Federalism in Australia

Australia is the sixth oldest surviving federation in the world after the United States (1789), Mexico (1824), Switzerland (1848), Canada (1867), and Brazil (1891).

Instigated by Henry Parkes' Tenterfield Oration of 24 October 1889, the Australian Colonies conducted a series of constitutional conventions through the 1890s.

These culminated in a draft Constitution that was put to popular vote in the individual colonies, and eventually approved by the electors, after a final round of changes met the higher threshold of support required in New South Wales.

The colonies saw some advantage in removing tariff barriers to inter-colonial trade and commerce, having a greater strategic presence, and gaining access to investment capital at lower rates; individually, though, none of these represented a driving force.

This was reinforced by the High Court, which in a number of decisions in those early years rejected Commonwealth government attempts to extend its authority into areas of State jurisdiction.

A second turning point came with the threat to Australia at the beginning of the Second World War and the Commonwealth government's mobilisation of financial resources.

This has led State and federal governments to co-operate to create regulatory regimes in fields such as the marketing of agricultural products and competition policy.

Since 2000, the net revenue of the GST, a national value-added tax, has been distributed as general purpose payments according to a strict levelling formula determined by the Grants Commission.

[11] The reliance of the States on financial transfers from the Commonwealth, the high degree of "overlap and duplication", and the resulting policy conflict and confusion between the levels of government regularly generates criticism and calls for "reform of the federation".

[12] The Rudd Labor government launched a series of reforms in 2009 designed to reduce the micromanaging character of specific purpose payments.

The power to "make laws for the government" of the Territories, assigned to the Commonwealth Parliament by s 122 of the Constitution, is not confined by any words of limitation.

[15] In response to the increasing overlap between the two levels of government, Australian federalism has developed extensive practices of intergovernmental relations.

[17] With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the formal processes of COAG were set aside in favour of more frequent, immediate and collegial meetings of the heads of government christened "National Cabinet".