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| Constitution Act 1986 | |
 Parliament of New Zealand |
|
| Long title/Purpose | An Act to reform the constitutional law of New Zealand, to bring together into one enactment certain provisions of constitutional significance, and to provide that the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 of the Parliament of the United Kingdom shall cease to have effect as part of the law of New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Dates | |
| Date passed | 13 December 1986 |
| Commencement | 1 January 1987 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amendments | 1987, 1999, 2005 |
| Related legislation | New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, the Electoral Act 1993 |
| Status: Current legislation | |
The Constitution Act 1986 is the principal formal statement of New Zealand's Constitution.
It severed the last remaining ties of New Zealand to the British Parliament.
Contents |
Background
1984 constitutional crisis
After the 1984 election, there was an awkward transfer of power from the outgoing Third National government to the new Fourth Labour government in the midst of a financial crisis. Outgoing Prime Minister Robert Muldoon was initially unwilling to accept instruction from the incoming Prime Minister elect David Lange to devalue the currency. Eventually he relented, but only after his own party caucus had threatened to replace him.
An Official Committee on Constitutional Reform was set up by the Labour Government to review New Zealand's constitutional law, and the Constitution Act resulted from two reports by this Committee. The issue of the transfer of power from incumbent to elect governments (and hence Prime Ministers) was not resolved by this Act however, and the transfer of executive powers remains an unwritten constitutional convention, known as the 'caretaker convention'.
Committee's report
The Official Committee on Constitutional Reform reported back to Parliament in February 19861. The Committee recommended that New Zealand adopt an Act to restate the various constitutional provisions in a single enactment.
Parliamentary process
A Bill was introduced into Parliament in mid-1986, and was passed unanimously with the support of both Labour and National on the 13 December 1986. The act came into force on 1 January 1987. Amendments were passed in 1987 and 1999.
Effect
The Act repealed the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, renamed the General Assembly as the "House of Representatives" and removed the right of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to legislate at the consent of the New Zealand Parliament.
Key provisions
The Act consists of four main parts:
Part I: The Sovereign
- The Head of state of the United Kingdom per the Act of Settlement 1701 is the Head of state in New Zealand, known as the Queen of New Zealand, and the Sovereign's representative in New Zealand is the Governor General. (section 2)
Part II: The Executive
- Ministers of the Crown and members of Executive Council to be, with some timing limitations, Members of Parliament (section 6)
Part III: The Legislature
- The House of Representatives noted as the same entity established by the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 (section 10)
- Oath of allegiance to be taken by members of Parliament (section 11)
- Rules relating to the election of speaker and speakers role upon dissolution or expiration of Parliament set out (section 12, section 13)
- Parliament shall consist of the Sovereign in right of New Zealand (the Queen) and the House of Representatives (section 14)
- Parliament to have full power to make laws (section 15)
- Term of Parliament to be 3 years unless sooner dissolved (section 17)
- Parliament shall meet not later than 6 weeks after the day fixed for the return of the writs for that election (section 19)
Parliament and Public Finance
- Bills providing for the appropriation of public money or for the imposition of any charge upon public money not to be passed unless recommended to the House of Representatives by the Crown (section 21)
- Not lawful for Crown, except by or under an Act of Parliament to levy a tax, to raise a loan from any person or to spend any public money (section 22)
Part IV: The Judiciary
- Rules relating to protection of Judges against removal from office set out (section 23)
- Salary of a Judge of the High Court not to be reduced during the Judge's term
- Section 21, covering bills appropriating public money, was repealed.
Entrenchment
Only section 17 of the Act (which says that the term of Parliament is "3 years from the day fixed for the return of the writs issued for the last preceding general election of members of the House of Representatives, and no longer.) is entrenched, by section 268 of the Electoral Act 1993. This provision requires that any amendment to section 17 can only be made with a majority of three-quarters (75%) of all votes cast in Parliament, or by a referendum. However, section 268 of the Electoral Act 1993 itself is not entrenched - which means that Parliament could repeal the section itself, and amend section 17 of the Act. Thus, the provision is said to only be 'singly entrenched'. Some academics, including Sir Geoffrey Palmer2 argue that the Act should be totally entrenched.
United Kingdom
The Act severed the last remaining ties of New Zealand to the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act replaced the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 and repealed the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1947 and removed the ability for the United Kingdom to pass laws for New Zealand with the consent of New Zealand's parliament.
The last British Act of Parliament passed on behalf of the New Zealand Parliament was the New Zealand Constitution (Amendment) Act 1947 which was passed to allow the New Zealand Parliament to alter certain parts of the 1852 Act. The British Act allowed New Zealand to abolish the New Zealand Legislative Council, a body entrenched in the original 1852 Act.
- See also: Referendums in New Zealand
See also
External links
References
- ^ Official Committee on Constitutional Reform: Reports Department of Justice, Wellington February 1986
- ^ Bridled Power by Sir Geoffrey and Matthew Palmer, Oxford University Press, 2001, page 22
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 3 January 2009, at 12:47.
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