ABSTRACT
The world's sixth largest country Australia's federal system was a compromise between the goals of autonomy and unity of the six existing British colonies. Drawing inspiration from Canada and the United States, Australia fused American-style federalism with its familiar traditions of British parliamentary government in one of the longest enduring federations. In addition, Australia has an established parliamentary democracy, a modern Welfare State and a developed system of intergovernmental relations. The strength of the federal spending power begins with the Commonwealth's control of the majority of government revenue. Out of six federations in this study, Australia has the fewest areas of exclusive federal jurisdiction, as overlapping authority is the norm for most policy fields. As such, it would be expected that Australia should exhibit strong features conducive to intergovernmental coordination, with limited inhibitors and alternatives something that the chapter has demonstrated. In many ways, Australia operates as a model federal environment for the formation of intergovernmental agreements.
