The political geography of Australian Federal-State relations

Abstract

It is difficult, if not impossible, to completely separate political from economic relationships in any political system at any scale; this is no less true for Australia than it is for other countries. Changes in Australian Federal-State political relationships must be viewed in the context of changes in the overall system of international trade, the increasing economic power of the Pacific States and the economic restructuring of the Australian economy. However, explanations of political relationships cannot merely focus on the economic issues; the legal, historical and geographical contexts are also relevant. This paper explores Federal-State relations within the overall framework of a centre-periphery model within which jurisdictional conflicts revolve around Federal Government attempts to maintain power at the centre at the expense of the periphery. It takes the viewpoint that any meaningful discussion of political relationships must encompass aspects of human conflict which take place in particular political-geographical and legal contexts.