Minority government and marginal members: new issues for political and policy legitimacy in Australia

Abstract

A steady decline in major party support in Commonwealth nations has resulted in changing parliamentary compositions, including the growing prevalence of minority government. Such situations pose new questions for notions of government legitimacy within Westminster systems. For instance, is negotiation with cross-benchers an example of government illegitimacy? What is the legitimate role of non-ministerial members when the composition of parliament gives them the final say on the enabling legislation for public policy? What is the legitimate response of the public sector regarding policy-making in the context of minority government? In this paper, we reflect on how a ‘marginal member’ concept can provide new insights into such issues and their implications.

Keywords:

• Australia
• climate change
• legitimacy
• minority government
• public policy
• Westminster systems

Notes on contributor

Dr Brenton Prosser is a Senior Research Fellow at the Australian National University. Previously, he was Senior Policy Adviser to Senator Nick Xenophon during the period when the Senator first shared the balance of power in the Australian Senate. He has published three books on health and education policy, as well as extensively in the areas of parliamentary integrity, media and politics. He is co-author (with Richard Denniss) of the book, Minority policy: Rethinking Governance when Parliament Matters.

Dr Richard Denniss was Chief of Staff to the leader of the Australian Democrats, Natasha Stott Despoja, during the period that party held the balance of power in the Senate. He is now Executive Director to the Australia Institute policy think tank. He has recently published the book An Introduction to Australian Public Policy: Theory and Practice with Sarah Maddison, and is the co-author (with Clive Hamilton) of the book, Affluenza: When Too Much is Never Enough.

Notes

1. Christopher Pyne MP was Opposition Manager of Government Business in the House between 2009 and 2013, while he became Minister of Education and Training within the Liberal-National Coalition Government in 2013.

2. Tony Abbott MP was Opposition Leader between 2009 and 2013, while he became Prime Minister within the Coalition Government in 2013.

3. Anthony Albanese MP was Leader of the House between 2007 and 2013, while he was Deputy Prime Minister for several months in 2013. He is currently Shadow Minister for Tourism, Infrastructure and Transport in the Labor Opposition.

4. Chris Barrett was Chief-of-Staff to Federal Treasurer, Wayne Swan, between 2007 and 2010.