Anthony Albanese has reiterated his support for four-year parliamentary terms as he fielded questions about the timing of the next election on only the third day of 2024.
The prime minister was asked on Wednesday if Australia would be headed to voting booths this year, with rumours the government would want an early election if its polling fortunes reverse to get a mandate to act on issues such as the stage-three tax cuts.
In confirming the election is not due until May 2025, Albanese added he believed the lower house parliamentary terms were too short and he would like to see standardisation with the states, which have set four-year terms.
“I think that our terms are too short with just three years,” he said. “Our view, our long-term policy, and we’ve put it to the Australian people, is for four-year terms, but I don’t anticipate that happening any time soon and I think that’s unfortunate.”
Most Westminster-based parliamentary systems began as unfixed terms, which gives the government of the day the discretion to choose the election date within a set time frame. Australia remains one of the only British colonies to not switch to a fixed parliamentary term, which is the more common norm across western democracies.
Australia and New Zealand are the only Westminster nations to have three terms, with the UK and similar democracies setting their terms for five years, while Canada has set four-year terms, in line with the United States.
The drafters of Australia’s constitution chose three-year terms because at the time, it was the longest period between elections within the separate colonies, which were to become states under federation. Queensland moved to fixed four-year terms after a 2016 state referendum, which standardised the state election terms, making the federal election term the anomaly. Changing the parliamentary term would require a national referendum as well as changes to the Senate terms, which are set at six years for the states, in order to fit in new lower house terms.
Proponents of four-year fixed terms believe it would give governments more opportunity to implement their agendas and carry out reforms. Critics of the policy note unpopular governments would be in power for longer and governments would be less accountable.
The Greens support fixed, three-year terms for the lower house, which would remove the power of governments to choose the election date but not add any time between visits to the voting booth.
The Liberal National party MP David Coleman introduced a private member’s bill in 2017 for fixed four-year terms, which had the in-principle support of ministers in the Turnbull government, and then opposition leader Bill Shorten, but the legislation did not move forward.
After raising the issue of four-year terms, Albanese pointed out 2024 would be a year of elections for Australia’s allies and regional partners.
“If you go around the world, there are more elections, democratic elections, this year than at any time in global history,” he said.
“That’s a good thing. Some of those are very important – in India in a few months’ time, in Indonesia in February, as well as, of course … the United States at the end of the year.
“But I’d say that elections like Indonesia and India in our region are very important, as is the European parliament elections that will take place in the middle of the year. As are the elections in the United Kingdom, which are likely to be held, even though they have five-year terms, they’re likely to be held this year rather than next.
“But we’re focused on governing during the year.”
