CEFA's Constitutional Forum
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The 2013 federal election saw a swing away from the major parties and some politically minded people disliked the fact that a large number of minor party candidates were elected. This seems to have been the incentive for a call for Senate reform before the next federal election.
The practice of publically criticising politicians has a long history and goes back as far as ancient Athens with their ostracism. Technological advances give us the opportunity to continue this practice via social media.
It turns out that Generation X and Y are not apathetic. They’re just not interested in involving themselves in politics in the same way as previous generations.
The celebration of Magna Carta is now seen as a momentous constitutional event will stand in marked contrast to the atmosphere in 1215. Then, King John made the journey from Windsor to Runnymede as a much-embattled and widely hated ruler seeking to avert (or at least postpone) civil war.
There are only two copies of the Magna Carta held outside the United Kingdom. One is held at Parliament House in Canberra and the other in Washington. How is it that Australia was able to obtain a copy of the Magna Carta?
CEFA asked a group of people what being an Australian citizen means to them. Overall, those not born in Australian felt that Australian citizenship was a huge privilege, while others born in Australia were more apathetic about it.
The importance of the principles enunciated in the Magna Carta cannot be underestimated. Magna Carta has influenced common and constitutional law as well as political representation and the development of Parliament.
As the debate about Indigenous Constitutional recognition intensifies we appear to be moving to a possible referendum. It is therefore time for CEFA to disseminate information on how referendums work under the Australian Constitution.
After the budget announcement on Tuesday night we thought it might be time to take a closer look at what the Constitution says about Government spending.
