1911 Australian referendum (Trade and Commerce)

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1911 Australian Trade and Commerce referendum
26 April 1911 (1911-04-26)
Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled —

"Constitution Alteration (Legislative Powers) 1910" ?
Results
Choice
 Votes %
Yes 483,356 39.42%
No 742,704 60.58%
Valid votes 1,226,060 98.33%
Invalid or blank votes 20,869 1.67%
Total votes 1,246,929 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 2,341,624 53.25%

The Constitution Alteration (Legislative Powers) Bill 1910,[1] was put to voters for approval in a referendum held in the 1911 referendums. The bill sought to alter the Australian Constitution to extend the Commonwealth power in respect of trade and commerce, the control of corporations, labour and employment and combinations and monopolies. All of the proposed changes were contained within the one question.

Question

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Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled 'Constitution Alteration (Legislative Powers) 1910'?

The proposal was to alter the text of section 51 of the Constitution to read as follows:[2]

51. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have Legislative power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to:

(i.) Trade and commerce with other countries, and among the States;
...
(xx.) Foreign corporations, and trading or financial corporations formed within the limits of the Commonwealth:
Corporations, including
(a) the creation, dissolution, regulation, and control of corporations;
(b) corporations formed under the law of a State (except any corporation formed solely for religious, charitable, scientific or artistic purposes, and not for the acquisition of gain by the corporation or its members), including their dissolution, regulation, and control ; and
(c) foreign corporations, including their regulation and control:
...
(xxxv.) Conciliation and arbitration for the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes extending beyond the limits of any one State:
Labour and employment, including
(a) the wages and conditions of labour and employment in any trade industry or calling; and
(b) the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes, including disputes in relation to employment on or about railways the property of any State':
...
(xl.) Combinations and monopolies in relation to the production, manufacture, or supply of goods or services.

Results

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The referendum was not approved by a majority of voters, and a majority of the voters was achieved in only one state, Western Australia.[3][4]

Result [4]
State Electoral roll Ballots issued For Against Informal
Vote % Vote %
New South Wales 868,194 384,188 135,968 36.11 240,605 63.89 7,396
Victoria 723,377 448,566 170,288 38.64 270,390 61.36 7,554
Queensland 293,003 162,135 69,552 43.75 89,420 56.25 3,002
South Australia 216,027 133,802 50,358 38.07 81,904 61.93 1,374
Western Australia 138,697 61,482 33,043 54.86 27,185 45.14 870
Tasmania 102,326 58,053 24,147 42.11 33,200 57.89 673
Total for Commonwealth 2,341,624 1,248,226 483,356 39.42 742,704 60.58 20,869
Results Obtained majority in one state and an overall minority of 259,348 votes. Not carried.

Discussion

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This was the first of many times that similar questions were asked at a referendum. On every occasion the public decided not to vest power in the Commonwealth over these matters.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Constitution Alteration (Legislative Powers) Bill 1910". Retrieved 22 April 2019 – via legislation.gov.au.
  2. ^ "Notification of the receipt of a Writ for a Referendum". Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. No. 17. 19 March 1911. pp. 759–60 – via www.legislation.gov.au.
  3. ^ "Result of the Referendum". Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. No. 49. 21 June 1911. p. 1579 – via www.legislation.gov.au.
  4. ^ a b c Handbook of the 44th Parliament (2014) "Part 5 - Referendums and Plebiscites - Referendum results". Parliamentary Library of Australia.
  5. ^ Huddart, Parker & Co Ltd v Moorehead [1909] HCA 36, (1909) 8 CLR 330

Further reading

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