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PRIME MINISTER Press Statement No. 454
17 February 1975
Mr Anthony and Constitutional Conventions
Mr Anthony's latest outburst suggests that his memory as well as
his principles are on the down-turn.
It is only a little more than a year since Mr Anthony was an ardent
defender of the principle of Senate vacancies being filled by members of the
same party as Senators who had died or resigned.
So concerned was he about this principle that in 1973, before the
retirement of Senator Prowse, he telephoned the Premier of Western
Australia to see whether the principle would be followed. He was assured by
the Labor Premier, Mr Tonkin, that a Country Party replacement would be
appointed to replace a Country Party Senator who wished to retire.
Mr Anthony's rejection now of this very proper Constitutional
convention must be related to his desire to break yet another.
It is quite apparent from the rushby thoe Countr 3iLrty to embrace
Mr Lewis' in( efenSible stand on the issue of finding a replacement for
a KSW L~ tbor Senator, that they are not at all sure of their numberp i" the
Senate. Even without putting a Liberal or Country Party Senator in Mr Justice
Murphy's place, the Opposition has the power to reject any Senate motion,
including the provision of funds for the Government to continue in office.
It is clear that the Opposition is not at all certain that it can
control its own nuinbersa It fears that there may be one Senator within its
own ranks who has a real respect for the Constitution and its Conventions,
and who would stop short of voting outright for a rejection of Supply.
In April last year some of the Liberal Senators were able to tell
themselves that they had not actually voted against Supply. This time Mr
Anthony is making sure that he will have the numbers to go the whole way,
so that he can strike a determined blow at one of the most fundamental
Constitutional Conventions: that the Senate does not determine who should
be in Government, or when elections should be held.