The Museum of Australian Democracy has just released a brand new trail on Exploring Democracy. The Parliament trail uses 24 sites around Australia and the world to explore the growth of parliamentary government in Australia, and the role of parliament in relation to both the legislative and the executive branches of government.

The institution of parliament is central to Australia’s experience of democracy. A core concept of democracy is government by the people. Australian parliaments are elected by the people to represent their interests and to make legislation that will govern our society according to the values that we hold important.

The Australian federal parliament was created as a result of legislation enacted in the British Parliament in 1900 to unify the separate colonies and establish a federal Constitution. It provided for a bicameral parliament made up of two houses: a lower house called the House of Representatives and an upper house called the Senate. The Constitution divided power among the Legislature (Parliament), the Executive (Government), and the Judiciary (High Court). This separation of powers was designed to prevent one person or group having all the power to govern Australia.

Through the exploration of places and events, such as Bakery Hill and the Eureka Stockade, the United States Capitol and American influence on the Australian Constitution, the state and territory parliaments, and the role of the Governor-General, the Parliament trail examines Australian parliamentary democracy from all angles. The trail complements the existing Prime Minister’s trail, and is the latest in an on-going series of new content for the Exploring Democracy website.

Visit the new Parliament trail