36-644: The Leader of the Opposition is a title held by the leader of the second-largest party in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly , the lower house of the Parliament of New South Wales . There is also a Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council . The leader acts as the public face of the opposition, leading the opposition on the floor of parliament. They act as a chief critic of
72-543: A confidence and supply agreement in the House of Commons, such as the Democratic Unionist Party in the 2017–2019 Parliament, are not considered crossbenchers. Instead, along with all other non-governing parties, they are considered part of the opposition and sit on the opposition benches. The crossbenchers do not take a collective position on issues, and so have no whips ; however, they do elect from among themselves
108-696: A chamber with the Liberal / National Coalition having 30 seats, the Australian Labor Party with 26 seats, the Greens with 9 seats, One Nation with 4 seats and the Nick Xenophon Team with 3 seats. The other 4 seats were each won by Derryn Hinch , the Liberal Democratic Party , Family First , and Jacqui Lambie . The number of crossbenchers increased by two to a record 20 (all but the ones of
144-502: A convenor for administrative purposes, and to keep them up to date with the business of the House. The current convenor is The Earl of Kinnoull , who took the office in April 2023. While convenors are not part of the " usual channels " (i.e. the party whips who decide the business of the House), they have been included in their discussions in recent years. The following have served as Convenor of
180-688: A whipping system. In December 2016, the Senate began to officially recognise the ISG and provide it with funding. Two additional groups were established in 2019: the Canadian Senators Group (which primarily focuses on regional issues) and the Progressive Senate Group (formed by members of the defunct Senate Liberal Caucus ). The Canadian Senate in 2022 generally aspires towards non-partisanship. Non-affiliated members outnumber members affiliated with
216-470: Is a minor party or independent member of some legislatures , such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia . They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and opposition benches, where crossbenchers sit in the chamber. Crossbench members of the British House of Lords are not aligned to any particular party. Until 2009, these included
252-550: Is by the optional preferential system . Members of the Legislative Assembly have the post-nominals MP after their names. From the creation of the assembly up to about 1990, the post-nominals "MLA" (Member of the Legislative Assembly) were used. The Assembly is often called the bearpit on the basis of the house's reputation for confrontational style during heated moments and the "savage political theatre and
288-606: Is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales , an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council . Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is presided over by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly . The Assembly has 93 members, elected by single-member constituency , which are commonly known as seats. Voting
324-533: The House of Lords Appointments Commission has nominated a total of 67 non-party-political life peers who joined the House of Lords as crossbenchers. As of 28 November 2024 , there are 184 crossbenchers, making up approximately 23 percent of the sitting members in the House of Lords. The Crossbench is typically the third-largest peerage group after the Conservative and Labour benches. From April 2007 to 2009,
360-534: The Law Lords appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 . In addition, former Speakers of the House of Commons (such as Lord Martin of Springburn and Baroness Boothroyd ) and former Lord Speakers of the House of Lords (such as Baroness Hayman and Baroness D'Souza ), who by convention are not aligned with any party, also sit as crossbenchers. There are also some non-affiliated members of
396-465: The " official opposition ". Unlike the United Kingdom, the term is used by both the lower and upper houses of each parliament (where applicable), who sit on the crossbenches between the government and opposition benches. The last few federal elections have seen an increase in the size and power of the crossbench in both houses of Parliament. The Australian Parliament as elected at the 2010 election
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#1732873728284432-498: The Coalition on confidence and supply. The resulting 76–74 margin entitled Labor to form a minority government . The Australian Senate, which uses the single transferable vote form of proportional representation to elect its 76-seat chamber, frequently has enough Senators on the crossbench that the governing party has to negotiate with it to get legislation passed. The 2 July 2016 double dissolution election , for example resulted in
468-538: The Crossbenchers: In the federal Parliament of Australia as well as the parliaments of the Australian states and territories , the term crossbencher refers to any and all minor party and independent members of the parliaments. More precisely, a crossbencher is any member who is not part of the governing party or parties, nor the party or parties forming what is known in some other Commonwealth countries as
504-504: The Deputy Leader of the Opposition was largely informal, with no clear mandate or responsibilities. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council plays an important role in assisting the Leader of the Opposition in managing and leading the opposition party's activities in the upper house of the Parliament of New South Wales . The position of Deputy Leader of the Opposition in
540-613: The Greens, sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Labor benches. This tends not to be the case in the House of Representatives, both due to the different electoral system, which means fewer crossbenchers are elected, and the fact that the official government and opposition frontbenches extend across the inner rim of the entire hemicycle. In the New Zealand House of Representatives , MPs from parties that are not openly aligned with either
576-599: The House of Lords who are not part of the crossbencher group; this includes some officers, such as the Lord Speaker, and others who are associated with a party but have had the whip withdrawn. Although non-affiliated members, and members of small parties, sometimes physically sit on the crossbenches, they are not members of the crossbench parliamentary group . An "increasing number" of crossbenchers have been created peers for non-political reasons. Since its establishment in May 2000,
612-685: The LPA/NPA coalition and the ALP: 9+4+3+4). The Liberal/National Coalition government required at least nine additional votes to reach a Senate majority. Generally speaking, Senators broadly aligned with the Coalition (such as those affiliated with the Australian Conservatives , One Nation, the Liberal Democratic Party, and Derryn Hinch) sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Coalition benches, while those more aligned with Labor, such as
648-634: The Legislative Assembly chamber is green, which follows the British tradition for lower houses . Most legislation is initiated in the Legislative Assembly. The party or coalition with a majority of seats in the lower house is invited by the Governor to form government. The leader of that party subsequently becomes Premier of New South Wales , and their senior colleagues become ministers responsible for various portfolios. As Australian political parties traditionally vote along party lines, most legislation introduced by
684-467: The Legislative Council dates back to at least 1966, when James Maloney was formally recognized as the first Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council according to the Alphabetical Roll of Members from the Parliament of New South Wales . Maloney served in the position from 31st March 1966 to 26th April 1971. Several individuals have filled the position since then. The Deputy Leader of
720-525: The New South Wales parliament became a State legislature. Women were granted the right to vote in 1902, and gained the right to be members of the Assembly in 1918, with the first successful candidate being elected in 1925. The Legislative Assembly sits in the oldest legislative chamber in Australia. Originally built for the Legislative Council in 1843, it has been in continuous use since 1856. The colour of
756-596: The Opposition in the Legislative Council is specifically focused on supporting the opposition party's efforts, in contrast to the Deputy Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council, who assists the Leader of the Government in the Upper House. Despite not having a formally established date, the position of Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council remains an important figure in NSW politics and an essential part of
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#1732873728284792-512: The Opposition is a position in the New South Wales Parliament held by a second-largest political party or coalition member. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition assists the Leader of the Opposition in their duties and may act as the Leader of the Opposition if the position becomes vacant. The position was established in New South Wales in 1986, with Peter Collins becoming the first person to hold it in its formalised capacity. Before this,
828-473: The bloodlust of its professional players" attributed in part to executive dominance. The Legislative Assembly was created in 1856 with the introduction of a bicameral parliament for the Crown Colony of New South Wales , a process led in the Legislative Council by William Wentworth . In the beginning, only men were eligible to be members of the Assembly, and only around one half of men were able to pass
864-523: The governing party will pass through the Legislative Assembly. As with the federal parliament and other Australian states and territories , voting in the Assembly is compulsory for all those over the age of 18. Elections are held every four years on the fourth Saturday in March, as the result of a 1995 referendum to amend the New South Wales Constitution. An early election can only be held if
900-649: The government and ultimately attempt to portray the opposition as a feasible alternate government. They are also given certain additional rights under parliamentary standing orders, such as extended time limits for speeches. Labor Liberal Party of Australia Protectionist Free Trade Progressive Liberal Reform Party Labor (NSW) Nationalist Party of Australia United Australia Party Democratic Party Country Party The Deputy Leader of
936-546: The government fails a vote of no confidence and no alternative government can command a vote of confidence. The clerk of the house of the NSW Legislative Assembly is the senior administrative officer. The clerk advises the speaker of the Assembly and members of parliament on matters of parliamentary procedure and management. The office is modelled on the clerk of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom . The following have served as clerks: The ceremonial duties of
972-496: The government or the official opposition (such as those belonging to New Zealand First from 2011 to 2017) are sometimes referred to as crossbenchers, but those who support the government in confidence and supply agreements are regarded as part of the government and sit on the government benches, and often receive official roles as ministers outside the cabinet or as parliamentary under-secretaries. From 2008 to 2017, ACT New Zealand , Te Pāti Māori and United Future MPs supported
1008-506: The largest of these designated the official opposition (and their leader is designated Leader of the Opposition ). Opposition parties other than the official opposition are typically called third parties. Third parties that hold a certain threshold of seats are granted official party status . In 2022 the "official opposition" is the Conservatives; the bloc Québecois, the NDP, and the Greens are
1044-401: The minority National Party government. As such, these MPs were not considered to be crossbenchers or part of the opposition, as they were represented within the government. The term "crossbencher" is generally not used for the federal Parliament of Canada or any of the provincial or territorial legislatures . Instead, any party that is not the governing party is an "opposition party", with
1080-567: The number of crossbenchers was higher than the number of Conservative peers for the first time. Although the Lords Spiritual (archbishops and senior bishops of the Church of England ) also have no party affiliation, they are not considered crossbenchers and do not sit on the crossbenches, their seats being on the Government side of the Lords Chamber. Parties supporting a minority government in
1116-407: The opposition party's leadership team. Leanne Castley (Lib) Mark Speakman (Lib) Selena Uibo (ALP) Steven Miles (ALP) Vincent Tarzia (Lib) Dean Winter (ALP) John Pesutto (Lib) Shane Love (Nat) New South Wales Legislative Assembly Opposition (35) Crossbench (13) The New South Wales Legislative Assembly
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1152-622: The opposition. Beginning in 2016, multiple non-partisan caucuses which fulfill a similar purpose as crossbenchers were formed in the Senate of Canada . The first, the Independent Senators Group (ISG), was created partly as a response to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 's decision to appoint more non-partisan Senators. Similar to crossbenchers in the UK, the ISG chooses its own leader and does not use
1188-473: The property or income qualifications required to vote. Two years later, the Electoral Reform Act, which was passed despite the opposition of the Legislative Council, saw the introduction of a far more democratic system, allowing any man who had been resident in the colony for six months the right to vote, and removing property requirements to stand as a candidate. Following Australia's federation in 1901,
1224-690: The serjeant include allocation of office accommodation, furniture and fittings for members' offices, co-ordination of car transport for members, mail and courier services for the House, security for the House and arrangements for school visits. Once a meeting has started in an Assembly, the serjeant will usually stand at the door to keep authority and make sure no one else comes in or out. The following have served as serjeant-at-arms: Senate House of Rep. Council Assembly Council Assembly Council Assembly Council Assembly Council Assembly Council Assembly Assembly Assembly Crossbench A crossbencher
1260-410: The serjeant-at-arms are as the custodian of the mace, the symbol of the authority of the House and the speaker, and as the messenger for formal messages from the Legislative Assembly to the Legislative Council. The serjeant has the authority to remove disorderly people, by force if necessary, from the Assembly or the public or press galleries on the instructions of the speaker. The administrative duties of
1296-555: Was the first hung parliament in the House of Representatives since the election of 1940 , with the Australian Labor Party and the Coalition winning 72 seats each of 150 total. Six crossbenchers held the balance of power : Greens MP Adam Bandt and Independent MP Andrew Wilkie , Rob Oakeshott and Tony Windsor declared their support for Labor on confidence and supply , Independent MP Bob Katter and National Party of Western Australia MP Tony Crook declared their support for
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