Politics of Australia

Benedict (Viktor) Gombocz

Geography of Australia Location: Australia and Oceania, continent

between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean

Area: Total: 7,741,220 sq km Country comparison to the world: 6 Land: 7,682,300 sq km Water: 58,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and

Macquarie Island

Area – comparative: Slightly smaller than the U.S. contiguous 48 states

Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 25,760 km

Physical Map of Australia

Religion in Australia In the 21st century, religion in Australia is

mainly Christian.

In the 2011 census, 61.14% of Australia’s population was recorded as following Christianity.

Historically, the percentage has been a lot higher and the religious landscape of Australia is expanding, together with multicultural immigration and 22.3% of people without a religious affiliation.

22.3% of Australians responded “no religion” in the 2011 census; a further 8.55% declined to answer.

The remaining population is a varied group which includes Buddhist (2.46%), Islamic (2.21%), Hindu (1.28%), and Jewish (0.45%) communities.

The 1901 Constitution of Australia forbids the Commonwealth government from establishing a church or intervening with freedom of religion.

Religion statistics (2006 census) Protestant 27.4% (Anglican 18.7%, Uniting

Church 5.7%, Presbyterian and Reformed 3%)

Catholic 25.8%

Eastern Orthodox 2.7%

Other Christian 7.9%

Buddhist 2.1%

Muslim 1.7%

Other 2.4%

Unspecified 11.3%

None 18.7% (2006 census)

Australia’s political system: Introduction The politics of Australia function within the structure of a federal constitutional

parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy. The people of Australia elect parliamentarians (MPs) to Australia’s federal parliament,

a bicameral body which integrates characteristics of the fused executive inherited from the Westminster system, and a strong federalist senate, taken from the United States Congress.

Australia functions mostly as a two-party system where voting is obligatory.

Australia’s political system: Government Capital: Canberra

Largest city: Sydney

Official languages: None National language: English (de facto) Demonym: Australian, “Aussie” Government: Federal parliamentary

constitutional monarchy Monarch: Elizabeth II (see Politics of

the United Kingdom slide 13 for information)

Governor-General: Quentin Bryce Prime Minister: Julia Gillard Legislature: Parliament Upper house: Senate Lower house: House of

Representatives

Australia’s political system: Federal parliamentary parties Australian Labor Party (ALP) Liberal Party of Australia (Lib) National Party of Australia (Nat.) Australian Greens (GRN) Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) Democratic Labor Party (DLP)

Quentin Bryce Born in Brisbane, Queensland on 23 December 1942.

25th and current Governor-General of Australia (and the first woman to occupy the post) since 5 September 2008, having formerly served as Governor of Queensland.

Spent her early years in Ilfracombe; her family later lived in a number of country towns around Australia.

Attended the University of Queensland, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws; became one of the first women admitted to the Queensland bar.

Became the first woman, in 1968, to be a faculty member of the law school where she studied.

Joined the new National Women’s Advisory Council in 1978; this was followed by various positions: first director of the Queensland Women’s Information Service, Queensland director of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, and the Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner in 1988.

Her contributions to the community led to her nomination as an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1988, and as a Companion of the Order of Australia, and Dame of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem in 2003.

Was invested by the Queen of Australia as a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) as the Government House in Canberra on 26 October 2011.

Was nominated the Governor of Queensland in 2003.

Despite some concerns were brought up during her tenure in that post, her term was to be extended to 2009, but on 13 April 2008, before the initial five years were up, it was announced that she was to become Australia’s next Governor-General; this decision was mostly responded to positively and on 5 September 2008, she was sworn in, succeeding Major General Michael Jeffery, making her the first woman Governor-General.

Julia Gillard Born 29 September 1961 in Barry, Wales.

27th and current PM of Australia and leader of the Australian Labor Party since 24 June 2010; is the first woman to occupy either post.

Migrated with her family to Adelaide, South Australia, in 1966; attended Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School.

Moved to Melbourne, Victoria in 1982; graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws in 1986.

Joined the law firm Slater & Gordon in 1987; specialised in industrial law before she entered political life.

Was first elected to the Australian House of Representatives in the 1998 federal election for the seat of Lalor, Victoria.

Was elected to the Shadow Cabinet after the 2001 federal election; was assigned the portfolio of Population and Immigration.

Undertook on the duty for both Reconciliation and Indigenous Affairs and Health in 2003.

When Kevin Rudd was elected as Labor Leader and became Leader of the Opposition in December 2006, she was elected unopposed as his deputy.

Became the first female Deputy PM of Australia upon Labor’s victory in the 2007 federal election; also served as both Minister for Education and Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations.

Was elected unopposed as the Leader of the Labor Party on 24 June 2010, following Rudd’s loss of support and subsequent resignation; hence became Australia's 27th PM.

The subsequent 2010 federal election saw the first hung parliament in 70 years.

Was additionally able to form a minority government with the backing of a Green MP and three independent MPs.

Australian Labor Party Also known as ALP and Labor (Labour prior to 1912); left of centre

Australian political party.

Has ruled the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election.

Julia Gillard, current PM of Australia, is the party’s federal parliamentary leader.

In the state and territory parliaments, it rules in South Australia, Tasmania, and the Australian Capital Territory.

Challenges the Liberal/National Coalition for political office at both the federal and the state (and occasionally local) level.

Its constitution states: “The Australian Labor Party is a democratic socialist party and has the objective of the democratic socialisation of industry, production, distribution and exchange, to the extent necessary to eliminate exploitation and other anti-social features in these fields.”

This “socialist objective” was introduced in 1921, though it has always been deeply qualified by wording which makes it evident that Labor advocates private belongings.

Has been a dead letter since the 1940s, as a consequence of the Chifley government’s failure to nationalise the private banks.

Today, Labor classifies itself as “a coalition that includes reformers, radicals, progressives, social democrats and democratic socialists united by a critique of the inequalities in society, a commitment to a more just and equal society, and the achieving of this aim by democratic means.”

Was founded in 1901 as a federal party before the first sitting of the Australian Parliament, even though it is descended from labour parties founded in the numerous Australian colonies by the emerging labour movement in Australia, which officially began in 1891; is therefore Australia’s oldest political party.

Colonial labour parties took seats after 1891, and federal seats after the Federation during the 1901 federal election.

Was Australia’s first party to accomplish a majority in either of the Australian Parliament’s two houses, during the 1901 federal election.

Pre-dates both the British Labour Party and the New Zealand Labour Party in party establishment, government, and policy completion.

Member of Socialist International and Progressive Alliance.

Canberra

Sydney

The End