Entrance to the House of Representatives

High-resolution image of the House of Representatives

Australia

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The House of Representatives is one of the two houses (chambers) of the Parliament of Australia. A lower house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Upper house. The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the House of Representatives the lower house of the Parliament of Australia. Henry Alfred "Harry" Jenkins (born August 18, 1952) is an Australian Politician and current Speaker of the House of Representatives Events 1429 - English Forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party. The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party. Federal elections for the Parliament of Australia were held on Saturday 24 November 2007 after a 6-week campaign in which 13 Parliament House is the meeting place of the Parliament of Australia. Canberra ( is the capital city of Australia With a population of over 340000 it is Australia's largest inland City. } The Australian Capital Territory (ACT is the Capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and its smallest self-governing internal territory For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The Politics of Australia take place within the framework of parliamentary democracy. This article describes the federal government of Australia See Australian governments for other jurisdictions In Political science and Constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the State. TalkCommonewalth realm.-->The monarchy For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia of the monarch of Australia (currently Elizabeth II Queen of Australia) Major General Philip Michael Jeffery AC, CVO, MC (born 12 December[[ 937]] was the 24th Governor-General of Australia The Prime Minister of Australia is the Head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia, holding office on commission from the Governor-General. Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957 is the 26th and current Prime Minister of Australia and federal leader of the Centre-left Australian Labor The Cabinet of Australia is the council of senior ministers of the Crown, responsible to parliament. The Federal Executive Council is the formal body holding executive authority under the Constitution of Australia. A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation The Parliament of Australia or Commonwealth Parliament is the legislative branch of government of Australia. The Senate is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia. This is a List of Australian Leaders of the Opposition, who in Australian Federal Politics is a Member of Parliament in the Brendan John Nelson, MP (born 19 August 1958 is an Australian politician and former Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Australia, as leader See also Politics of Australia Australia elects a Legislature the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia using various electoral systems see This article deals with elections to the Australian Parliament. The Australian House of Representatives is elected from 150 single-member districts called Divisions. Background Following the federation of 1856 - New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria 1857 - South Australia Issues The 1972 Election was largely focused on domestic policy issues and the role of the federal government in resolving these issues Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 May 1974. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 60 seats in the Senate Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1975 All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for Background and Issues The election is remembered for the "fistful of dollars" advertisements run by the government offering tax cuts to voters Issues The mood in the electorate was moving against the Fraser Government by 1980 Background The coalition government led by Malcolm Fraser had to contend with a parlous economic situation with high inflation and high unemployment Federal elections were held in Australia on 11 July 1987 following the granting of a double dissolution on 5 June by the Governor-General Sir House of Reps preference flows The Democrats contested 138 electorates with preferences slightly favouring Labor (54 Results House of Representatives preference flows The Nationals had candidates in 13 seats where Three-cornered-contests existed Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 November, 2001. Federal elections were held in Australia on 9 October, 2004. All 150 seats in the House of Representatives and 40 seats in the 76-member Federal elections for the Parliament of Australia were held on Saturday 24 November 2007 after a 6-week campaign in which 13 The next Australian federal election will elect members of the 43rd Parliament of Australia and must be held on or before 16 April 2011 In Law, the judiciary or judicial system is the system of Courts which administer Justice in the name of the sovereign or State The High Court of Australia is the final court of appeal in Australia the highest court in the Australian court hierarchy. There are two streams within the hierarchy of Australian Courts the federal stream and the state and territory stream The Constitution of Australia is the law under which the Australian Commonwealth Government operates The Commonwealth of Australia is made up of 8 states and territories controlled under a federal system of government In Political science and Constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the State. The Governors of the Australian states are the representatives in the six states of Australia of Australia's monarch Queen Elizabeth II. The Premiers of the Australian states are the de facto heads of the executive governments in the six states of the Commonwealth of Australia. A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation The Parliaments of the Australian states and territories are legislative bodies within the federal framework of the Commonwealth of Australia. For elections to the Australian Parliament see the Australian electoral system. } The Australian Capital Territory (ACT is the Capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and its smallest self-governing internal territory The form of the Government of New South Wales is prescribed in its Constitution which dates from 1856 although it has been amended many times since then The Northern Territory of Australia is governed according to the principles of the Westminster system, a form of parliamentary government based on the model of the The Government of Queensland is commonly known as the Queensland Government. The form of the Government of South Australia is prescribed in its Constitution which dates from 1856 although it has been amended many times since then The form of the Government of Tasmania is prescribed in its Constitution which dates from 1856 although it has been amended many times since then The Government of Victoria, under the Constitution of Australia, ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to The formation of the Government of Western Australia is prescribed in its Constitution which dates from 1890 although it has been amended many times since then Australia has two tiers of subnational government state (or territory government and local government. Political parties in Australia lists political parties in Australia. The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is a Green Australian political party. The Country Liberal Party (CLP is a Northern Territory political party affiliated with both the Liberal and National parties The Family First Party is a socially conservative minor Political party in Australia. The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party. The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party. The foreign relations of Australia have spanned from the country's time as Dominion and later Realm of the British Empire to become steadfastly allied with Information on politics by country is available for every Country, including both De jure and De facto independent The Parliament of Australia or Commonwealth Parliament is the legislative branch of government of Australia. It is the lower house, the upper house being the Senate. A lower house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Upper house. An upper house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Lower house. The Senate is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia.

Origins and role

The House is presided over by the Speaker. 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 150 members of the House are elected from single-member electorates (geographic districts, sometimes known as "seats" but officially known as "Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives"). A constituency is any cohesive corporate unit or body bound by shared structures goals or loyalty The Australian House of Representatives is elected from 150 single-member districts called Divisions. Each electorate has between 59,000 and 120,000 voters. They are designed to be relatively equal across the state or territory within which the electorate exists. Voting is by the 'preferential system' (usually referred to elsewhere as the instant-runoff voting). Instant-runoff voting ( IRV) is a Voting system used for single-winner elections in which voters have one vote and rank Candidates in order of

The number of electorates in each state and territory is determined by population. 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. The population of each state and territory is then divided by this quota to determine the number of members to which each state and territory is entitled. Under the Australian Constitution all original states are guaranteed at least five members. The Constitution of Australia is the law under which the Australian Commonwealth Government operates The Federal Parliament itself has decided that the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory should have at least one member each.

According to the Australian Constitution, the powers of both houses are nearly equal, with the consent of both houses needed to pass legislation. The Constitution of Australia is the law under which the Australian Commonwealth Government operates Legislation (or " Statutory law " is law which has been promulgated (or " Enacted quot by a Legislature or other Governing The difference mostly relates to taxation legislation. In practice, by convention, the leader of the party (or coalition of parties) with a majority of members in the lower house is invited by the Governor-General to form the Government. The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia of the monarch of Australia (currently Elizabeth II Queen of Australia) Thus the leader becomes the Prime Minister and some of the other elected members of the government party in both the House and the Senate become ministers responsible for various portfolios and administer government departments. The Prime Minister of Australia is the Head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia, holding office on commission from the Governor-General. Bills appropriating money (supply bills) can only be introduced in the lower house and thus only the party with a majority in the lower house can govern. In the current Australian party system, this ensures that virtually all contentious votes are along party lines, and the Government always has a majority in those votes.

The Opposition party's main role in the House is to present arguments against the Government's policies and legislation, and attempt to hold the Government accountable as much as possible by asking questions of importance during Question Time and during debates on legislation. Question Time in a Parliament occurs when Backbenchers (members of the parliament who are not Ministers) ask questions of the Prime Minister which In recent times, the Senate, by contrast, has not had a majority from the Government of the day (both Liberal/National Coalition and Labor), so votes in the Senate have become more meaningful. However, the Coalition Government gained a Senate majority from 1 July 2005, following the 2004 election. Federal elections were held in Australia on 9 October, 2004. All 150 seats in the House of Representatives and 40 seats in the 76-member The House's well-established committee system is not always as prominent as the Senate committee system because of the frequent lack of Senate majority.

In a reflection of the United Kingdom House of Commons, the predominant colour of the furnishings in the House of Representatives is green. The House of Commons' is the Lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords However, the colour was tinted slightly to suggest the colour of eucalyptus trees

The composition of the House

See also: State-by-state lower house results and maps

See also: Post-election pendulum

The election results of the most recent federal election, were as follows:^[1]

*McEwen is being challenged in the Court of Disputed Returns and may result in a by-election. The Division of McEwen is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. The Court of Disputed Returns in Australia is a jurisdiction established by Part XXII of the Commonwealth Electoral Act A by-election or bye-election (called special election in the United States) is an Election held to fill a political office that has become vacant

Independents: Tony Windsor, Bob Katter

Seats won by party at Australian elections, 1946 – 2007

Main Committee

An interesting feature of the Australian House is its Main Committee, designed to be an alternative debating chamber; it is modeled after the Committee of the Whole that exists in several different legislatures, particularly the United States House of Representatives and British House of Commons. Antony Harold Curties "Tony" Windsor (born 2 September 1950) Australian politician has been an independent member of the House of Representatives Robert Carl "Bob" Katter (born 22 May 1945) is an Australian federal politician The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party. The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party. Electoral reform As of this election single transferrable vote with Proportional representation became the method for electing the Senate History In 1944, Sir Robert Menzies founded the Liberal Party of Australia (descended from the United Australia Party) History In 1949 Sir Robert Menzies founded the Liberal Party of Australia (descended from the United Australia Party) and was led by Menzies for 16 years through History In 1949 Sir Robert Menzies founded the Liberal Party of Australia (descended from the United Australia Party) and was led by Menzies for 16 years through History In 1949 Sir Robert Menzies founded the Liberal Party of Australia (descended from the United Australia Party) and was led by Menzies for 16 years through Issues Due to a credit squeeze the economy had gone into a brief recession in 1961 Background The election was held following the early dissolution of the House of Representatives Issues The new Prime Minister Harold Holt was stylish debonair and popular with the electorate Issues The 1969 election centred heavily on the two leaders John Gorton and Gough Whitlam Issues The 1972 Election was largely focused on domestic policy issues and the role of the federal government in resolving these issues Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 May 1974. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 60 seats in the Senate Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1975 All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for Background and Issues The election is remembered for the "fistful of dollars" advertisements run by the government offering tax cuts to voters Issues The mood in the electorate was moving against the Fraser Government by 1980 Background The coalition government led by Malcolm Fraser had to contend with a parlous economic situation with high inflation and high unemployment Federal elections were held in Australia on 11 July 1987 following the granting of a double dissolution on 5 June by the Governor-General Sir House of Reps preference flows The Democrats contested 138 electorates with preferences slightly favouring Labor (54 Results House of Representatives preference flows The Nationals had candidates in 13 seats where Three-cornered-contests existed Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 November, 2001. Federal elections were held in Australia on 9 October, 2004. All 150 seats in the House of Representatives and 40 seats in the 76-member Federal elections for the Parliament of Australia were held on Saturday 24 November 2007 after a 6-week campaign in which 13 A Committee of the Whole is a device in which a legislative body or other Deliberative assembly is considered one large committee The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. The House of Commons' is the Lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords Matters considered to be relatively uncontroversial can be referred by the entire House to the Main Committee, where substantive debate can take place. The Main Committee cannot, however, initiate nor make a final decision on any parliamentary business, although it can perform all tasks in between. ^[4]

The Main Committee was created in 1994, to relieve some of the burden of the entire House: different matters can be processed in the House at large and in the Main Committee, as they sit simultaneously. It is designed to be less formal, with a quorum of only three members: the Deputy Speaker of the House, one government member, and one non-government member. Decisions must be unanimous: any divided decision sends the question back to the House at large.

The Main Committee was created through the House's Standing Orders:^[5] it is thus a subordinate body of the House, and can only be in session while the House itself is in session. When a division vote in the House occurs, members in the Main Committee must return to the House to vote.

The Main Committee is housed in one of the House's committee rooms: the room is customized for this purpose and is laid out to resemble the House chamber. ^[6]

Due to the unique role of the Main Committee, proposals have been made to rename the body to avoid confusion with other parliamentary committees. Proposals include "Second Chamber"^[7] and "Federation Chamber". ^[8]

The concept of a parallel body to expedite Parliamentary business, based on the Australian Main Committee, was mentioned in a 1998 British House of Commons report. The House of Commons' is the Lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords ^[9]

See also

The disproportionality of the 2007 election was 10. 28 according to the Gallagher Index, mainly between the Labor and Green Parties. The Gallagher Index (or least squares index) is used to measure the disproportionality of an electoral outcome that is the difference between the percentage of votes received

• Australian House of Representatives committees
• List of members of the Australian House of Representatives
• Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
• Clerk of the Australian House of Representatives
• List of longest-serving members of the Australian House of Representatives
• Women in the Australian House of Representatives
• List of Australian federal by-elections
• Canberra Press Gallery

References

External links

• House of Representatives Practice: APH
• House of Representatives Committees – Parliament of Australia
• Australian Parliament – live broadcasting