Quick questions on The Legislative Process and Delegated Legislation: WACE Year 12 Politics and Law

Most legislation begins as a government bill drafted to implement policy. In the originating house (usually the House of Representatives) it goes through a first reading (formal introduction), a second reading (the main debate on the principle and purpose of the bill), a committee or consideration in detail stage (clause-by-clause examination and amendment), and a third reading (final vote). It then repeats the process in the other house. If both houses pass the bill in identical terms, it is presented to the Governor-General for royal assent, after which it becomes an Act and commences on a set date.

The Senate is central to the legislative process because the government often does not control it. Elected by proportional representation, the Senate frequently holds the balance of power with minor parties and independents. This lets it scrutinise, amend or block government bills, function as a genuine house of review, and run powerful committees that examine policy and administration. The trade-off, which a good answer evaluates, is that this can also obstruct an elected government's mandate, so the Senate is praised as a check and criticised as a brake depending on viewpoint.

Because delegated legislation is made by the executive rather than elected representatives, it must be controlled. There are three main checks. First, the enabling Act sets the limits: a regulation that goes beyond the power granted is ultra vires (beyond power) and invalid. Second, Parliament retains control through tabling and disallowance, where either house can vote to disallow a regulation within a set period, and through scrutiny committees that review instruments for issues such as unfair retrospectivity or undue interference with rights.