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Why did the framers of the Constitution make the referendum process so difficult?. DO NOW. How to change the Constitution. Recipe Number One Using the ‘Referendum’ process. Ingredients. One Commonwealth Constitution One referendum proposal Two houses of Parliament The voting public
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Why did the framers of the Constitution make the referendum process so difficult? DO NOW
How to change the Constitution Recipe Number One Using the ‘Referendum’ process
One Commonwealth Constitution • One referendum proposal • Two houses of Parliament • The voting public • What other essential ingredients are missing? Ingredients
Step one: Begin with the Commonwealth Parliament. Section 128 of the Constitution tells us that only the Commonwealth Parliament has the power to initiate a referendum proposal Method
Step two: The proposed change is introduced to the House of Representatives OR the Senate as a Bill
Step 3: The proposal/Bill must be passed in the same form by BOTH houses of Parliament
Step four: The proposal is put to the voting public (either a ‘Yes’ or a ‘No’ vote)
Step five: The proposal must be passed by a majority of voters nationally AND a majority of voters in a majority of states (4 out of 6 must agree with the proposal)
Step six: The Governor General gives Royal Assent to the proposal/Bill
Step 7: A change is made to the Constitution (by either deleting or inserting certain words) Voila! Buon appetite!
A successful Referendum results in a change to the Constitution
No agreement between the two houses and the referendum proposal lapses (expires) • Proposal is not passed by a majority of voters • Proposal is not passed by a majority of states (at least 4 out of 6 states) What went wrong?