New Zealand Parliament

History

Background

The New Zealand Parliament is modelled on the Westminster system of parliamentary representation, developed in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. This system can be traced back to the "Model Parliament" of 1295. Over the centuries, parliaments progressively limited the powers of the monarchy, resulting in what came to be known as constitutional monarchy. The Bill of Rights 1688 (which remains in force as received law in New Zealand) established a system where parliaments would be regularly elected. Among its provisions, it set out parliament's role in taxation and supply. The Bill of Rights also confirmed the absolute privilege for freedom of speech in parliament.

The British Government issued the Charter for Erecting the Colony of New Zealand on 16 November 1840. This established the Colony of New Zealand as a Crown colony separate from New South Wales on 3 May 1841. The charter created a Legislative Council, which consisted of the governor of New Zealand, the colonial secretary and colonial treasurer (who comprised the Executive Council), and three justices of the peace appointed by the governor. It had the power to issue ordinances (statutory instruments). However, Crown colonies were not self-governing. Many British settlers did not like the Legislative Council, and from the 1840s they wanted self-government.

The British Parliament passed the New Zealand Constitution Act 1846, which was intended to establish a General Assembly for the colony, consisting of a Governor-in-Chief, a House of Representatives and a Legislative Council. However, the new governor, George Grey, argued that the settlers could not be trusted to pass laws that would protect the interests of the Māori majority. Consequently the British Parliament passed the Government of New Zealand Act 1848, which suspended the establishment of the General Assembly for another five years.

Establishment

The New Zealand parliament was created by the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, an act of the British Parliament. The act established the General Assembly, later commonly known as Parliament, a bicameral legislature consisting of the governor of New Zealand, the House of Representatives (the lower house), and the Legislative Council (the upper house). The Council was formed by reconstituting the older Legislative Council. The members of the House were elected under the first-past-the-post (FPP) voting system, while those of the Council were appointed by the governor. The first members were sworn in on 24 May 1854 in Auckland.

The Constitution Act also conferred legislative power on New Zealand's provinces (originally six in number), each of which had its own elected provincial council. The councils were able to legislate for their provinces on most subjects. New Zealand was never a federation comparable to Canada or Australia; Parliament could legislate concurrently with the provinces on any matter, and in the event of a conflict, the law passed by Parliament would prevail. Over a twenty-year period, political power was progressively centralised and the provinces were abolished in 1876.

Legislative Council abolished

Initially, members of the Legislative Council were appointed for life, but from the 1890s they were appointed for renewable seven-year terms. This change, coupled with responsible government (whereby the premier advised the governor on Council appointments) and party politics, meant that by the 20th century, the government usually controlled the Council as well as the House, and the passage of bills through the upper house became a mere formality. The Legislative Council Abolition Act 1950 brought the Council to an end, effective on 1 January 1951, making the New Zealand legislature unicameral. At the end the Council had fifty-four members, including its speaker. It sat for the last time on 1 December 1950.

Modern independent legislature

The New Zealand Parliament was originally subordinate to the British Parliament, the supreme legislative authority for the entire British Empire, although, in practice, Britain's role was minimal from the 1890s. The New Zealand Parliament received progressively more control over New Zealand affairs through the passage of Imperial (British) laws such as the Colonial Laws Validity Act 1865, constitutional amendments, and an increasingly hands-off approach by the British government. In 1947, the New Zealand Parliament passed the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act, and the British Parliament passed the New Zealand Constitution Amendment Act 1947, giving the New Zealand Parliament legislative sovereignty – unrestricted power to make New Zealand's laws – and the ability to regulate its own composition. In 1973 a further amendment, the New Zealand Constitution Amendment Act 1973, expanded the territorial jurisdiction of New Zealand's parliament.

The Constitution Act 1986 finally removed the power of the British Parliament to pass laws affecting New Zealand (which was by then only with New Zealand's consent), restating the few remaining provisions of the 1852 Act, consolidating the legislation establishing Parliament. It also officially replaced the name "General Assembly" with "Parliament", which was already the term popularly used.

Proposals for a senate

In September 1950, the National government of Sidney Holland set up a constitutional reform committee chaired by Ronald Algie to consider an alternative second chamber. A report produced by the committee in 1952 proposed a nominated senate, with 32 members, appointed by leaders of the parties in the House of Representatives according to the parties' strength in that House. Senators would serve for three-year terms, and be eligible for reappointment. The senate would have the power to revise, initiate or delay legislation, to hear petitions, and to scrutinise regulations and Orders in Council, but the proposal was rejected by the prime minister and by the Labour opposition, which had refused to nominate members to the committee.

After the 1990 election, the National government of Jim Bolger proposed the establishment of an elected senate, thereby reinstating a bicameral system, and a Senate Bill was drafted. Under the bill, the senate would have 30 members, elected by STV from six senatorial districts, four in the North Island and two in the South Island. Like the former Legislative Council it would not have powers to amend or delay money bills. The intention was to include a question about a senate in the second referendum on electoral reform. Voters would be asked whether or not they wanted a senate, in the event that a new voting system was rejected. However, following objections from the Labour opposition, which derided it as a red herring, and other supporters of the mixed-member proportional representation system, the senate question was removed by the Select Committee on Electoral Reform.

In 2010, the New Zealand Policy Unit of the Centre for Independent Studies proposed a senate in the context of the 2011 referendum on MMP. They proposed a proportionally-elected upper house made up 31 seats elected using a proportional list vote by region, with the House of Representatives elected by FPP and consisting of 79 seats.

Composition

The New Zealand parliament, when created in 1852, consisted of the governor of New Zealand, the Legislative Council, and the House of Representatives. The Legislative Council was abolished at the end of 1950. The New Zealand Parliament now statutorily consists of the monarch of New Zealand, who is represented by the governor-general of New Zealand, and the House of Representatives.

Monarch and viceregal representative

The monarch of New Zealand – currently King Charles III, represented in New Zealand by the governor-general, currently Dame Cindy Kiro – is one of the components of Parliament. This results from the role of the monarch to sign into law (i.e. give royal assent to) the bills that have been passed by the House of Representatives. MPs must make an oath or affirmation of allegiance to the monarch before they may take their seat, and the official opposition is traditionally dubbed His Majesty's Loyal Opposition.

House of Representatives

The House of Representatives was established as a lower house. Since 1951 it has been the Parliament's sole house. Parliamentary elections have been using the mixed-member proportional (MMP) system, a hybrid of first-past-the-post and closed party-list proportional representation, since 1996. The House consists of 120 members of Parliament (MPs), elected to a three-year term. There are 71 MPs representing single-member electorates of roughly the same population, while the remainder are list MPs. These MPs assemble to represent the people, pass laws and supervise the work of government. Members also form select committees of the House, appointed to deal with particular areas or issues.

Ministers in the New Zealand Government are drawn from amongst the members of the House of Representatives (with the possible exception of brief periods following an election). The government of the day, and by extension the prime minister, must achieve and maintain the support of the House in order to gain and remain in power. The Government is dependent on Parliament to implement its legislative agenda, and has always required the House's approval to spend money.

Legislative Council

The Legislative Council was part of the parliament until it was abolished at the end of 1950. The original Legislative Council was created by the 1840 Charter for Erecting the Colony of New Zealand. With the passing of the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, it was reconstituted as the upper house of the General Assembly. The Council was intended to scrutinise and amend bills passed by the House of Representatives, although it could not initiate legislation or amend money bills. Despite occasional proposals for an elected Council, members of the Legislative Council (MLCs) were appointed by the governor, generally on the recommendation of the prime minister. It was eventually decided that the Council was having no significant impact on New Zealand's legislative process; its final sitting was on 1 December 1950.

The Parliament has not had an upper house since the Council was abolished, though there have been occasional suggestions to create one. The Legislative Council Chamber continues to be used during the Opening of Parliament. This is in keeping with the British tradition in which the monarch is barred from entering the lower house.

Parliamentary sovereignty

The New Zealand Parliament has legislative supremacy or parliamentary sovereignty. It is able to legislate on any matter, and it can legislate without any formal restriction. It is not constrained by any supreme law, as codified constitutions are in some countries, as New Zealand has no such law; laws of a constitutional nature, such as the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, are not supreme laws. It is also not constrained by any federal division of powers. Acts of Parliament are not justiciable – they cannot be challenged by the judiciary or struck down, neither because they are unconstitutional, nor because they are contrary to a federal division of powers.

New Zealand has entrenched provisions, which cannot be changed by a simple majority in the House of Representatives, in only one statute, the Electoral Act 1993. The six entrenched provisions cover the length of the parliamentary term, how the country should be divided into electorates, the make-up of the Representation Commission, which decides on the electorates, the voting age, and the method of voting (secret ballot). Changing these provisions requires either a 75% vote in the House or a majority vote in a referendum. The entrenchment mechanism is not entrenched itself, so it could be repealed by a simple majority, thus allowing the entrenched provisions of the Electoral Act to also be repealed by a simple majority.

The House of Representatives has the exclusive power to regulate its own procedures.

Term of Parliament

A term of the New Zealand Parliament may not last more than three years. The Constitution Act 1986 outlines that the governor-general is responsible for dissolving Parliament, which is done by royal proclamation. Dissolution ends a parliamentary term, after which the writ for a general election is issued. Upon completion of the election, the governor-general, on the advice of the prime minister, then issues a proclamation summoning Parliament to assemble. On the date given, new MPs are sworn in and then called, along with returning MPs, to the old Legislative Council chamber, where they are instructed to elect their speaker and return to the House of Representatives to do so before adjourning.

A new parliamentary session is marked by the Opening of Parliament, during which the governor-general reads the Speech from the Throne, on the monarch's behalf. This speech is given at the start of every new Parliament, and explains why Parliament has been assembled. It outlines the Government's legislative agenda. On occasion, the monarch may open Parliament and personally deliver the speech; for example, Queen Elizabeth II personally attended the Opening of Parliament in 1954 (to mark the legislature's centenary), and more recently in 1986 and 1990.

MPs receive the royal summons to these events from the usher of the Black Rod, after the usher knocks on the doors of the House of Representatives chamber that have been slammed shut, to illustrate the MPs' right to deny entry to anyone, including the monarch.

Passage of legislation

Before any law is passed, it is first introduced in Parliament as a draft known as a bill. The majority of bills are promulgated by the government of the day. It is rare for government bills to be defeated (the first to be defeated in the 20th century was in 1998). It is also possible for individual MPs to promote their own bills, called members' bills; these are usually put forward by opposition parties, or by MPs who wish to deal with a matter that parties do not take positions on. All bills must go through three readings in the House of Representatives before receiving the royal assent to become an act of Parliament (see lists of acts of the New Zealand Parliament).

House and committees

Each bill goes through several stages before it becomes a law. The first stage is the first reading, where MPs debate the bill in principle. It is normally sent to a select committee where the public has the opportunity to make submissions on the bill and the committee can recommend amendments to the bill. The select committee stage is followed by the second reading, where MPs again debate the bill in principle and the select committee recommendations. This is followed by the committee of the whole house, where MPs debate individual clauses or parts and make amendments. In the third reading, MPs debate the final form of the bill. If a majority of MPs vote in favour of the bill at its third reading, the bill is passed. If a majority of MPs vote against the bill at any reading, the bill is rejected and goes no further through the process.

Royal assent

If a bill passes its third reading, the clerk of the House of Representatives delivers it to the governor-general, who, assuming that constitutional convention is followed, will grant royal assent as a matter of course. The governor-general retains the power to refuse royal assent, which they might do for a bill that would remove elections or abolish courts, or one that would amend an entrenched clause, but the bill had passed the House with the vote of less than 75% of its members. Such bills would be unlikely to pass, and the country would already be in a constitutional crisis if one did.

As a practical reality, because the royal assent to a bill must follow quickly after its passage by the House of Representatives, if there is any substantial issue about the constitutional validity of a bill, the issue must be considered by the attorney-general before the bill is introduced into the House.

List of parliaments

Parliament is currently in its 54th term.