Government of Tasmania
Encyclopedia
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
has been a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and the Australian Constitution regulates its relationship with the Commonwealth.
Under the Australian Constitution, Tasmania ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas. In practice, however, the independence of the Australian states has been greatly eroded by the increasing financial domination of the Commonwealth.
Executive and Judicial Powers
Tasmania is governed according to the principles of the Westminster SystemWestminster System
The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
, a form of parliamentary government based on the model of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Legislative power rests with the Parliament of Tasmania
Parliament of Tasmania
The Parliament of Tasmania consists of the Tasmanian Legislative Council, Tasmanian House of Assembly and the Monarch represented by the Governor of Tasmania....
, which consists of the Crown, represented by the Governor of Tasmania, and the two Houses, the Tasmanian Legislative Council
Tasmanian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the House of Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Hobart...
and the Tasmanian House of Assembly
Tasmanian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House...
.
Executive power rests formally with the Executive Council, which consists of the Governor and senior ministers. In practice executive power is exercised by the Premier of Tasmania and the Cabinet, who are appointed by the Governor, but who hold office by virtue of their ability to command the support of a majority of members of the House of Assembly.
Judicial power is exercised by the Supreme Court of Tasmania
Supreme Court of Tasmania
The Supreme Court of Tasmania is the highest State court in the Australian State of Tasmania. In the Australian court hierarchy, the Supreme Court of Tasmania is in the middle level, and is able to both receive appeals from lower courts, and able to be appealed from.The ordinary sittings of the...
and a system of subordinate courts, but the High Court of Australia
High Court of Australia
The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. It has both original and appellate jurisdiction, has the power of judicial review over laws passed by the Parliament of Australia and the parliaments of the States, and...
and other federal courts have overriding jurisdiction on matters which fall under the ambit of the Australian Constitution.
Current Ministry
The current ministry of Tasmania comprises the following seven Labor and two Greens members:| Office | Minister |
|---|---|
Premier Treasurer Minister for the Arts |
Lara Giddings Lara Giddings Larissa Tahireh "Lara" Giddings is an Australian politician and the 44th and current Premier of Tasmania since January 2011... , MP |
Deputy Premier Minister for Primary Industries and Water Minister for Energy and Resources Minister for Local Government Minister for Planning Minister for Racing |
Bryan Green Bryan Green Bryan Alexander Green is a Tasmanian Labor politician and member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly in the electorate of Braddon. In July 2006 he was forced to step down as Deputy Premier and Minister for Economic Development and Resources pending an enquiry into deal made with the TCC... , MP |
Minister for Tourism Minister for Hospitality Minister for Veterans' Affairs |
Scott Bacon Scott Bacon Scott Bacon is an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party member for Denison in the Tasmanian House of Assembly since 2010. He was educated at Cosgrove High School, Elizabeth College and the University of Tasmania, where he studied Economics... , MP |
Minister for Education and Skills Minister for Corrections and Consumer Protection Minister for Sustainable Transport and Alternative Energy |
Nick McKim, MP |
Minister for Infrastructure Minister for Economic Development Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology Minister for Police and Emergency Management Minister for Workplace Relations |
David O'Byrne David O'Byrne David O'Byrne is an Australian trade unionist and politician. A prominent union leader prior to entering politics and the brother of fellow politician Michelle O'Byrne, he has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly since 2010, representing the electorate of... , MP |
Minister for Health Minister for Children Minister for Sport and Recreation Leader of Government Business |
Michelle O'Byrne Michelle O'Byrne Michelle Anne O'Byrne is Australian politician for the Australian Labor Party. She was elected in the 2006 state election to the Tasmanian House of Assembly in the division of Bass... , MP |
Minister for Human Services Minister for Community Development Minister for Climate Change Minister for Aboriginal Affairs |
Cassy O'Connor Cassy O'Connor Cassandra Stanwell O'Connor is an Australian politician, who has been a Tasmanian Greens member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly since 2008, representing the electorate of Division of Denison.... , MP |
Attorney-General Minister for Justice Minister for Environment, Parks and Heritage |
Brian Wightman Brian Wightman Brian Neal Wightman is an Australian politician. Of Northern Irish descent, he was educated in Launceston, Tasmania. He studied to be a teacher at the University of Tasmania before teaching at George Town... , MP |
Leader of Government Business in the Legislative Council |
Doug Parkinson, MLC |
House of Assembly
Tasmania's House of Assembly is the lower house of the Tasmanian parliament. There are five House of Assembly divisions: Bass, Braddon, Denison, Franklin and Lyons. These divisions have the same boundaries as the five Commonwealth House of Representatives divisions for Tasmania. There are twenty-five members of the House of Assembly, with five members elected for each of the divisions using the Hare-Clark voting system of multi-member proportional representation. Members are elected for a term of up to 4 years.| Party | Seats held | Percentage of Assembly | Current House of Assembly | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia... |
10 | 40% | ||||||||||||||
| Liberal Party of Australia Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office... |
10 | 40% | ||||||||||||||
| Tasmanian Greens Tasmanian Greens The Tasmanian Greens are a political party in Australia which developed from numerous environmental campaigns in Tasmania, including the flooding of Lake Pedder and the Franklin Dam campaign... |
5 | 20% | ||||||||||||||
Legislative Council
Tasmania's Legislative Council is the upper house of the Tasmanian parliament. It has 15 members, each representing one of the following 15 electoral divisions: Apsley, Montgomery, Rosevears, Derwent, Murchison, Rowallan, Elwick, Nelson, Rumney, Huon, Paterson, Wellington, Mersey, Pembroke and Windermere. The boundaries of the current divisions are determined by the Legislative Council Redistribution Tribunal. Elections are conducted on a 6 year periodic cycle. Elections for 3 members are held in May one year, with elections for 2 members held in May the following year and so on.| Party | Seats held | Current Legislative Council | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia... |
3 | |||||||||||
| Liberal Party of Australia Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office... |
1 | |||||||||||
| Independents Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... |
11 | |||||||||||
Counting is currently underway after upper house elections were held on 7 May 2011 in the two Labor-held seats of Rumney
Electoral division of Rumney
The Electoral division of Rumney is one of the 15 electorates or 'seats' in the Tasmanian Legislative Council . The division is located in Southern Tasmania to the east of the division of Pembroke....
and Derwent
Electoral division of Derwent
The Electoral division of Derwent is one of the fifteen electorates or 'seats' in the Tasmanian Legislative Council. It is situated in the south of the state and is named after the Derwent River.The last boundary redistribution occurred in 2008...
and independent-held Launceston. While the count remains tight and all three seats remain too close to call, the most likely scenario is that Labor retains Derwent and an independent replaces the retiring independent in Launceston, while in Rumney, Labor's Lin Thorp
Lin Thorp
Lin Estelle Thorp was an Australian Labor Party politician and member of the Tasmanian Legislative Council in the Hobart based division of Rumney from 1999 until 2011. She was defeated by Tony Mulder at the elections held on 7 May 2011.Thorp was born in Hobart, Tasmania...
appears to have been defeated by independent Liberal candidate Tony Mulder.
Parliament House
Both houses meet since 1841 in Parliament House in the Hobart suburb of Salamanca by the waterfront. The house was originally intended as a customs house but changed use when Tasmania achieved self-government.Tasmanian Government Departments
The current Tasmanian Government Departments consist of-
- Economic Development, Tourism and the ArtsDepartment of Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts (Tasmania)The Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts is the Tasmanian Government Department responsible for leading economic and industry development in Tasmania....
- Education
- Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts
Health and Human Services
Department of Health and Human Services (Tasmania)
The Department of Health and Human Services is the Tasmanian Government Department with responsibilities regarding Hospitals, Ambulances, Housing Tasmania, Primary Health and related areas.-Responsibility:...
(DHHS)
- Infrastructure, Energy and ResourcesDepartment of Infrastructure, Energy and ResourcesThe Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources is the department of the Government of Tasmania responsible for management of the state's infrastructure. It reports to several ministers including Jim Cox and Michael Aird....
(DIER) - Justice
- Police and Emergency Management
- Premier and Cabinet (DPAC)
- Primary Industries, Parks, Water and EnvironmentDepartment of Primary Industries and WaterThe Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment is the department of the Government of Tasmania responsible for supporting primary industry development, the protection of Tasmania's natural environment, effective land and water management and the protection of Tasmania's...
(DPIPWE) - Treasury and Finance
Local Government in Tasmania
Local Government elections are conducted under the Local Government Act using the Hare-Clark voting system of multi-member proportional representation. Elections for Mayor, Deputy Mayor and half the councillor positions are held during September and October in each uneven numbered year.Tasmania has twenty-nine local government areas. These include six cities (three in greater Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
, one covering each of Launceston
Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
, Burnie
Burnie, Tasmania
- Sport :Australian rules football is popular in Burnie. The city's team is the Burnie Dockers Football Club in the Tasmanian State League.Rugby union is also played in Burnie. The local club is the Burnie Rugby Union Club. They are the current Tasmanian Rugby Union Statewide Division Two Premiers...
and Devonport
Devonport, Tasmania
-Sport:The Devonport Football Club is an Australian Rules team competing in the Tasmanian Statewide League. The Devonport Rugby Club is a Rugby Union team competing in the Tasmanian Rugby Union Statewide League...
) and twenty-three municipalities. The largest council (by number of enrolled electors) is City of Launceston and the smallest council is Municipality of Flinders (which serves the Flinders Island
Flinders Island
Flinders Island may refer to:In Australia:* Flinders Island , in the Furneaux Group, is the largest and best known* Flinders Island * Flinders Island , in the Investigator Group* Flinders Island...
and surrounding islands, and has just over 800 electors)