constitution, although each state has a local government Act - law - that provides the rules for the creation and operation of councils. While these Acts vary from state to state, in general they cover how councils are elected and their power to make and enforce local laws, known as by-laws.
A by-law is a form of delegated legislation because the state government delegates - gives - to councils the authority to make laws on specific matters. As councils derive their powers from state parliaments, council by-laws may be overruled by state laws. The law-making powers of local government. How governments in Australia raise and spend money.
The federal government raises money through taxing incomes, spending and businesses. The money is spent on federal matters such as: Medicare, defence, immigration, foreign policy. The money is spent on state matters such as: roads, prisons, housing, public transport, police and ambulance services. Local councils collect taxes rates from all local property owners and receives money from the federal and state governments. Each government understands its own powers and responsibilities, and ways have been worked out for the three levels to work together.
Local governments are closely linked to the State Government through its Local Government Department. State and Federal Governments work together through many systems but the most publicised ones are the Conferences which take place between the Premiers and the Prime Minister.
What Level? How Many in Australia? Each usually represents one section Ward or Riding within the local government area. An important local centre Federal, State and Local Governments. Contact us Help Copyright, conditions of use, privacy Payments Authorised user login. Their power derives:. Neither the Prime Minister nor the Cabinet are mentioned in the Constitution—the framers of the Constitution took their existence for granted, as they did the various conventions of the Westminster system of government inherited from the United Kingdom.
Table 1 below gives a comparison of the constitutional provisions and the actual practice according to the conventions which have operated in Australia. Composition of the Ministry. The Prime Minister is the head of the government. They achieve this position by being the elected leader of the party in government in the case of a coalition government, the major party.
Major policy and legislative proposals are decided by the Cabinet. The Prime Minister selects Ministers for Cabinet positions. Ministers are selected by the Prime Minister. Legislation currently allows for up to 30 Ministers.
About 20 or so senior Ministers administer the major departments and are, usually, members of Cabinet. Other Ministers are responsible for particular areas of administration within a major department, or may be in charge of a small department. Ministers are appointed from both Houses of Parliament, although most about two thirds are Members of the House of Representatives. Up to 12 Members and Senators are appointed by the Prime Minister as Parliamentary Secretaries also referred to as Assistant Ministers to assist or represent Ministers in their administrative responsibilities.
The role of the Governor-General. The Governor-General performs the ceremonial functions of head of state on behalf of the Queen.
The Governor-General also has executive powers under many Acts of Parliament—for example, the power to proclaim legislation that is, bring it into effect and to make regulations and other kinds of delegated legislation that is, legislative powers that the Parliament has delegated to the Executive Government. Most of the executive actions taken by the Governor-General are of this kind. In practice, except when reserve powers are involved—see below—these functions are exercised as advised by the Prime Minister and Ministers.
In some matters the Constitution gives the Governor-General powers to act independently. These include the power to dissolve the House of Representatives and, in certain situations, both Houses see Infosheet No. However, in other than exceptional circumstances, the Governor-General will follow the advice of a Prime Minister who retains the confidence of the House.
Constitutional experts do not agree on their precise extent or on the nature of the exceptional circumstances in which they may be exercised. The Federal Executive Council. The Federal Executive Council is the constitutional mechanism for providing ministerial advice to the Governor-General.
It is not a forum for policy debate or deliberation and its proceedings are entirely formal. In practice the minimum number of Ministers or Parliamentary Secretaries that is, two in addition to the person presiding are rostered to attend. Meetings of the Council are presided over by the Governor-General or a deputy appointed by the Governor-General usually the Minister with the title Vice President of the Executive Council.
The matters dealt with at each meeting are recommendations by Ministers, for the approval of the Governor-General in Council, that something be done—for example, that a regulation be made, a treaty be ratified, or a person be appointed to a position.
The role of the Queen. Australia is a constitutional monarchy. A monarchy is a country where the position of head of state is inherited. A constitutional monarchy is one where the powers of the monarch or sovereign—the King or Queen—are limited by law or convention, and generally exercised only according to the advice of an elected government.
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