Image from Bradlow + Bock campaign Can the job of being a federal member of parliament be shared by two or more persons? Two prospective candidates for the inner-Melbourne federal seat of Higgins, Lucy Bradlow and Bronwen Bock, have announced that they will run as job-sharing independent candidates. They say they will “work week-on, week off, with a handover at the end of each week”. Is this legally and constitutionally valid? Bradlow and Bock claim “there are no legal barriers to the inclusion of two candidates in either the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act or the Commonwealth Elect ..read more

Perhaps it was inevitable, given our current ultra-divisive politics, that governor-general designate Sam Mostyn would become the latest punching bag in the culture wars. Warriors on the right have cast the well-qualified Mostyn as an activist from woke central. They’ve reacted variously with outrage, sarcasm, or carefully-pursed lips. The advocacy group Advance described her appointment an “insult to mainstream Australians”; one commentator wrote she reflected “the worst of modern woke Australia”. Mostyn has progressive political views and, historically and currently, links with Labor governm ..read more

After ruling on November 8 that indefinite immigration detention is unlawful, the High Court today delivered its reasons for the decision that upturned 20 years of precedent. Its ruling has required the release of some 140 people from immigration detention so far, and set off a political scramble to legislate in response to the outcome. The judgment, the first made by the court under new Chief Justice Stephen Gageler, was unanimous. It largely turned on questions of constitutional law and the limits of executive power. The court made it clear that a person must be released from detention when ..read more

Shutterstock It was always going to be a big ask for Australians to vote in favour of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. There’s been much said about the challenges posed by the double majority requirement. In the wash-up, many are asking what the path to reconciliation is now. Some answers may lay in other settler societies. North American Indians provide an example of how representation can occur, without having to amend the constitution. Change in the face of harsh laws After 350 years of losing wars, land, and sovereignty, American Indians altered their approach to engaging with the federa ..read more

When Australians vote on the Voice to Parliament referendum on October 14, ballots from the Northern Territory and the ACT will be treated differently from those of the states. The same goes for votes cast by residents of Norfolk Island, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. In fact, for most of Australia’s history, territory voters haven’t had a say in referendums at all. To many, this seems unfair and hard to justify. So, how did we arrive at this point? And should we change the rules so territory voters are treated like everybody else? Not all referendum votes are equal The Aust ..read more

In the upcoming Voice referendum, all Australian voters must decide whether to approve the proposed law to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples through the mechanism of a Voice to Parliament and the executive government of the Commonwealth. So what actually is the “executive government”? Here, I will answer that question, specifically in the context of the proposal that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice will “make representations” (that is, provide its views and advice) to it on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. What does ‘execut ..read more

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and/or images of deceased people. Today, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced an October 14 date for a national referendum on whether to amend the Constitution to establish a new advisory body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Called the “Voice to Parliament”, the new body would provide advice and make representations to parliament and the government on any issues relating to First Nations people. The Voice to Parliament has been toted as a vital step toward redressing Aust ..read more

Big policy ideas usually don’t come up in parliamentary valedictory speeches – they’re for saying goodbye and thank you. So departing Labour MP Jamie Strange was the exception last week when he made a case for New Zealand and Australia becoming one country. The main problem, he joked, would be integrating the Australian cricket team. But he talked up the potential economic benefits, and the option does remain open under sections 6 and 121 of the Australian Constitution. In fact, New Zealand did seriously consider joining the Australian federation in the 1890s. After all, it had been administer ..read more

Lukas Coch/AAP As we start to see the campaign for the Voice referendum gather momentum, there are a lot of Australian voters with genuine questions, trying to understand the proposal and wade through the information – including misinformation and active (that is, intentional) disinformation – that is out there in this public debate. This type of information can manipulate people’s understanding of the issues, distort their vote and the result. It can also cause enormous harm to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Those looking for answers that avoid misinformation and disinformatio ..read more

The federal government today released the long-awaited legal advice on the Voice to parliament from Australia’s solicitor-general, Stephen Donaghue. In it, Donaghue states that the proposed model for the Voice “will not fetter or impede the exercise of existing powers of Parliament”, adding that the proposal is not just compatible with the system of representative and responsible government prescribed by the Constitution, but an enhancement of that system. The advice makes clear the Voice is legally sound. The Voice to parliament In the Uluru Statement from the Heart, Aboriginal and Torres S ..read more