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Table of Contents

Foreword to the second edition
Foreword to the first edition
Introduction

Part 1 The beginnings of the Westminster system

1 - The origins of responsible government

• United Kingdom
• Canada
• Australia
• New Zealand
  

2 - The development of the Westminster system

• United Kingdom
• Canada
• The Canadian provinces
• Australia
• The Australian states
• New Zealand
  

Part 2 The performance of the Westminster system parliaments in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, 1970-2000

3 - Choosing a government-lower houses as electoral colleges

• The US model
• A fair and decisive result?
• Distribution of electorates
• Voting systems
• Minority governments
• Public financial support to political parties for election campaigns
• Recall of members of parliament
• The power of parliament to ‘dismiss a ruler’
• Changes of prime minister
• How long a term?
• Fixed terms for lower houses
• Upper houses forcing elections
• The role of the head of state
• Conclusions
  

4 - The executive government

• Executive councils
• Power of the prime minister
• Size of the ministry
• Selection of the ministry
• Ministerial membership of parliament
• Cabinet committees
• Ministerial administration
• The executive government by-passing the parliament
• Obligations of ministers
• Dismissals of ministers
• Resignations of ministers
• Extra-parliamentary political bodies
• Appointment of judges
• Conclusions
  

5 - Curiously ill-defined-the role of the head of state

• Approval of legislation
• Dissolution of parliament
• Appointment of a prime minister
• Dismissal of a prime minister
• Summoning of parliament
• Codification of the head of state’s powers
• Appointment and dismissal of the head of state
• Conclusions
  

6 - Passing laws-lower houses as legislatures

• The ideal legislature
• Legislative procedures
• Handling of public bills originated by the government
• Minority governments
• The effectiveness of parliamentary deliberations on bills
• Public bills moved by private members
• Private bills
• Other types of bills
• Government failure to proclaim bills passed by the parliament
• Legislation by press release
• Adequate sitting days for consideration of bills
• Limiting debate on legislation
• Improving the standard of second reading debates
• By-passing the legislature
• Policy statements made outside the parliament
• Conclusions
  

7 - The other roles of lower houses

• Committees of inquiry
• ‘Departmental’ or ‘subject’ committees
• Question time
• The Speaker
• Questions requiring written answers
• Debates initiated by the government
• Debates initiated by the opposition
• Censure motions
• Private members’ bills and motions
• Petitions
• Research assistance for members
• Broadcasting parliamentary proceedings
• Conclusions
  

8 - Upper houses

• Composition of upper house memberships
• Representation of community opinion
• The possibility of abolition
• Ministers in upper houses
• Upper houses as legislatures
• Deadlocks between the two houses over legislation
• Monitoring of government administration
• Question times
• Questions asking for written answers
• Orders for ministers to produce government documents
• Debates
• An upper house forcing an election
• Conclusions
  

9 - Parliamentary control of delegated legislation

• The ideal legislature
• United Kingdom
• Canada
• The Canadian provinces
• Australia
• The Australian states
• New Zealand
• Conclusions
  

10 - What parliaments cannot do

• Freedom of information legislation
• Royal commissions and commissions of inquiry
• Ombudsmen
• The audit function
• A bill of rights
  

Part 3 The future of the Westminster system

11 - What is wrong with an elective dictatorship?

• Responsibility to the electorate
• Answerability to parliament
• Appointments
• Foreign policy and defence
• Control over the legislative process
  

12 - Where do we go from here?

• The House of Representatives
• The Senate
• The executive government
• The Governor-General
• The results of the changes
• How could the reforms be achieved?
  
  

Bibliography

Footnotes

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