Parliament of Urabbaparcensia
Parliament of Urabba Parks | |
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| Type | |
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| Houses | House of Ordinaries |
| History | |
| Founded | 5 March 2022 |
| Structure | |
| Authority | Section 1 of the Constitution[Constitution 1] |
| Meeting place | |
| Melbourne A | |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
| This article is part of a series on the |
| Politics of Urabbaparcensia |
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| Constitution |
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The Parliament of Urabba Parks (also known as the Corporate Parliament) is the micronational parliament of the Enactorate of Urabbaparcensia (formerly Urabba Parks Proprietary Limited). With a structure nominally based on the Westminster system, the Parliament and consists of the Enactor (represented by the Manager-General) and the Houses of Parliament, from which the members of the Cabinet of the the Urabbaparcensian Government are ultimately appointed. As of 2 October 2022, as no House of Parliament is constituted, the Parliament consists of the monarch alone. The Parliament has the power to legislate for a wide variety of topics, from internal revenue, compliance with Australian law, external affairs and the affairs of its subsidiary organisations.
Composition
Section 1 of the Urabbaparcensian Constitution provides that the legislative power of Urabba Parks Pty Ltd shall be vested in a Corporate Parliament, which shall consist of the Enactor, or monarch, (represented by the Manager‑General) and the Houses of the Parliament created under law including the House of Ordinaries.[Constitution 1] Although there is provision for creation of other chambers, the House of Ordinaries is the only chamber designated in Urabbaparcensian law.
Members of the Houses of Parliament are appointed legislative directors of Urabba Parks Pty Ltd.[Constitution 2] The House of Ordinaries, the only deliberative component of the Parliament is composed of legislative directors elected by the ordinary members of Urabba Parks Pty Ltd and has a maximum term of 3 years. However, as the House is vacant in the whole, the Parliament is taken to consist solely of the monarch, who may make laws by granting Enactorial Assent.
Under section 125 of the Constitution, the nominal interim Seat of Government of the Enactorate of Urabbaparcensia is in Melbourne, although the Manager-General may specify another place where the Houses of Parliament may sit.
Procedure
Each House of the Parliament elects a presiding officer. The presiding officer the House of Ordinaries is the Speaker. Elections for these positions are by secret ballot. Although the presiding offices are conventionally filled by members of the governing party, the presiding officers are expected to oversee debate and enforce the rules in an impartial manner.
The Constitution authorises Parliament to set the quorum for each chamber. The quorum of the House of Ordinaries is one-half of the total membership (two). In theory, if a quorum is not present, then a House may not continue to meet. In practice, legislative directors usually agree not to notice that a quorum is not present, so that debates on routine bills can continue while other members attend to other business outside the chamber. Sometimes the Opposition will "call a quorum" as a tactic to annoy the Government or delay proceedings, particularly when the Opposition feels it has been unfairly treated in the House. Proceedings are interrupted until a quorum is present. It is the responsibility of the government whip to ensure that, when a quorum is called, enough government members are present to form a quorum.
Each House may determine motions by voice vote: the presiding officer puts the question, and, after listening to shouts of "Aye" and "No" from the members, announces the result. The announcement of the presiding officer settles the question, unless at least two members demand a "division", or a recorded vote. In that case the bells are rung throughout Parliament House summoning legislative directors to the chamber. During a division, members who favour the motion move to the right side of the chamber (the side to the Speaker's right), and those opposed move to the left. They are then counted by "tellers" (government and opposition whips), and the motion is passed or defeated accordingly. In the House of Ordinaries, the Speaker does not vote, but has a casting vote if there is a tie.
Most legislation is introduced into the House of Representatives and goes through a number of stages before it becomes law. The legislative process occurs in English. Government bills are drafted by the Office of Company Secretary. The first stage is a first reading, where the legislation is introduced to the chamber, then there is a second reading, where a vote is taken on the general outlines of the bill. Although rare, the legislation can then be considered by a House committee, which reports back to the House on any recommendations. This is followed by a consideration in detail stage, where the House can consider the clauses of the bill in detail and make any amendments. This is finally followed by a third reading, where the bill is either passed or rejected by the House. Once a bill has been passed by each constituted House in the same form, it is then presented to the Manager-General for Enactorial Assent.
Functions
The principal function of the Parliament is to pass laws, or legislation. Any legislative director may introduce a proposed law (a bill), except for a money bill (a bill proposing an expenditure or levying a tax), which must be introduced in the House of Ordinaries by the Government. In practice, the great majority of bills are introduced by ministers. Bills introduced by other Members are called private members' bills. All bills must be passed by each constituted House and assented to by the Manager-General to become law. Upper houses, if created, have the same legislative powers as the House of Ordinaries, except that it may not amend or introduce money bills, only pass or reject them (unless the House of Ordinaries is vacant in the whole). The enacting formula for Acts of Parliament is simply "The Parliament of Urabba Parks enacts:".
The Corporate legislative power is limited to that granted in the Constitution. Powers not specified are considered "residual powers", and remain the domain of the states. Section 51 grants the Corporate Parliament power over areas such as taxation, external affairs, defence and marriage. Section 51 also allows regional parliaments to refer matters to the national legislature. The Parliament performs other functions besides legislation. It can discuss urgency motions or matters of public importance: these provide a forum for debates on public policy matters. Members can move motions on a range of matters relevant to their constituents, and can also move motions of censure against the government or individual ministers. On most sitting days in each House there is a session called Question time at which members address questions without notice to the Park Minister and other ministers. Legislative directors can also present petitions from their constituents. Each constituted House have an extensive system of committees in which draft bills are debated, matters of public policy are inquired into, evidence is taken and public servants are questioned. There are also joint committees, composed of members from each of the constituted Houses.
Notes
- A.^ Under section 125 of the Constitution, the Parliament sits at Melbourne until a Seat of Government is determined by Parliament or some other place chosen by the Manager‑General.[Constitution 3]