Australian Electoral Commission 2009 Redistribution of Tasmania into Electoral Divisions Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 Section 75 © Commonwealth of Australia 2009 ISBN 978-1-921427-09-1 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Commonwealth. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Commonwealth Copyright Administration, Attorney-General’s Department, Robert Garran Offi ces, National Circuit, Canberra, ACT 2600 or posted at http://www.ag.gov.au/cca Published by the Australian Electoral Commission Printed by Union Offset Printers, Fyshwick, ACT Contents Part 1 Redistribution of Tasmania into Electoral Divisions 1.1 Determination made by the augmented Electoral 2 Commission for Tasmania. 1.2 Reasons for the determination made by the augmented 3 Electoral Commission for Tasmania. 1.3 Statistical summary. 13 1.4 Description of the method used to calculate the areas of 14 electoral divisions. 1.5 General description of each electoral division. 15 Appendix A Composition of the augmented Electoral Commission for 21 Tasmania and the Redistribution Committee for Tasmania. Appendix B List of objections lodged with the Australian Electoral 22 Commission pursuant to section 69(1) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. Appendix C List of comments on objections lodged with the Australian 23 Electoral Commission pursuant to section 69(3) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. Appendix D List of persons who appeared at the public inquiry into 24 objections held by the augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania in Hobart on 8 October 2008. Appendix E List of persons who appeared at the public inquiry into 25 objections held by the augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania in Devonport on 27 October 2008. Appendix F Guidelines for the naming of electoral divisions. 26 Appendix G Redistribution timetable. 28 Part 2 Enclosures Redistribution statistics; public suggestions to the CD Redistribution Committee; comments on public suggestions; report – 2008 Proposed Redistribution of Tasmania into Electoral Divisions; public objections to the proposed redistribution; comments on public objections to the proposed redistribution; transcripts of the inquiries into public objections; PDF maps of electoral divisions. Composite map showing the boundaries of the electoral Paper map divisions for Tasmania as determined by the augmented (1 sheet) Electoral Commission for Tasmania. PART 1 Redistribution of Tasmania into Electoral Divisions 16 February 2009 Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 Sections 73 and 74 1.1 DETERMINATION MADE BY THE AUGMENTED ELECTORAL COMMISSION FOR TASMANIA Pursuant to section 73 of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, the augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania hereby determines that the names and boundaries of the electoral divisions into which Tasmania is to be distributed are as shown on the maps certifi ed by the members of the augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania and lodged in fi le number 08/1150 at the National Offi ce of the Australian Electoral Commission in Canberra. These maps are numbered in the following sequence: TAS01/2009 Bass TAS02/2009 Braddon TAS03/2009 Denison TAS04/2009 Franklin TAS05/2009 Lyons The augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania reached this determination on the basis that it determined the names and boundaries of the electoral divisions in Tasmania should be as proposed by the Redistribution Committee for Tasmania in its report published on 22 August 2008, subject to the following changes: (i) the Kentish local government area (LGA) shall be located in the Division of Lyons; (ii) the western part of the Latrobe LGA shall be located in the Division of Braddon in the manner shown on the relevant maps; (iii) the whole of the Clarence LGA shall be located in the Division of Franklin; and (iv) the whole of the locality of Gagebrook shall be located in the Division of Lyons. J C S Burchett QC Chairperson augmented Electoral Commission for Tasmania 2 1.2 REASONS FOR THE DETERMINATION MADE BY THE AUGMENTED ELECTORAL COMMISSION FOR TASMANIA Representation of Tasmania in the House of Representatives 1. On 17 November 2005 the Electoral Commissioner made a determination of State and Territory entitlements to representation under section 48(1) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (the Electoral Act). Under the determination, and by virtue of section 24 of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, Tasmania is entitled to fi ve members of the House of Representatives. Direction for a redistribution of Tasmanian electoral divisions 2. Section 59(1) of the Electoral Act provides that a redistribution shall commence whenever the Australian Electoral Commission (the Electoral Commission) so directs by notice published in the Commonwealth Government Gazette (the Gazette). 3. Section 59(2) of the Electoral Act provides that a direction to commence a redistribution shall be made if a period of seven years after the day on which the State or Territory was last distributed into electoral divisions has expired. If that expiry occurs within one year before the date of expiry of a House of Representatives by effl uxion of time, section 59(4) provides that the direction shall be made within 30 days after the day of the fi rst meeting of the next following House of Representatives. 4. The last distribution of Tasmania into electoral divisions was determined under section 73(1) of the Electoral Act on 11 February 2000. The Electoral Commission directed on 13 February 2008, by notice published in the Gazette, that a redistribution was to commence in Tasmania. 5. At the end of 13 February 2008, the day determined by the Electoral Commission for the redistribution to begin, the number of electors enrolled in Tasmania was 352 203. 6. Redistribution statistics which include the electoral enrolment fi gures as at 13 February 2008 were made available on the Australian Electoral Commission website. In addition, copies were available upon request at the Hobart offi ce of the Australian Electoral Commission. The statistics were given at the following levels: • Census Collection District (CCD) • Statistical Local Area (SLA) • Electoral Division • State. 3 Quota 7. Under section 65(2) of the Electoral Act, the Electoral Commissioner determined that the quota of electors for Tasmania was 70 441 (352 203 divided by fi ve members). The permitted range of the margin of allowance of 10% below and above the quota was 63 397 to 77 485 accordingly (Table 1). The Electoral Act does not permit any greater variation from the quota to be provided for in a redistribution. Appointment of the Redistribution Committee for Tasmania 8. In accordance with section 60 of the Electoral Act, the Electoral Commission appointed the Redistribution Committee for Tasmania on 9 April 2008. The Redistribution Committee (the Committee) comprised the following members: Electoral Commissioner Mr Ian Campbell Australian Electoral Offi cer for Tasmania Ms Marie Neilson Surveyor-General, Tasmania Mr Peter Murphy Auditor-General, Tasmania Mr Mike Blake Redistribution Committee’s proposed redistribution 9. All preconditions having been met, the Committee made a proposed redistribution of Tasmania under section 66 of the Electoral Act, stating its reasons in writing; caused the notice required by section 68(1)(c) of the Electoral Act to be published in the Gazette on 22 August 2008; and took the other steps required by section 68. Projected enrolment 10. In making its proposed redistribution, the Redistribution Committee was required by section 66(3) of the Electoral Act, as far as practicable, to endeavour to ensure that, if a redistribution proceeded in accordance with its proposal, the number of electors enrolled in each electoral division in Tasmania would not, at the projection time determined under section 63A, be less than 96.5% or more than 103.5% of the average divisional enrolment of the State at that time. Correspondingly, the augmented Electoral Commission is required by section 73(4), in making its determination by notice published in the Gazette under section 73(1), as far as practicable, to endeavour to ensure that the number of electors enrolled in each electoral division in Tasmania will not, at the projection time determined under section 63A, fall outside the same parameters. Section 63A, both for the purposes of the Redistribution Committee and for the purposes of the augmented Electoral Commission, fi xes the projection time by reference to the time of making the determination which the augmented Electoral Commission is to make by notice published in the Gazette, that is to say, the date of gazettal; the projection time is the end of the period of 3 years and 6 months after that date. 4 11. By virtue of these provisions, it is necessary for the projection time (commonly referred to as “the projection date”) to be fi xed early in the redistribution procedures, so that the appropriate calculations may be made, and when notices are given under section 64, persons wishing to make suggestions or comments may be able to take account of projected enrolments at the relevant time. For the redistribution of Tasmania, the Redistribution Committee and the augmented Commission have taken the projection time as being 15 August 2012 when, it has been calculated, the projected average divisional enrolment of Tasmania will be 73 007, yielding a permissible range for projected divisional enrolments of 70 452 to 75 562 (Table 1). But the augmented Commission has decided to make its determination, by notice published in the Gazette, on 16 February 2009, and the projection time, being the end of the period of 3 years and 6 months after the time of making the determination, is therefore 16 August 2012, not 15 August 2012. Nor could the augmented Commission have brought its determination forward to 15 February 2009, since that was a Sunday, when the Gazette is not published.