The Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs has recommended that legislation introduced by the Australian Greens to end federal control over territory laws be passed by the Senate.

 

The Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Amendment (Disallowance and Amendment Power of the Commonwealth) Bill 2010, together with proposed amendments applying to the Northern Territory and Norfolk Island, were introduced by Senator Bob Brown in September last year.

 

The aim of the bill is to remove the Attorney General’s power under the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988 to disallow or amend any Act of the Legislative Assembly for the ACT, and to ensure that the ACT Legislative Assembly has exclusive legislative authority and responsibility for making laws for the ACT.

 

Senator Brown had introduced a similar bill in 2006 following the Governor-General's disallowance of the Civil Unions Act 2006 (ACT) which was designed to allow gay marriage. The Howard government argued that the ACT law contravened the legal definition of marriage as between a man and a woman, and after debate both this bill and a subsequent bill introduced by Senator Brown in 2009 lapsed.

 

The Committee concluded that the Bill's proposed removal of ‘anachronistic features’ in sections 35 and 9 respectively of the ACT and NT self-government Acts would be “a significant step forward in their constitutional history, demonstrating that the Commonwealth genuinely respects the delegation of lawmaking powers that it made when it granted self-government.”

 

It noted however that, as Territories rather than States, the Commonwealth would retain overarching power over them under section 122 of the Constitution.

 

“As a matter of basic principle, therefore, the committee considers that the power of the federal executive to override legislation in the ACT and the NT is inappropriate and unwarranted. The committee therefore strongly supports the Bill's objectives in removing that power in the ACT and the NT, and replacing it with a parliamentary process that is more in keeping with sound democratic practice.”

 

Regarding Norfolk Island, the Committee did not support any changes in the NI Act without evidence for the need for them.

 

The Senate Committee’s report is at http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/legcon_ctte/actterrirtory_self_government/report/index.htm