twice by the Conucil, can be settled by referendum in accordance
with the provisions of the said Act. This Act, unique in Australasia,
supplies a safety-valve for the Constitution, and renders swamping
unnecessary and absolete (Cf. Keith, " Responsible Govermiient in the
Dominions," Vol. 2, at page 586).
7. A party campaign for the abolition of the Legi-slative Council
was projected by the Government in June, 1919. and a large sum of
money was -appropriated from the public funds for that object. Al-
though approximately £13,000 was distributed as " allowances "
among members of the Legislative Assembly, the campaign itself
completely failed, and after one or two meetings the whole project
was abandoned.
8. At the General Election of 6th March, 1918, the then Labour
Government were returned to power by a majority of 24 votes in an
Assembly of 72. At the General Election on 9th October, 1920, their
majority dwindled to 4, and the present strength of parties in the
Assembly is Labour Govermnent 37 (including the Speaker) and
Opposition 35. Owing to unjust disproportion of votes in constitu-
encies (numbers varying from 2,000 to 12,000) the Government, though
in a majority in the Assembly, are in a minority in the country, the
majority vote against them aggregating over 20,000.
9. No question arises as to a quorum, or the obstruction of legisla-
tion in the Legislative Council.
21
10. On Stii l)ccfiiiht'r, I!»I5. a resolution pniltodvini' coifcnt aryu-
iiicnts at^ainst the pioj^osed abolition of the Couneil was passed by the
Legishitive Council, and forwarded to His Excellency tlie Governor
for transmission to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State for the
(^olonies, for sul)mission to His Majesty the King (see " Hansard." Vol.
cxxii, pp. 2717 271!)). Tlic arguments therein set forth have even
greater wi-ight under the present circumstances, when the projjosed
abolition is not by the will of the })eople nor by the autliority of the
Impeiial Parliament.
11. Since I\Iay, H)17. the Government has not in any way referred
the matter of abolisliing the Council to the electors, nor have the
electors given any mandate, or preferred any request for such abolition.
We further respectfully urge upon your Excellency's consideration.
the following matters : —
(a) The question of a radical change in the State Constitution,
established and working satisfactorily now for nearly
sixty 3'ears, demands a broader justification than the reck-
less act of any party tem|)orarily in ])ower. It is clearly
an Im})erial (juestion calculated to aft'ect the status of all
Colonial Legislatures under what may become a federated
Empire.
(b) The proviso to Article 22 of the Order in Council of the
()th June, 1859, im])liedly shows that there could be no
abolition, by the Queensland Parliament, of the Legislative
Council, inasmuch as express provision is made for the
reservation of a Bill altering the (^'onstitution of the
Legislative Council, by making it wholly or partly elective,
and it is scarcely possible to conceive the absence of such
a })rovision with i:es])ect to a Bill having the wider effect
of the abolition of the Council if sucli were contemplated
as ])art of tlie powers of the (Queensland Legislature.
(c) Since all the other States of the Commonwealth retain tlie
bicameral system, its destruction in Queensland wcndd
fatally prejudice the standing and rights of this State,
reducing it below the level of all tlie othei's. and dis-
locating the |)rovisions by which due re])resentation in the
Federal ]*arliament is secured to (Queensland.
(</) Some revising Chamber is necessaiy in order to obtain e(|uity.
harmony, and consecutiveness in legislation, as a single
Chamber, unbridled and acting before election heat has
time to cool, is tem])ted to force measures through that are
partisan, haphazard, and du<' to nuimentarv impulse.
No alternative pro]iosal for a second Chamber, whether
elective or otherwise, has at any time been submitted to
this Council by the Legislative Assembly.
{() The abolition of the Legislative Council would remove all
checks upon the dominant party for tlie time being, in
22
the Legislative Assembly by referendum or otherwise,
and the people would be robbed of their right of appeal.
( f) The abolition of the Legislative Council would place the
Judiciary and the Land Court at the mercy of the dominant
party in a single Chamber Legislature : and would shake
the security of tenure of officers such as the Auditor-
General, the Commissioner for Railways, and the Com-
missioner of Police, whose duties are such that they should
be freed from all ])olitical temptation or menace.
(//) The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act (an Imperial
Statute) recognises the continued existence of both Houses
of Parliament of each State : also the Australian States
Constitution Act of 1 907 recognised the continued existence
of both Houses of Parliament of each State of the Common-
wealth of Australia. The Legislature of the State of Queens-
land has no wari'ant or authority to alter any of the pro-
visions of these two before-mentioned Lnperial Statutes,
and effect could not be given to them if the Legislative
Council were abolished.
(h) In the present world-wide turmoil, industrial, political, racial,
and otherwise, there appears to be need rather for strength-
ening than for undermining any of the constitutional safe-
guards in any part of the Empire.
(/) The Legislative Council acts as the permanent co-trustee of the
public safety and welfare, and no valid reason has been
adduced why the Queensland community, an integral
part of the Empire, should be deprived of such protection.
At this critical time in the history of Queensland and with due
regard to the present and future welfare of the State, we most respect-
fullv desire to submit the foregoing facts and opinions to your Ex-
cellency's consideration, and in view of the grave constitutional issues
involved, we beg to present to your Excellency the following alternative
petitions, and jjray that your Excellency may be graciously pleased
to grant them favourable consideration : —
1. That no further action he taken until the will of a majority
of the electors on this question be ascertained by a specific
referendum or by a general election.
2. That in the alternative the validity of the pro])osed Act of
Abolition be referred to the Judicial Committee of tlie Privy
Council for decision under the provisions of 3 and 4 William
IV, Cap. 41.
3. That in the event of the validity of such Queensland Act of
Abolition being for any reason upheld, final action thereon
be suspended until either by specific referendum or at a
general election the will of the ])eople of Queensland be
ascertained upon so far-reaching and vital a proposal.
23
Your pctitioucis lurther j)ray that your Excellency will be [>lca.sed
to tranwuit a copy of thi.s our Memorial to the lli<^}it Honourable the
(Secretary of State for the Colonies for submission to His Majesty the
King.
With profound loyalty to the Thione,
We have the honour to remain,
Your Excellency's dutiful and obedient servants,
A. J. Thynne.
F. T. Brentnall.
C. F. Marks.
A, G. C. Hawthorne.
T. M. Hall.
A. H. Parnell.
A. Dunn.
A. H. Whittincjham.
E. W. H. Fowles.
Bkiskank,
Queensland.
:ird November, 1921.
Enclosure 4 in No. 1.
PETITION
Presented to
HIS MAJESTY. GEORGE V.
By tJie Gnwe of God, Kitu) of tJie United Kinydont of Great BrUain
and Ireland, and of the British Dominions Beyoml the Seas,
Defemler of the Faith, and Emperor <f India.
May it please Your Gracious Majesty,
The humble Petition of those whose signatures are appended hereto
being dutiful and loyal subjects of Your Majesty in the State of Queen-
land, Connnonwealth of Australia, sheweth as follows : —
1. In the year 1917, the then Labour Government of Queensland,
whose official programme included, int^r alia, the abolition of State
Governors, and the abolition of the Second Ghamber in Parliament,
known as the I'pjter House, or the Legislative Council, resolved under
the provision of the Parliamentary Bills Referendum Act of 1908, to
take a referendum of the electors on the question of the abolition of the
Legislative Council of Queensland.
2. A meeting of citizens and electors of Queensland was held in
April, 1917. for tlie |nirpose of considering what action should be taken
with regard to the pro[)osed Abolition Referendum. A Constitution
Defence Conunittee was appointed and Your Majesty's Present Peti-
tioners are the executive officers of that Committee.
24'
3. The Constitution Defence Committee undertook a campaign
throughout the State in opposition to the Government's AboHtion
proposals, and summarised their arguments for the retention of the
bicameral system in a pamphlet distributed tlixoughout the State.
4. The said Referendum was duly taken by the then Government —
a Laboiu: Government — on May 5th, 1917. It was almost a record
vote, 77 '74 per cent, of electors going to the polls. The number voting
for abolition was 116,196 : the number voting against aboUtion was
179,105, a majority of 62,909 in favour of retaining the Legislative
Council. Sixty electorates (including many Govermnent strongholds),
out of a total of seventy-two, voted against abolition. There was a
single clear issue put before electors, and the verdict was emphatic.
A copy of the Government Gazette notifying the results is attached
hereto marked " Appendix A."
5. Although the Labour Government in June, 1919, projected a
further campaign for the abolition of the Legislative Council, and
actually appropriated and distributed £13,000 from the public funds
for that purpose, as " allowances " to members of the Legislative
Assembly, nevertheless, the project itself failed to attract any further
support, and after one or two spasmodic meetings, the Government
completely abandcnied the campaign.
6. Since the Referendum in 1917, there has been no referendum
taken by the Government on the question, nor has the Government
made it an issue at any General Election, nor has there been any
public mandate or public request or appeal for the abolition of the
Legislative Council.
7. At the General Election of 6th March, 1918, the then Labour
Government were returned to power by a majority of 24 votes in an
Assembly of 72. At the General Election of 9th October, 1920, their
majority dwindled to 4, and the present strength of parties in the
Assembly is Lal)our Government 37 (including the Speaker) and
Opposition 35. At the latest General Election there was an extra-
ordinary disproportion of votes, ranging from 2,000 to 12,000, in the
various constituencies : and it so happened that the Government,
although securing a slender majority in the Assembly, nevertheless,
are now in a minority by over 20,000 votes if the aggregate is taken of
votes cast for or against them by Queensland electors.
Since then, at the Municipal Elections held on the same Rolls,
throughout the State, the candidates supporting the Govermnent
policy were defeated by a majority aggregating many thousands of
votes, the successful Government candidates numbering 60, and their
successful opponents numbering 660.
8. Previously to 1917, the normal nmnber of members of the Legis-
lative Council was 40, and the maxinmm 45. The present Government
increased appointments to 50, and on 19th February, 1920, the Lieuten-
ant-Governor (just previously a Member of the Ministry and Speaker
of the Assembly, appointed by the Government) suddenly resorted to
wholesale swamping. Fourteen new Legislative Councillors were
!25
appointed under a certain pledge, (a fopy of wliich accompanies this
our Petition, and is marked " Appendix B "), and with the object of
forcing through botli Houses re|)udiati)rv measures which tlie (govern-
ment did not choose to put before electors under the provisions of the
Parliamentary Bills lieferendum Act of 1908, and which, therefore,
could only be passed by doing violence to the Constitution. {See
Keith's Responsible Government, p. 597 : and Keith's Imperial
Unity, p. 100.)
9. With a working majority of one in the Assembly and with a Council
flooded by j)artisan nominees, the Government passed, during the latter
half of last month, several drastic and repudiatory measures, and have
now terminated a brief session l)y forcing through both Houses a " Bill
to Amend the Constitution bv Abolishing the Legislative Council."
Such action is, it is submitted, not government by British constitutional
rule, but misgovernment by gross abuse of emergency powers.
10. The proposed Abolition Bill, Your Majesty's Petitioners are so
informed, has been reserved under The Australian States Constitution
Act of 1907, 7 Ed. VII C. 7 (Keith p. 431) for the signification of Your
Majesty's pleasure thereon.
1 1. The arl)itrary actions of the ])resent Government have evoked
disa})proval throughout the State, and public meetings and conferences
of protest are being held, e.r/., as in "Appendix C," attached hereto.
The date of the next general election is uncertain. Parliament has two
years to run, and the present Government, by a })olicy of long recess,
are endeavouring to live out their full term on a majority of one, and
may even force a Bill through the Assembly to extend their own term
to five years or longer.
12. The thirty-five members of His Majesty's Opposition in the
Legislative Assembly, representing a substantial majority of the electors
of Queensland, are in favour of a retention of the bicameral system.
Many of the votes recorded for abolition were not given out of hostility
to a second chamber, but on account of the partisan character of the
latest appointees.
13. On 8th December, 1915, a Kesolutiou embodying constitutional
and political arguments against the proposed abolition of the Council
was passed by the Legislative Council, and forwarded to His Excellency
the Governor for transmission to the Kight Honourable the Secretary
of State for the Colonies for submission to His ^lajestv the King. {See
Queensland " Hansard/" Vol. CXXII, pp. 2717 to -2719.)
14. Your Petitioners desire to as.'^ociate themselves with the
arguments expressed in the said Resolution, and more especially desire
most humbly to submit these four present considerations :—
{a) That a majority of one member or any majority for Abolition
in the Legislative Assembly should not be ]>ermitted to
overturn a majority decision of 02.909 electors against
Abolition, at a specific Referendum.
26
(b) That since the electors of this State have already by a large
majority expressed their will on this matter, no farther
step should be taken or countenanced without again con-
sulting the electors of the State on this momentous issue.
(c) That the question of Abolition is not of domestic politics only,
but intimately affects the federal relationship with the
Commonwealth of Australia, and, it is humbly submitted,
is a matter also of Imperial concern. (Cf. Todd's Parlia-
mentary Government in the British Colonies, p. 700, et seq,
and Keith's Responsible Government in the Dominions,
Vol. II, pp. 569-599.)
(fl) That if the Legislative Council is abolished, all domestic
legislation and administration is at the mercy of any party
for the time being, who can command as at present a
majority of one in an Assembly of 72 members. There
is in Queensland no Federal veto or control over legislation
such as exists in Canada over provincial legislation by the
Dominion Government. {See British North America Act
of 1867, 30 Vic. c. 3. sections 91-95.)
Your Majesty's Petitioners therefore humbly pray that Your
Majesty may be graciously pleased to withhold the assent of the
Crown from the said " Bill to Amend the Constitution of Queensland
by Abolishing the Legislative Council."
And with profound affection for the Emi)ire, and continued loyalty
to the Throne and Person of its Gracious Sovereign,
Your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray, etc.
Robert Philp.
Arthur H. Whittingham.
A. Cowley.
Geo. Story.
P. J. Leahy.
E. W. H. FowLES.
Brisbane,
Queensland,
November 14///. 1921.
27
" AlTENDlX A."
Queensland Government Gazette.
Published by Authority.
(Ri'gistt'ied at the General Post Office, Brisbane, for Transmission by
Post as a Newspaper.)
\'()l. CIX.] Wednesday. IOtii October, 1917. [No. 118.
Ho^jK .Secretary's Department.
Bri-sbane,
lOtk October, lUlT.
I. the Honourable John Huxham. Home Secretary of Queensland,
do, in pursuance of the j)rovisions of " The Parliamentary BiUt;
Ref(rendum Act of 1908." hereby notify that the endorsement upon
the Writ, and the particulars furnished under Form 22 of the Regula-
tions under the said Act, showing the result of the Referendum Poll
taken on the fifth day of May. 1917. by William James Gall. Esq..
the Returning Ofticer duly appointe<l under the said Act. on the Bill
entitled "' A Bill to Amend the Constitution of Queensland by
Abolishing the Legislative Council,'" are as set forth in the Schedule
hereto.
John Huxham.
The Schedule.
Copi/ of Endorsement upon the Writ.
I hereby certify that tlic result of the Referendum Poll taken by
virtue of the within Writ, on the fifth day of May, 1917. is as follows : —
Number of votes recorded for the Bill entitled " A Bill
to Amend the C\)nstitution of Queensland by
Abolishing the Legislative Council " .. .. 116,190
>»'uml)er of votes recorded against the Bill eiititletl " A
Bill to Amend the Constitution of Queensland by
Abolishing the Legislative Council "* .. .. 179,105
William Gall, Returning Officer.
28
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