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Posts tagged as “referendum”

Writ Issued For Queensland Referendum On Four-Year Parliamentary Terms

February 8, 2016

The Governor of Queensland, Paul de Jersey, has issued the writ for the holding of a referendum on introducing fixed four-year terms of Parliament.

The referendum will be held on March 19. It asks voters to approve a move to fixed four-year terms of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. If carried, the change would not affect the term of the current parliament but would take place after the next election. Future elections would be held on the last Saturday in November.

The writ is similar in function to the writ issued to initiate the holding of an election.

READ MOREWrit Issued For Queensland Referendum On Four-Year Parliamentary Terms

Parliamentary Committee Recommends Referendum On Local Government

January 24, 2013

The Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition of Local Government has recommended that a referendum on financial recognition of local government be held in conjunction with this year’s federal election.

The Committee recommends that Section 96 of the Constitution be amended to read:

…the Parliament may grant financial assistance to any State or to any local government body formed by State or Territory legislation on such terms and conditions as the Parliament thinks fit.

The report argues that uncertainty arising from the High Court’s Pape v Commissioner of Taxation (2009) and Williams v Commonwealth of Australia (2012) cases creates a “moment for action” that should result in a referendum this year.

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Victoria Becomes a NO State – Referendum Fails In All 6 States

November 9, 1999

Counting of postal and absentee votes has seen Victoria fall from a narrow YES vote to No in the republic referendum conducted last Saturday.

All States and Territories have recorded a drop in support as postal and absentees have been counted, confirming a long tradition of such votes tending to the conservative or No side of the political debate.

As a result of Saturday’s two polls, Australia has now experienced 44 referendums since Federation, of which only 8 have been passed – a success rate of 18%.

Republic Referendum Results
Updated 10/11/99
State YES % NO %
New South Wales
46.24
53.76
Victoria
49.66
50.34
Queensland
37.14
62.86
Western Australia
41.42
58.58
South Australia
43.29
56.71
Tasmania
40.07
59.93
Australian Capital Territory
63.51
36.49
Northern Territory
49.20
50.80
TOTAL
44.91
55.09

READ MOREVictoria Becomes a NO State – Referendum Fails In All 6 States

Preamble Referendum: Howard-Ridgeway Urge A YES Vote

November 3, 1999

Prime Minister John Howard and Democrats Senator Aden Ridgeway have held a joint press conference urging Australians to vote yes to the preamble in Saturday’s referendum.

Transcript of joint press conference held by Prime Minister John Howard and Senator Aden Ridgeway.

PRIME MINISTER:

Ladies and gentlemen, Senator Ridgeway and I have decided to call this joint press conference to make a joint appeal to the Australian people to vote yes to the preamble on Saturday. And the fact that the two of us have come together at this news conference symbolises the value of the preamble as a uniting element in constitutional debate in Australia.

Because Senator Ridgeway is a self-declared yes voter on the republic and I am a self-declared no voter on the republic. But on the issue of the preamble both of us together are asking the Australian people to vote yes because we see the preamble as a way as we go into the next century of expressing what unites us rather than continuing a debate about what doesn’t unite us.

READ MOREPreamble Referendum: Howard-Ridgeway Urge A YES Vote
AustralianPolitics.com
Malcolm Farnsworth
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