Federalism

Analysis and Comment (17)

M3j2fdgk-1371005317
National parks make up a lot of our landmass, but change is needed if they’re to protect it. Flickr/Paolo Rosa

Making national parks truly national

By Corey Bradshaw; Emma Johnston, and Euan Ritchie, Deakin University

Australia boasts over 500 national parks covering 28 million hectares of land, or about 3.6% of Australia. You could be forgiven for thinking we’re doing well in the biodiversity-conservation game. But…
Snbb39d5-1369705365
Western Australia remains the only state to have attempted to secede from the Australian federation, passing a referendum in favour in 1933. AAP/Adam Gartrell

Breaking up is hard to do: why Western Australia would find it difficult to divorce Canberra

By Narelle Miragliotta, Monash University

Gina Rinehart’s father Lang Hancock was a big proponent of Western Australia seceding from the Australian federation, and every time the latest figures on GST distributions are released, sympathetic sentiments…
V58qdsf7-1368767421
Water is in short supply and high demand in Australia: who should have the final say on its use?

Regulating water: debate swirls around Commonwealth’s role

By Chris McGrath

The release of a Senate report into a Commonwealth water trigger marks another chapter in a debate that has simmered and bubbled for 30 years in Australia. The report recommends that the main Commonwealth…
7dvbrmp4-1367210924
The Gillard government’s Gonski reforms have a long way to go before reaching a school near you. AAP Image/Alan Porritt

Budget blowouts and states wrangles: where to now on Gonski?

By Stephen Lamb, University of Melbourne

Last week NSW signed up to the Gillard government’s proposed changes to school funding – a deal that would see a new funding model based on the Gonski review and an injection of A$5 billion into NSW schools…
Cg2ggbtd-1362029695
Tony Abbott has been quiet on the subject of federalism recently. AAP/Alan Porritt

Grattan on Friday: Abbott, a centralist at heart

By Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Suddenly, everyone seems to be unloading about the state of federal-state relations and the problems of the Council of Australian Governments. COAG, where the prime minister, premiers and chief ministers…
Bf9czzxz-1360043470
The practice of Australian federalism is totally removed from the model designed by our founders: we desperately need a national debate about the rationale and structure of federation. bowenmurphy/Flickr

Canary in the mine of federalism: Tasmania is singing for Australia

By Richard Eccleston, University of Tasmania

Is Tasmania at a tipping point? Over the next two weeks The Conversation, in conjunction with Griffith REVIEW and the University of Tasmania, is publishing a series of provocations. Our authors ask where…
Kgv4rfs3-1354837887
Weakening environmental protections would make it harder to do business in Australia. Dave Hunt/AAP

Cutting ‘green tape’ won’t make a more prosperous Australia

By David Ritter, University of Western Australia

Proposed changes to Australia’s national environmental law, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act (EPBC) 1999, appear to have been shelved. The politics have shifted rapidly. Ultimately, the…
X548q52y-1354583530
As a World Heritage Area, Springbrook National Park gets additional protection from the Commonwealth. What if Queensland were in charge of its future? Shaun Johnston

Commonwealth should keep final say on environment protection

By Lee Godden, University of Melbourne; Jacqueline Peel, University of Melbourne, and Lisa Caripis, University of Melbourne

Almost 30 years ago, the Australian High Court gave the Commonwealth Government constitutional authority to make laws protecting the national environment. Now, a Council of Australian Governments (CoAG…
V99xg88b-1351472975
Changes to Murray Darling policy are a big win for SA, but NSW and Victoria aren’t impressed. Feral Arts

Murray-Darling: why Australia needs intergovernmental cooperation

By Shipra Chordia

On Friday, the Prime Minister announced that the Commonwealth will spend $1.7 billion to increase water return to the Murray-Darling River by a further 450 gigalitres. The announcement is a big win for…
Cmdyhym2-1346725029
Prime Minister Julia Gillard speaking at the National Press Club yesterday signalled serious changes to the states' role in education. AAP Image/Alan Porritt

The real agenda behind Gillard’s Gonski response

By Richard Teese, University of Melbourne

After the government’s response to the Gonski report on schools funding, it’s worth looking at not only what was in the announcement but what wasn’t. Prime Minister Julia Gillard offered no indication…
Hjhjyd2g-1346646423
Victoria’s planning laws pose a barrier to achieving national renewable energy goals. Hepburn Wind

Victorian wind farm laws: a blow to Australia’s clean energy future?

By Lisa Caripis, University of Melbourne and Anne Kallies, University of Melbourne

It’s been just over one year since the Baillieu government introduced the second part of its far-reaching planning law reforms to restrict the development of wind farms in Victoria. The results are an…
Qdbnwtmv-1344905503
With so many vested interests, opposition to the plan will likely last a long time yet. SA Eco Images Pty Ltd

Resisting the Murray-Darling Basin Plan – in whose interest?

By Lin Crase, La Trobe University

As the final version of the Murray-Darling Plan heads to Parliament there seems little doubt that the debate will continue. The sticking point remains the volume of water to be returned to the environment…
Gpn5cs7q-1338937550
Minister Tony Burke is slowing down coal development in Queensland, but there’s more to it than saving turtles. Landfeldt/Flickr

Commonwealth and Queensland face off over coal and Great Barrier Reef

By Colin Hunt

The halt in the Alpha Coal Project approval process shows the Commonwealth is taking very seriously UNESCO’s recent report threatening downgrading the status of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area…
Qv4hzhmq-1334714252
Campbell Newman, Barry O'Farrell and Julia Gillard enjoy a laugh at last week’s COAG meeting. AAP/Lukas Coch

COAG: the theatre and the reality

By Jenny Menzies, Griffith University

The rituals before a Council of Australian Governments meeting tend to outweigh the substance and outcomes from the meeting. By playing the parochial card before the meeting, state premiers sell themselves…
R8hy24pq-1328751638-1328752462
Don’t mention the F-word: the states are unenthusiastic about COAG’s brand of managerial federalism. AAP

COAG sounds off on harmony, but are the states listening?

By Andrew Lynch

In our desire to “end the blame game”, do we expect too much from the various governments in Australia’s federal system? This is the question prompted by the release of the third report by the Council…

Participants (114)