27-741: The Australian Constitutions Act 1850 ( 13 & 14 Vict. c. 59), or the Australian Colonies Government Act 1850 , was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was enacted to formally establish the Colony of Victoria by separating the District of Port Phillip from the Colony of New South Wales . The act provided an initial constitution for Victoria , which included a bicameral parliament and
54-586: A German ruler, spoke poor English, and remained interested in governing his dominions in continental Europe rather than in Britain. He thus entrusted power to a group of his ministers, the foremost of whom was Sir Robert Walpole , and by the end of his reign in 1727 the position of the ministers – who had to rely on Parliament for support – was cemented. George I's successor, his son George II , continued to follow through with his father's domestic policies and made little effort to re-establish monarchical control over
81-577: A Lieutenant-Governor as its vice-regal representative. It also altered the constitution of the Colony of New South Wales , and provided for similar constitutions to be set up in Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) and South Australia . It was given royal assent on 5 August 1850 and came into effect on 1 July 1851. The act received criticism in Australia for its perceived inadequacies, spearheaded in
108-580: A bicameral parliament . It created the Parliament of Victoria , which initially consisted of the Victorian Legislative Council of 20 elected members and 10 members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor . This body was given jurisdiction over all but Australian lands and could pass any legislation not in conflict with the extant English laws. The act provided that the current arrangements would continue either until
135-587: A charter of justice were issued, or until legislation was passed by the Victorian Legislative Council. Earl Grey , the British Secretary of State for War from 1846 to 1852, helped the passage of the bill through Parliament, as he wished to promote free trade and federal system of government in the colonies. The act also provided for similar constitutions to be applied to Van Diemen's Land and South Australia , enabling
162-492: Is a complete list of acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the year 1850 . Note that the first parliament of the United Kingdom was held in 1801; parliaments between 1707 and 1800 were either parliaments of Great Britain or of Ireland ). For acts passed up until 1707, see the list of acts of the Parliament of England and the list of acts of the Parliament of Scotland . For acts passed from 1707 to 1800, see
189-467: Is its chapter number. Acts passed before 1963 are cited using this number, preceded by the year(s) of the reign during which the relevant parliamentary session was held; thus the Union with Ireland Act 1800 is cited as "39 & 40 Geo. 3 c. 67", meaning the 67th act passed during the session that started in the 39th year of the reign of George III and which finished in the 40th year of that reign. Note that
216-656: The New South Wales Legislative Council by the statesman William Wentworth . The act was a response to the demands of the Port Phillip and Moreton Bay settlers, who felt inadequately represented in the New South Wales Legislative Council and who resented their taxes being channelled to New South Wales . The act named the colony and set out its provisional constitution, which included the proviso of
243-699: The Short Titles Act 1896 . The third session of the 15th Parliament of the United Kingdom , which met from 31 January 1850 until 15 August 1850. Parliament of Great Britain List of parliaments of Great Britain The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland . The Acts ratified
270-554: The Treaty of Union in 1706, Acts of Union ratifying the Treaty were passed in both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland, which created a new Kingdom of Great Britain. The Acts paved the way for the enactment of the treaty of Union which created a new parliament, referred to as the 'Parliament of Great Britain', based in the home of the former English parliament. All of the traditions, procedures, and standing orders of
297-608: The list of acts of the Parliament of Great Britain . See also the list of acts of the Parliament of Ireland . For acts of the devolved parliaments and assemblies in the United Kingdom, see the list of acts of the Scottish Parliament , the list of acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly , and the list of acts and measures of Senedd Cymru ; see also the list of acts of the Parliament of Northern Ireland . The number shown after each act 's title
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#1732773287409324-499: The British government became repressive against dissent and progress towards reform was stalled. George II's successor, George III , sought to restore royal supremacy and absolute monarchy, but by the end of his reign the position of the king's ministers – who discovered that they needed the support of Parliament to enact any major changes – had become central to the role of British governance, and would remain so ever after. During
351-477: The English parliament were retained, although there is no provision for this within the treaty; furthermore, the incumbent officers and members representing England comprised the overwhelming majority of the new body. It was not even considered necessary to hold a new general election. While Scots law and Scottish legislation remained separate, new legislation was thereafter to be enacted by the new parliament, with
378-564: The creation of new Australian colonies with a similar form of government to New South Wales , whose constitution it also altered. It changed the qualifications for franchise for the New South Wales Legislative Council , and enabled this body, together with the Governor of New South Wales , to establish a bicameral parliament. The act, thus, had significant impact on the four colonies that were already established. The Colony of Western Australia had just started receiving convicts, making it
405-521: The exception of that pertaining to private right which could only legislated on for the "evident utility" of the people. England's de facto prominence in the new parliament was, and remains, a contentious issue. After the Hanoverian King George I ascended the British throne in 1714 through the Act of Settlement of 1701 , real power continued to shift away from the monarchy. George was
432-455: The first half of George III's reign, the monarch still had considerable influence over Parliament, which itself was dominated by the patronage and influence of the English nobility. Most candidates for the House of Commons were identified as Whigs or Tories , but once elected they formed shifting coalitions of interests rather than dividing along clear party lines. At general elections the vote
459-592: The government took extensive repressive measures against feared domestic unrest aping the democratic and egalitarian ideals of the French Revolution and progress toward reform was stalled for decades. In 1801, the Parliament of the United Kingdom was created when the Kingdom of Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland under
486-443: The government which was now in firm control by Parliament. By the end of the 18th century the monarch still had considerable influence over Parliament, which was dominated by the English aristocracy, by means of patronage , but had ceased to exert direct power: for instance, the last occasion on which royal assent was withheld was in 1708 by Queen Anne , even this being done only at the request of her ministers. At general elections
513-682: The king did not like. Proposals Pitt made in April 1785 to redistribute seats from the "rotten boroughs" to London and the counties were defeated in the House of Commons by 248 votes to 174. In the wake of the French Revolution of 1789, Radical organisations such as the London Corresponding Society sprang up to press for parliamentary reform, but as the French Revolutionary Wars developed
540-665: The king was forced to appoint an administration led by his opponents which sought to curb royal patronage. In November of 1783, he took the opportunity to use his influence in the House of Lords to defeat a bill to reform the Honourable East India Company , dismissed the government of the day, and appointed William Pitt the Younger to form a new government. Pitt had previously called for Parliament to begin to reform itself, but he did not press for long for reforms
567-493: The last remaining penal colony , and the act included special provisions which limited the rights of its citizens to participate in government. In April 1851, William Wentworth established a committee to formulate a motion against the perceived inadequacies of the act. The "Declaration and Remonstrance" declared, among other things, that "the Imperial Parliament has not, nor of right ought to have any power to tax
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#1732773287409594-431: The modern convention is to use Arabic numerals in citations (thus "41 Geo. 3" rather than "41 Geo. III"). Acts of the last session of the Parliament of Great Britain and the first session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom are both cited as "41 Geo. 3". Some of these acts have a short title . Some of these acts have never had a short title. Some of these acts have a short title given to them by later acts, such as by
621-642: The people of this Colony", and that "plenary powers of legislation should be conferred upon and exercised by the Colonial Legislature ... [and] no bills should be reserved" for the Imperial Parliament unless they affected the Empire. Sir Henry Parkes later wrote of Wentworth that "His Declaration and Remonstrance is so important as one of the foundation-stones of the fabric of our constitutional liberties." 13 %26 14 Vict. This
648-624: The system. In 1780, a draft programme of reform was drawn up by Charles James Fox and Thomas Brand Hollis and put forward by a sub-committee of the electors of Westminster. This included calls for the six points later adopted by the Chartists . The American War of Independence ended in defeat for a foreign policy that sought to prevent the thirteen American colonies from breaking away and forming their own independent nation , something which George III had fervently advocated, and in March 1782
675-537: The treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdom of Great Britain and created the parliament of Great Britain located in the former home of the English parliament in the Palace of Westminster , near the City of London . This lasted nearly a century, until the Acts of Union 1800 merged the separate British and Irish Parliaments into a single Parliament of the United Kingdom with effect from 1 January 1801. Following
702-572: The vote was restricted to freeholders and landowners, in constituencies that had changed little since the Middle Ages , so that in many "rotten" and "pocket" boroughs seats could be bought, while major cities remained unrepresented, except by the Knights of the Shire representing whole counties. Reformers and Radicals sought parliamentary reform, but as the French Revolutionary Wars developed
729-447: Was restricted in most places to property owners, in constituencies which were out of date and did not reflect the growing importance of manufacturing towns or shifts of population, so that in the rotten and pocket boroughs seats in parliament could be bought from the rich landowners who controlled them, while major cities remained unrepresented. Reformers like William Beckford and Radicals beginning with John Wilkes called for reform of
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