ABSTRACT
This chapter looks in detail at the federal system of government in Australia. The national level of government established by the Australian Constitution is known as the federal, or Commonwealth, government. The federal aspects of the Australian parliamentary system were integrated with the Westminster system of responsible government. The extent of sharing of, or cooperation or collaboration over, areas of jurisdiction is reflected in attributes used to describe different types of federalism. The legal approach to interpreting federalism focuses on analysing important High Court decisions as they have influenced the balance of forces within Australian federalism. Despite differences of opinion over the relative influence and power of federal, State and Territory governments, it remains the case in Australia that culturally people still perceive differences between the regions in which they live. The logical conclusion to be drawn from this is that the Commonwealth financially dominates the federal system and that this dominance is at the expense of the States.
