Clause
1. Short title
2. Act to extend to the Queen's successors
3. Proclamation of Commonwealth
4. Commencement of Act
5. Operation of the Constitution and laws
6. Definitions
7. [Repeal of Federal Council
Act]
8. [Application of Colonial Boundaries
Act]
9. The Constitution
[Assented to, and commenced, 9th July 1900]
[See General Comment on the "Covering Clauses"]
WHEREAS the people of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia, humbly relying on the blessing of Almighty God, [agreed in 1899 and 1900] to unite in one indissoluble Federal Commonwealth under the Crown, and under the Constitution hereby established:
And whereas it [was desired] to provide for the admission into the
Commonwealth of other Australasian Colonies and possessions of the Queen
[now independent Dominions of the British Commonwealth]:
[Recitals edited; see Comments]
[This Act was enacted by the Parliament of the United
Kingdom in 1900, and, so far as is now relevant, provides] as follows:-
[Enacting words edited; see Comment]
Short title
1. This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution
Act.
[Unaltered]
Act to extend to the Queen's successors
2.
[Edited; see Comment]
Proclamation of Commonwealth
3. [As authorised by this Act, Her Majesty Queen Victoria
declared] by proclamation [on 29th September 1900] that the people of New
South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania and Western
Australia [were to be] united in a Federal Commonwealth under the name of
the Commonwealth of Australia on and after [1st January 1901].
[Edited; see Comment]
Commencement of Act
4. The Commonwealth [was] established, and the Constitution of the
Commonwealth [took] effect, on and after the day so appointed.
[Edited; see Comment]
Operation of the Constitution and laws
5. This Act, and all laws made by the Parliament of the
Commonwealth under the Constitution, [are] binding on the courts, judges,
and people of every State and every part of the Commonwealth,
notwithstanding anything in the laws of any State.
[Edited; see Comment]
Definitions
6. "The Commonwealth" [means] the Commonwealth of Australia as
established under this Act.
"The States" [means the Original States] and such territories as may be admitted into or established by the Commonwealth as States; and each of such parts of the Commonwealth is called "a State".
"Original States" [means] such States as [were] part of the Commonwealth
at its establishment; [namely, New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania,
Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia].
[Edited; see Comment]
[Clauses 7, 8 deleted; see Comment]
Constitution
9. The Constitution of the Commonwealth [is] as follows:-
This Constitution is divided as follows:-
Chapter 1--The Parliament:
Part 1--General:
Part 2--The Senate:
Part 3--The House of Representatives:
Part 4--Both Houses of the Parliament:
Part 5--Powers of the Parliament:
Chapter 2--The Executive Government:
Chapter 3--The Judicature:
Chapter 4--Finance and Trade:
Chapter 5--The States:
Chapter 6--New States:
Chapter 7--Miscellaneous:
Chapter 8--Alteration of the Constitution.
The Schedule.
[Preliminary words edited; see brief Comment]
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Although the Constitution was drafted by Australians at a series of Constitutional Conventions, and adopted by referenda in each of the States, it was enacted into law as an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament. The Constitution itself appears as section 9 of the Act. Before that there are a few sections dealing with formalities and definitions, referred to as the "covering clauses" to avoid confusion with sections 1-9 of the Constitution itself. I have edited the covering clauses more freely than the text of the Constitution itself, changing their tense to turn them into a historical recitation of the way the Commonwealth began.
[Return to top of covering clauses]
The original form of these recitals is:
WHEREAS the people of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland; and Tasmania, humbly relying on the blessing of Almighty God, have agreed to unite in one indissoluble Federal Commonwealth under the Crown of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and under the Constitution hereby established:
And whereas it is expedient to provide for the admission into the Commonwealth of other Australasian Colonies and possessions of the Queen:
Note that Western Australia was not mentioned because it had not agreed to join the Commonwealth by the time that the Bill was presented to the United Kingdom Parliament. Clause 3 recognised the possibility that Western Australia might agree to join by the time that the commencement of the Act was proclaimed, and in fact this happened. I have updated the recitals by changing them into the past tense and including Western Australia.
The original form of the enacting words is the standard form of enactment of all Acts of the United Kingdom Parliament:
Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-
[Return to the enacting words]
This has been edited only by changing "shall extend" in the original form to "extend".
Her Majesty now has the separate style and title of Queen of Australia in relation to this country, and the Statute of Westminster 1931 declares that any alteration of the law of succession would require the assent of Dominion Parliaments. However, while clause 2 stands as law it asserts that whoever succeeds to the United Kingdom throne is automatically the King or Queen of Australia.
The original form is:
3. It shall be lawful for the Queen, with the advice of the Privy Council, to declare by proclamation that, on and after a day therein appointed, not being later than one year after the passing of this Act, the people of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, and Tasmania, and also, if Her Majesty is satisfied that the people of Western Australia have agreed thereto, of Western Australia, shall be united in a Federal Commonwealth under the name of the Commonwealth of Australia. But the Queen may, at any time after the proclamation, appoint a Governor-General for the Commonwealth.
This has been edited into a narrative of what actually happened. The final sentence meant that the first Governor-General could be appointed before the Commonwealth came into being, so that he could be in time for the celebration of the new Commonwealth. It has no continuing relevance, as further Governors-General are appointed under section 2.
The original form is:
4. The Commonwealth shall be established, and the Constitution of the Commonwealth shall take effect, on and after the day so appointed. But the Parliaments of the several colonies may at any time after the passing of this Act make any such laws, to come into operation on the day so appointed, as they might have made if the Constitution had taken effect at the passing of this Act.
The first sentence has been changed into past-tense narrative. The second sentence was only operative until the day of commencement of the Commonwealth.
The sentence shown has been edited by substituting "are" for "shall be".
The clause continues:
and the laws of the Commonwealth shall be in force on all British ships, the Queen's ships of war excepted, whose first port of clearance and whose port of destination are in the Commonwealth.
With the recognition of the equal status of Britain and its former colonies, and the Commonwealth's power to pass laws with extra-territorial effect, this part of the clause is now unnecessary.
The original form is:
6. "The Commonwealth" shall mean the Commonwealth of Australia as established under this Act.
"The States" shall mean such of the colonies of New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia, including the northern territory of South Australia, as for the time being are parts of the Commonwealth, and such colonies or territories as may be admitted into or established by the Commonwealth as States; and each of such parts of the Commonwealth shall be called "a State."
"Original States" shall mean such States as are parts of the Commonwealth at its establishment.
This was made more complicated than would otherwise have been necessary by uncertainty as to what colonies would become Original States. I have changed the definitions to the present tense and tidied up the definitions of "States" and "Original States". The express reference to New Zealand is hardly necessary; its possible entry to the Commonwealth was covered by the reference to "such colonies.. as may be admitted" in any case.
Clause 7 provides:
Repeal of Federal Council Act
7. The Federal Council of Australasia Act, 1885, is hereby repealed, but so as not to affect any laws passed by the Federal Council of Australasia and in force at the establishment of the Commonwealth.Any such law may be repealed as to any State by the Parliament of the Commonwealth, or as to any colony not being a State by the Parliament thereof.
There were only a few laws passed by the Federal Council and they have all been repealed. In any case the repeal of the Council's laws is within normal Commonwealth legislative power, which encompasses all of the powers that the Council had.
Application of Colonial Boundaries Act
8. After the passing of this Act the Colonial Boundaries Act, 1895, shall not apply to any colony which becomes a State of the Commonwealth; but the Commonwealth shall be taken to be a self-governing colony for the purposes of that Act.
The Colonial Boundaries Act 1895 recognised that the boundaries of the self- governing colonies should not be changed unilaterally by the British government. As to change of the State boundaries, see sections 111, 123 and 124. Now that the Commonwealth is a fully independent nation, its external boundaries are hardly subject to change by British decree or enactment.
[Return to space left by Clauses 7 & 8]
The only change is the substitution of "is" for the original "shall be".