Responsible government in the Dominions: Responsible government in the Dominions

Responsible government in the Dominions (Vol. 1)

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Multivolume work

Identifikator:: 1896933912

Document type:: Multivolume work

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Press

Year of publication:: 1912-

Collection:: Economics Books

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Volume

Identifikator:: 1896934455

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-236504

Document type:: Volume

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Volume count:: Vol. 1

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Pr.

Year of publication:: 1912

Scope:: LI, 568 Seiten

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Multivolume work

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Part III. The Parliaments of the Dominions

Collection:: Economics Books

CHAP. 1v] ALTERATION OF THE CONSTITUTION 425 constitutions, as indeed has been regularly done in the West Indies. This provision of the Colonial Laws Validity Act causes every constitutional alteration to be a matter of other moment than a mere change in an ordinary law. Thus in the case of an Imperial Act the legislature cannot fetter its successor. If, for example, it were enacted by an Imperial Act that a certain provision therein contained, and the section containing it, should only be repealed by two-thirds majorities in both Houses the provision would be a mere dead letter ; the next Parliament could do what it liked by a simple majority, and the subsequent Act would implicitly overru'e the former Act ; it is not necessary for the Act to refer in any way to its predecessor : the two Acts would be taken together, and if they would not make a sensible whole so taken, the latter Act would prevail : a sovereign Parlia- ment cannot be bound by any devices, and in the case of the Act fixing in 1907 anew the proportions of subsidy paid by Canada to the Provinces, the words ‘ final and unalterable . which it was proposed to insert at the request of Canada, were left out as improper to be inserted in an Imperial Act which had no right to attempt to set up anything which could not be altered, the wishes of the Dominion Govern- ment being met to the extent of allowing the address of the Provinces and Canada to apvear as a schedule to the Act 2 On the other hand, though in some cases no form was necessary to be observed in altering the constitution, it was always necessary that a Colonial constitution should be altered expressly: it would never have been possible to alter such a constitution merely by an ordinary Act which incidentally enacted provisions which were in conflict with the constitution: the constitution was and is a solemn matter requiring formal change. This was laid down in ! For the dispute as to power of alteration, see Blackmore, Constitution of South Australia, pp. 64-8. * Canadian Annual Review, 1907, pp. 609, 610 ; British Columbia Sess. Pup... 1908. C. 1.

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