Guide 3 to NSW State Archives relating to Responsible Government - OCR - Flipbook - Page 186
A Guide to New South Wales State Archives relating to Responsible Government
In his policy speech in 1935, the Premier made the following
comments on redistribution and the reduction of Members:
The Government has had before it proposals for the reduction of
the number of members of the Legislative Assembly. We will at
an early opportunity set in train a full investigation with a view
to giving practical effect to the policy, keeping in mind the
provision of suitable boundaries for electorates in order to
preserve community of interest, adequate and fair
representation, as well as reasonable areas.
The file concludes with correspondence in August 1939 about the
progress of the redistribution of boundaries, ie about the work
required to be completed on or before 5 January 1940 by the
Commissioners appointed on 5 July 1939.
Included are representations from private individuals and
organisations, concerning: the re-distribution of State Electoral
boundaries; the reduction in number of Members of Parliament, ie
in the Legislative Assembly; movement of areas outside of named
Electoral Districts (eg elimination of Broken Hill from the Cobar
Electorate); and, abolition of how to vote cards. Resolutions of
Conventions of the United Australia Party on such matters as the
reduction of Members of State Parliament, and a review of the
State Electoral Act in order to remove anomalies that exist (such
as in reference to postal and absentee votes, and the electoral
machinery in uncontested areas) are among these.
Other inclusions are: extract from Policy speech of Premier April
1935 on constitutional reform; enrolments in Sydney, Newcastle
and country areas as at 25 December 1936; an Alphabetical list of
Members as at 13 April 1938 with, on the reverse side, an
Alphabetical list of electorates 12 April; Government Gazettes
(those of 6 and 20 September 1929 giving notice of the proposed
alterations of Electoral Districts); and, a 23 page "summary of the
speeches in the Assembly during the debates on the motions of Mr
3 R Lee, dealing with the reduction of members of the Assembly"
(in reference to motions made by Mr Lee in September 1932 and
May 1934).
Electoral boundaries; electoral reform, 1941-52
(File 48/4631)
CGS 12061,
[9/3981.2]
One of the earliest papers on this file is a statement by Cabinet at
its meeting of 3 June 1941, relating to the amendment of the
Parliamentary Electorates and Elections Act, 1912-41. The
question before Cabinet was whether the electoral boundaries
distribution of 1940 whereby the State was divided into 90
electoral districts (one for each of the 90 Legislative Assembly
Members), with the Sydney area divided in 43, the Newcastle area
into 5 and the Country area into 42 electoral districts should be
overturned so that the total enrolments for the State should be
used to redefine the electoral districts into even districts. Adopting
the latter, the Sydney area would have 51 electoral districts,
Newcastle 6 and the Country area 33. However, this matter was
deferred and considered by Cabinet again but without any decision
apparently having been made.
In October 1944 the Sub-Committee of Caucus reviewed electoral
matters and submitted a number of recommendations including
State Records Authority of New South Wales
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