Monique Ryan (Kooyong, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Ministers of State Amendment Bill 2022. Responsible government is the foundation of our system of parliamentary democracy. The principle that ministers are responsible to parliament and that parliament is responsible to the people is part of our great British constitutional heritage. It's one of the features of our parliamentary democracy that distinguishes us from the United States and from many European democracies.

Responsible government is a fundamental feature of Australian constitutional practice. To be sure, responsible government has been weakened in Australia by an increasingly powerful executive which dominates parliament by the means of party disciplines.

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