How a bill becomes a statute

There exists a long and complex procedure for a parliament to make laws. The Australian system is based on the process developed in England within what is called the 'Westminster System'. In the Westminster System, the government (the executive branch) is composed of members of the parliament (legislature). Australia's State and federal parliaments usually operate on a 'bicameral' system, which means that they have two 'Houses'. The State of Queensland, however, is an exception to rule this as it only has one House.

Westminster Parliaments are divided into a lower house and an upper house. While in Australia both houses are usually elected by the people, in the United Kingdom the upper house (known as the House of Lords) is appointed. In Australia, at a federal level, the lower house is known as the 'House of Representatives' and the upper house is known as 'the Senate'. In most cases, bills are introduced into the lower house of parliament. This is because the government usually has a majority in the lower house.

A bill is a proposal for a law or a change to the law and in its first presentation to parliament it takes the form of a draft Act. Proposals for new or amending legislation can come from many different sources. The cabinet, which is the group of ministers directly responsible for the government's policies, might put forward a bill, or one of the government departments might suggest a bill to the relevant minister, who may then put the proposal before cabinet and the House.

Members of parliament from any party can present a bill proposing new laws or legislative amendments. These are known as 'Private Member's Bills'. Other legal bodies such as law reform commissions or royal commissions can advocate for either new legislation for an area not adequately covered, or propose amendments to existing legislation. They cannot, however, actually introduce a bill to parliament.

A bill is set out as a draft Act. The provisions of a bill are numbered and are known as 'clauses', and these may be divided into sub-clauses. Most bills are issued with an explanatory memorandum, which explains the content and purpose of the bill in plain language.

A bill goes through the following stages in parliament:

First reading

The member who wishes to propose the new law or legislative amendment introduces the bill to the House. Only the title of the bill is read at the first reading, and copies are distributed for members of parliament to read.

Second reading

In the second reading, the member who introduced the bill explains the purpose of, and reasoning for, the proposed law. At this stage, members of the House may ask for further explanation as to the effect of the bill, its costs and the administrative arrangements for the proposed law. Amendments to the bill can also be proposed at this stage, and for this reason the House can choose to go into a 'committee stage', where the details of the bill are debated. The members then vote on the bill, and if it is passed it proceeds to the third reading.

Third reading

During the third reading the House is asked to vote on the bill. Once the bill is passed by the House in which it was introduced, it moves to the other House for consideration. Any amendments which have been made appear in the new version of the bill.

In the other House, the bill goes through the three reading stages again. If the bill originates in the lower house and is amended by the upper house, the amendments then must be sent back to the House of Assembly for consideration. If the lower house does not agree to the amendments then the bill can be referred back to the upper house, where the amendments can be reconsidered.

Once the bill has been passed by both houses it is presented to the State Governor or Governor-General (Cth). It is the responsibility of the Governor to 'assent' to the new law, which means giving the Queen's seal of approval. Once a bill has been sent to the Governor it is usually a formality that it be approved. The bill becomes law on the date of the Governor's assent unless it has a specific clause stating it will only become operative on a specified date. Once it is law, what was once a bill is referred to an as an Act or a statute.