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The Parliament of Australia (officially the Parliament of the Commonwealth [4] and also known as the Federal Parliament) is the federal legislature of Australia.It consists of three elements: the monarch of Australia (represented by the governor-general), the Senate (the upper house), and the House of Representatives (the lower house). [4]
The politics of Australia operates under the written Australian Constitution, which sets out Australia as a constitutional monarchy, governed via a parliamentary democracy in the Westminster tradition. Australia is also a federation, where power is divided between the federal government and the states.
Elections in Australia take place periodically to elect the legislature of the Commonwealth of Australia, as well as for each Australian state and territory and for local government councils. Elections in all jurisdictions follow similar principles, although there are minor variations between them.
The ALP is in government in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, the Australian Capital Territory and the Federal Government of Australia. The other group is a conservative grouping of parties that are in coalition at the federal level, as well as in New South Wales, but compete in Western Australia and South Australia.
The Constitution of Australia (also known as the Commonwealth Constitution) is the fundamental law that governs the political structure of Australia. It is a written constitution , which establishes the country as a federation under a constitutional monarchy governed with a parliamentary system .
The Cabinet of Australia, [a] also known as the Federal Cabinet, is the chief decision-making body of the Australian government.The Cabinet is selected by the prime minister and is composed of senior government ministers who administer the executive departments and ministries of the federal government.
The world's smallest continent, Australia is also the sixth-largest country by land area and sometimes considered the world's largest island. Australia has a mainland coastline of 32,994 kilometres (20,502 mi) [14] and claims an exclusive economic zone of about 8,200,000 square kilometres (3,200,000 sq mi). [15]
It manages Research Data Australia, a web portal which enables access to data from over 100 Australian research organisations, cultural institutions, and government agencies. Nectar was established in 2009 by the Australian Government , with the project directorate to establish the IT infrastructure at the University of Melbourne created in 2011.