Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Report No. 62, 56th Parliament Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee March 2020 Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee Chair Mr Peter Russo MP, Member for Toohey Deputy Chair Mr James Lister MP, Member for Southern Downs Members Mr Stephen Andrew MP, Member for Mirani Mr Jim McDonald MP, Member for Lockyer Mrs Melissa McMahon MP, Member for Macalister Ms Corrine McMillan MP, Member for Mansfield Committee Secretariat Telephone +61 7 3553 6641 Fax +61 7 3553 6699 Email [email protected] Technical Scrutiny +61 7 3553 6601 Secretariat Committee Web Page www.parliament.qld.gov.au/lacsc Acknowledgements The committee acknowledges the assistance provided by Mr David Janetzki MP, Member for Toowoomba South, Shadow Attorney-General and Shadow Minister for Justice. Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Contents Abbreviations iii Chair’s foreword v Recommendation vi 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Role of the committee 1 1.2 Inquiry process 1 1.3 Policy objective of the Bill 1 1.4 Private Member consultation on the Bill 2 1.5 Should the Bill be passed? 2 2 History of voting systems in Queensland 3 2.1 Types of voting systems 3 2.1.1 First-past-the-post 3 2.1.2 Optional preferential 3 2.1.3 Full (compulsory) preferential 4 2.2 Queensland’s history of voting systems 4 2.2.1 1860-1892 4 2.2.2 1892-1942 4 2.2.3 1942-1962 4 2.2.4 1962-1992 5 2.2.5 1992-2016 5 2.2.6 2016-present 5 3 Examination of the Bill 6 3.1 Background 6 3.2 The Bill 6 3.3 Advantages of optional preferential voting 6 3.3.1 Choice 6 3.3.2 Complementarity with compulsory voting 7 3.3.3 Lower informality rates than full preferential voting 8 3.3.4 Options for parties and candidates 9 3.3.5 Optional preferential voting may become de facto first-past-the-post system 9 3.4 Disadvantages of optional preferential voting 10 3.4.1 Exhausted votes 10 3.4.2 Optional preferential voting may become de facto first-past-the-post system 11 3.4.3 Entrenchment of two party system 12 3.4.4 Reduction in choice 12 3.4.5 Inconsistency between state and federal systems 12 3.5 Stakeholders’ recommendations 13 3.5.1 Numbers not tick or cross 13 3.5.2 Education 13 3.5.3 ‘Just vote 1’ campaigns 13 3.6 Matters outside the scope of the Bill 14 Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee i Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 3.6.1 Informal vote analysis report 14 3.6.2 Election advertising and preference deals 14 3.6.3 Conduct elections using first-past-the-post voting 14 3.6.4 Public confidence in the electoral system 14 4 Compliance with the Legislative Standards Act 1992 16 4.1 Fundamental legislative principles 16 4.2 Explanatory notes 16 Appendix A – Submitters 17 Appendix B – Witnesses at public hearing 18 Statement of Reservation 19 Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee ii Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Abbreviations Bill Electoral (Voter’s Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 committee Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee CPV full (compulsory) preferential voting EARC Electoral and Administrative Review Commission ECQ Electoral Commission Queensland FLPs fundamental legislative principles FPTP first-past-the-post LSA Legislative Standards Act 1992 MLA Member of the Legislative Assembly MP Member of Parliament OPV optional preferential voting PCEAR Parliamentary Committee for Electoral and Administrative Review POQA Parliament of Queensland Act 2001 Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee iii Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee iv Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Chair’s foreword This report presents a summary of the Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee’s examination of the Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019. The committee’s task was to consider the policy to be achieved by the legislation and the application of fundamental legislative principles – that is, to consider whether the Bill has sufficient regard to the rights and liberties of individuals, and to the institution of Parliament. On behalf of the committee, I thank those individuals who made written submissions on the Bill and those who gave evidence at the public hearing. I also thank Parliamentary Service staff and Mr David Janetzki MP. I commend this report to the House. Peter Russo MP Chair Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee v Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 Recommendation Recommendation 2 The committee recommends that the Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 not be passed. Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee vi Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 1 Introduction 1.1 Role of the committee The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee (committee) is a portfolio committee of the Legislative Assembly which commenced on 15 February 2018 under the Parliament of Queensland Act 2001 (POQA) and the Standing Rules and Orders of the Legislative Assembly.1 The committee’s primary areas of responsibility are: • Justice and Attorney-General • Police and Corrective Services • Fire and Emergency Services.2 The POQA provides that a portfolio committee is responsible for examining each Bill in its portfolio areas to consider: • the policy to be given effect by the legislation • the application of fundamental legislative principles.3 Mr David Janetzki, Member for Toowoomba South and Shadow Attorney-General and Shadow Minister for Justice, introduced the Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 (Bill) into the Legislative Assembly on 18 September 2019. It was referred to the committee the same day. The committee is to report to the Legislative Assembly by 18 March 2020. 1.2 Inquiry process On 20 September 2019, the committee invited stakeholders and subscribers to make written submissions on the Bill. Nine submitters contributed to the inquiry (see Appendix A for a list of submitters). The committee received a public briefing about the Bill from Mr David Janetzki MP on 14 October 2019. In correspondence dated 1 November 2019, Mr Janetzki MP provided further information in response to questions he took on notice at the briefing. The committee also received written advice on 15 November 2019 from Mr Janetzki MP in response to matters raised in submissions. The committee held a public hearing on 25 November 2019 (see Appendix B for a list of witnesses). The submissions, the correspondence from Mr Janetzki MP and the transcripts of the briefing and hearing are available on the committee’s webpage. 1.3 Policy objective of the Bill At present, full (compulsory) preferential voting (CPV) is used in Queensland state elections. The policy objective of the Bill is to reintroduce the optional preferential voting (OPV) system for state elections in Queensland. The explanatory notes state that the OPV system would: • restore public confidence in the electoral system by reintroducing a voting system recommended by the Electoral and Administrative Review Commission, which was established upon recommendation of the Fitzgerald Inquiry; 1 Parliament of Queensland Act 2001, s 88 and Standing Order 194. 2 Standing Rules and Orders of the Legislative Assembly, schedule 6. 3 Parliament of Queensland Act 2001, s 93(1). Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee 1 Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 • give voters more options to express their political opinions, while preserving the voting choice available under full preferential voting; and • least likely lead the voter to invalidate his or her vote through numbering error because of its simplistic nature.4 1.4 Private Member consultation on the Bill The explanatory notes advise that the OPV system ‘was recommended by the post-Fitzgerald body, the “Electoral and Administrative Review Commission” which underwent a thorough consultation process’.5 1.5 Should the Bill be passed? Standing Order 132(1) requires the committee to determine whether or not to recommend that the Bill be passed. Recommendation The committee recommends that the Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 not be passed. 4 Explanatory notes, p 1. 5 Explanatory notes, p 2. Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee 2 Electoral (Voter's Choice) Amendment Bill 2019 2 History of voting systems in Queensland The three voting systems that have been used in Queensland since 1860 are first-past-the-post (FPTP), OPV and CPV. The table below shows the periods in which the voting systems have been used in Queensland.6 An explanation of the various voting systems and the reasons for the changes in system are provided below the table. Years Voting system in Queensland 1860-1892 first-past-the-post 1892-1942 contingent (a form of optional preferential) 1942-1962 first-past-the-post 1962-1992 full preferential 1992-2016 optional preferential 2016-present full preferential 2.1 Types of voting systems 2.1.1 First-past-the-post Under a FPTP voting system, the candidate who receives the most votes wins the election.7 The winning candidate does not necessarily have the support of the majority of electors as a victory can occur with around 35 per cent of the vote.8 2.1.2 Optional preferential Under an OPV system, a voter may: • vote for a single candidate only (sometimes called ‘plumping’), or • allocate partial preferences (say, two or three but not all candidates), or • allocate a full preferential ranking to all candidates.9 6 The table is based on information in: • Electoral and Administrative Review Commission, A history of the Queensland zonal electoral system (Draft only), August 1990, p 10 • Stephen Stockwell, ‘The impact of optional preferential voting on the 2001 Queensland state election’ in Queensland Review, vol 10(1), May 2003, p 156 • Mr Janetzki MP, Queensland Parliament, Record of Proceedings, 18 September 2019, pp 2926-2927 • Electoral Commission Queensland, ‘Queensland election 2001 ballot paper survey’, Research Report 1/2002, March 2002, p 1 • John Wanna, ‘Democratic and electoral shifts in Queensland: Back to first past the post voting’, pp 1-2.