Alice :)

Explanatory Paragraph

The Constitution is a formal document that shows how Australia is run as a

country and in order to change it, a national vote must be held, called a
referendum. The Constitution is structured with eight chapters, which describe
how Australia must be run, what laws can be passed, how the Constitution can
be changed, and so on (W1). There are three main powers that the
Constitution is structured around: the Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary
(W6). The Legislature handles making the laws of the country and supplying
the necessary funds to run the government. The Judiciary is in charge of using
the Constitution and other laws to interpret cases that are brought before
them. (W6). The Executive manages the application of public policy, which is
funded by the legislative branch (W6). In other words, the Legislature consists
of the Parliament, the Executive is made up of the King, Prime Minister, and
Ministers, and the Judiciary is made up of the High Court and other federal
courts (W7). These three separate powers exist so that they can do checks and
balances on each other, and so one doesn’t become too powerful.
Additionally, a referendum is when Australia has a national vote on whether
something should be changed in the Constitution. It can be changed to meet
the country’s needs and to reflect the changing times. The change first has to
be put through the parliament, where it is approved as a bill so that it can be
voted upon. For the referendum to be successful, a double majority has to
occur. This is when the majority of people vote ‘yes’ on their ballot paper
across the country, as well as the majority of people in at least four states
(W1). Consequently, only a few referendums have been successful since a
double majority is so difficult to achieve. One example of how the Constitution
might be changed is by responding to the issue of freedom of speech.
Currently, freedom of speech is not specifically protected by the Australian
Constitution. However, the High Court has held that this right does exist as part
of the features of a representative and responsible government (W8).
Nevertheless, some people argue that this legal definition is not sufficient
enough to protect such an important right and that an amendment to the
Constitution, through a referendum, is needed (W5).