THE AUSTRALIAN REFERENDUM.

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 28, 17 February 1937, Page 4

THE AUSTRALIAN REFERENDUM.

It is likely that during tlie next few weeks, while a pro and con campaign is in progress, that we shall hear a good deal of the referenduin vote shortly to be taken in Australia with.a view to effecting certain axnendments in the Federal Constitution. As with that of the United States of America, the Commonwealth Constitution is a, written and theref ore in many respects a rigid one and, as in America, the rights of the individual States have on occasion come into conflict with powers which the Federal Government has sought to exercise. . Two instances of this have occurred within the last year or two. The first had to do with legislation passed at Canberra in 1928 with a view to regulating all over the Commonwealth the trade in dried fruit. In 1933 a corresponding Federal measure was adopted regardmg butter and cheese, and in 1935 yet another dealing with wheat. All these Acts were based upon an earlier decision of the Australian High Conrt that legislation of this character came within the functions of the Federal Parliament. Their primary object was to maintain for the commddities mentioned a home-consumption price that might be regarded as the primary producer s equivalent of the ' living wage" given to other sections of industry by meaniS of wage awards and tariff protection. tion. Under the system a home-consumption price was set at something above an export parity determined by prices accepted by competing conntries where, owing to the lower "standard of living" production costs are much lower. To maintain this home price it was sought to compel every Australian producer to take his share of the loWer-priced oversea market as well as of the higher-priced loCal market. The State Governments in this instance fell in with the principle involved and each passed the complementary legislation that was deemed suffieient to make the Federal Acts fully effective hy a system of mutually a,ccommodating quotas. This plan worked quite well until a year or two ago one James, a trader in dried fruits, acting on legal advice, queried the Federal Parliament 's authority uiider the Constitution to efaforce any such legislation. The ease was carried to the Privy Council, which he5d that the Federal Acts went beyond the powers conferred oii the Commonwealth Parliament by sections 51 and 92 of the Constitution, in pursuance of which they had been passed. All three Acts were thus rendered virtually ineffective and the purpose of the Commonwealthwide referendum is to so airtend the Constitution itself as to confer definitely upon the Federal Parliament the powers Which, according to the Privy Cotmcil, it had previously been wrongly aSsUmed to possess. The other point with which the referendum deals has regard to aviation within the Commonwealth territory. The present position is that the Commonwealth Constitution contains no express reference at all to aviation or aircraft. This is, of course, understandabe because when the Constitution was established in 1900 it was never dreamt that aerial navigation would acqnire anything- lilce its preseilt iinportance. The consequence is that, while the Federal Parliament has power to control flyiftg for military purposes, it has no or at best very doubtful authority to regulate commercial or private aircraft. That, it is held, is a function belonging to the individual States. Aeroplanes flying in Australia are thus subject to differeiit sets of laws in the six separate States and to yet another under Commonwealth legislation. It would appear so fa.r as the State Governments are concerned that ^-they recogiiise the need for securing Some greater uniformity in the aviation law and, for their part, are quite ready to surrendel; some of their authority to the Federal Government. It is, however, to be understood that neither of the questions at issue is a matter for either Governments or Parliaments to decide. Each has to be submitted to the vote of the whole body of Federal electors throughout the Commonwealth, and it is upon the result of that vote that the adoption or rejection of the proposed amendments will depend. With respect to the first issue a good deal of factiOUs opposition is expected, indeed has already begun to show itself in the initial stages of the campaign.