Culleton sends petition to the Queen, explains senators constitutional role

ODGERS’ AUSTRALIAN SENATE PRACTICE, TWELFTH EDITIONShow more

TO THE ELECTORS OF AUSTRALIA who by their votes established and have sustained constitutional government in the Commonwealth of Australia and one group of their chosen agents and trustees THE SENATORS who hold a large portion of that trust.

Chapter 1

THE SENATE AND ITS CONSTITUTIONAL ROLE
THE PARLIAMENT of the Commonwealth of Australia, which is given the power to make laws for the Commonwealth by the Constitution, has two elected houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives.

There are two reasons for this division of the law-making body, the legislature, into two houses. Both reasons have a long history, pre-dating the framing of the Australian Constitution by elected conventions in the 1890s.

The first is expressed by the term bicameralism, the principle that making and changing the laws should require the consent of two different bodies. The requirement for the consent of two differently constituted assemblies is a quality control on the making of laws. It is also a safeguard against misuse of the law-making power, and, in particular, against the control of one body by a political faction not properly representative of the whole community.

Source: https://www.aph.gov.au/binaries/senate/pubs/odgers/pdf/odgers.pdf

Authorised by Ian Nelson for the Great Australian Party, 65 Cardinal Cct, Caboolture, 4510