2009 News

Victoria-Tasmania Branch President’s report to the 2009 Annual General Meeting of that branch.

The Western Australian Local Government Association succeeded in having Western Australia replace its PR-STV counting with plurality counting.

Letter in The Advertiser from ERSSA making the point that planned SA referendums should allow Lower House reform also.

British Columbia PR Referendum on 2009-05-12 reverses majority support of the 2005 referendum.

The 100th Anniversary of the first Hare-Clark elections for the whole of Tasmania – on 1909-04-30

Legislative Council Notice Paper for 2009-02-24 lists Motion No. 47 by Greens MLC Sue Pennicuik to introduce a Bill for an Act to amend Section 27A of Victoria’s Constitution Act 1975 to provide for a countback system for the filling of casual vacancies in the Victorian Legislative Council, and for other purposes. [Notice given on 3 February 2009].

The first indirect filling of a Victorian Upper House Casual Vacancy – since 1856 – which was by a Nominee of the ALP National Executive, in no way constitutes proper direct representation of voters.

Western Australian Liberal Government plans to revert to the crude plurality system that WA formerly used for its municipal elections.

See video and transcript of the case against the Rann Government’s apparent intentions to hold a referendum on the abolition of South Australia.s Legislative Council. It is the State Upper House that has used PR the longest.

[The video, by the Public Service Association, is a 54 megabyte .mpg file. It takes a while to download to memory, but the transcript is quick]