Strong and valuable though our Constitution is, we should not be
satisfied with merely defending our Constitution against attacks from
people who would undermine our liberties.
A mere defensive action could result in a compromise which might leave
the Constitution undermined or damaged.
We should seek, develop and advocate reforms which strengthen the
Constitution by wise amendments where necessary, and by well-considered
electoral laws. Here are some proposals worth studying, presented in
the form of Short Titles for Bills, and which were first published in
Liberty Letter of October 1993:
Proposals |
Description |
| 1.
A bill to introduce into Federal Elections the Robson Rotation system
for printing of ballot papers, as implemented in 1979 by the Tasmanian
Parliament.
|
Robson Rotation (named for Neil Robson MHA) involves printing ballot
papers in batches so that each candidate's name has an equal turn in
each position on the ballot paper. Robson Rotation allows voters to
escape from slavishly following a party ticket, and encourages voters to
learn about each of the candidates. |
| 2.
A Bill to abolish compulsory voting. |
The freedom to choose must include the freedom not to choose, to use the
phraseology of eminent constitutionalist and former NSW Speaker of the
Legislative Assembly, Hon. Jim Cameron, LL.M.
|
| 3.
A Bill to abolish public funding of political parties and to abolish
tax- deductibility of donations to political parties.
|
Participation in politics should be voluntary, and moreover should be
conducted at the expense of the participants. Public funding has enabled
political parties to function without feeling obliged to satisfy even
their own supporters, thereby lowering the standard of parliamentary
representation. Public funding is an important aspect of the system of
institutionalised incumbency intended to preserve the influence of the
currently dominant parties. Tax-deductibility of donations to political
parties is another aspect of institutionalised incumbency, and
discriminates against independents whose supporters receive no such
benefits.
|
| 4.
A Bill for a referendum to elect the Senators of each State by the
method of half the number of each State's Senators facing election at
each general election for that State.
|
This reform will remind Senators of their responsibility to represent
the citizens of their own States, rather than being mere cyphers of
their nationally-structured political party machines. The policies and
performance of the Federal Government are likely to be improved by
progressive assessment and feedback by partial Senate elections in
conjunction with each State election. The method of election is best
determined by the State Government concerned. If Queensland were allowed to choose its own method
of electing Senators, we should, for example, consider the question of
electing equal numbers of male and female senators.
|
| 5.
A Bill for a referendum to restore to State Legislatures the right of
filling casual Senate vacancies.
|
Constitutional arrangements in force since 1977 wrongly institutionalise
political parties, and are open to abuse through the appointment to the
Senate of individuals who have never been elected, neither by the people
nor by the elected representatives of the people.
|
| 6.
A Bill to amend the requirements for nomination for election to the
House of Representatives to $50 plus the nominating signatures of 500
persons enrolled within the Electorate.
|
Presently the requirement is $500 plus the signature of a party
secretary or $500 plus the signature of six voters. There should be no
special arrangements for political parties and the charge should be
reduced to as not to discriminate in favour of the wealthy. All
candidates should be required to demonstrate their acceptability to the
Electorate by furnishing a significant number of nominating signatures.
|
| 7.
A Bill to amend the requirements for nomination for election to the
Senate to $50 plus the nominating signatures of 1,000 persons enrolled
within the State.
|
This Bill will be superfluous if the election of Senators is made a
State matter (see #4, above). Presently the requirement is $500 plus
the signature of a party secretary or $500 plus the signature of six
voters. There should be no special arrangements for political parties
and the charge should be reduced to as not to discriminate in favour of
the wealthy. All candidates should be required to demonstrate their
acceptability to the Electorate by furnishing a significant number of
nominating signatures.
|
| 8.
A Bill to amend the Senate voting system to abolish single numeral
voting and to restore preferential voting with a liberalised definition
of formal voting for the Senate.
|
This Bill will be superfluous if the election of Senators is made a
State matter (see #4, above). Single numeral voting wrongly empowers
political parties, some of which do not even disclose to voters how
their single-numeral vote will allocate preferences. Voters should be
required to number each square, but a mistake would not invalidate the
vote. Each vote would be valid up to the point where the mistake (e.g. a
duplicated number) occurs.
|
| 9.
A Bill to allow a Petition signed by not less than seven and a half
percent of voters to initiate in conjunction with a general election a
Referendum for the rescission of any Act imposing a charge upon the
people.
|
No government since Federation ever campaigned on the platform of
introducing income tax or company tax. With no obvious exception, all
the burdens on the Australian people have been imposed without the
consent of the people. Rejection of the Hewson GST showed how
Australians feel about governmental burdens. Voters' Veto will give Australians the right to shrug off their burdens.
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