Law in Queensland

Laws

Laws are made to provide people with a set of guidelines by which to carry out their daily lives.

They cover almost everything we do, from driving a motor vehicle to attending school or going to a hotel. When we go water-skiing or to a park for a barbecue, for instance, some part of the law is being observed.

For example, there are regulations which say that boats towing a water-skier must have a driver and an observer. They are safety regulations and are meant to protect people.

There also are local council regulations, called by-laws. An example is littering by-laws which result in a fine if someone at that barbecue drops rubbish. This type of law is designed to protect our environment. Laws are drawn up to control such things as shopping hours and even the type of goods sold in certain shops at certain times. A chemist shop, for example, can open any time in Queensland, but a used-car yard is restricted to certain days and hours.

It is sometimes assumed that the Department of Justice and Attorney-General department implements all the state’s laws. This is not the case. Each government department implements the laws relating to its area of responsibility.

Every department has its spending examined by the Auditor-General each year. The Auditor-General is a statutory officer who looks carefully at everything a department has spent its money on. He compares this with the Acts and rules that Parliament has laid down for the running of that department. He is responsible directly to Parliament and reports to it every year.

Parliament

The three levels of government—federal, state and local—all help make our laws, by-laws and regulations.

The Parliament of Queensland is made up of the Governor (the Queen’s representative) and the Legislative Assembly (all the members of the Parliament).

Laws are made by Parliament. Ministers are each responsible for developing and implementing laws relating to their areas of responsibility. These areas are known collectively as a minister’s ‘portfolio’.

Queensland has only one house of Parliament. There is no house of review (or senate) as in other Australian states and at Commonwealth level. This means that a Bill can become law without having to pass through two houses of Parliament.

In Queensland the Parliament can make and change laws and the government can initiate the making of ‘rules’ to regulate those laws.

The difference between Parliament and the government is that Parliament is made up of members of all political parties, whereas the government is generally the party with the majority of members. Sometimes no single party has a majority in Parliament (more than half the seats) and therefore two or more parties may form a partnership, or ‘coalition’.

The party or group of parties that has more than half the votes in Parliament forms the government. This means they control the business of Parliament and run all the government departments. The largest party other than the government is called the opposition.

Governor

The Governor acts on the advice of the ministers, who are members of the government appointed by the Premier to take charge of various government departments. The Governor can ignore this advice and act on their own behalf, but this is very rare.

Ministers

Ministers belong to State Cabinet and each is responsible for one or more government departments. Ministers also have the responsibility to implement regulations.

For example, the Minister for Industrial Relations is responsible for the Holidays Act and can grant a holiday for a school or group of schools in a particular area at any time. He does not have to get approval from Parliament to do this because his right to do so is ‘built in’ to the Holidays Act. He would not use this right normally without approval of the Minister for Education. However, there are various Acts that Parliament has passed which make sure that government departments carry out their business in a proper manner and do not abuse their power.

In Queensland, the Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations is responsible for a range of agencies, including Legal Aid Queensland, the Electoral Commission and the Public Trustee, as well as the areas administered by our department. Our minister is responsible for laws relating to all these areas.

Making and changing laws

New laws are introduced and old ones changed or thrown out for a number of reasons. For example, the people may elect a new government, which means Parliament is suddenly controlled by a party with different ideas about many matters. A new Parliament will probably make many new laws, often as a result of promises that the new government members made to the people just before the election.

Even without a change of government, a minister may be persuaded by public opinion to introduce a new law or change an existing one.

This is how Parliament makes new laws or changes old ones:

1. A minister draws up a proposal for a new law or group of laws (this is called a Bill) and seeks approval from State Cabinet. The Bill has to fall within the minister’s area of responsibility.
2. If Cabinet approves, the Parliamentary Counsel (an expert on drafting legislation) prepares the Bill which is then presented to the Cabinet and all government members of Parliament.
3. If approved, it is then introduced into Parliament by the Minister for its ‘first reading’. At this stage the Bill is printed and copies distributed to all members of Parliament.
4. The Bill then proceeds through a ‘second reading’ (at which stage the minister gives details of what the Bill is intended to achieve in the community) and then the Committee Stage. At this point, the Bill is discussed and debated by members, and sometimes changes or amendments are suggested and may be included in the Bill.
5. The ‘third reading’ then takes place. This does not usually involve any further debate, and the Parliament then votes. Once the government gets the Bill through all stages in Parliament, it is sent to the Governor for royal assent (agreement by the Queen’s representative). When assent is given, the Bill becomes the law and then, instead of being called a Bill, it is described as an Act of Parliament.