1913 Australian referendum (Trusts)

The Constitution Alteration (Trusts) Bill 1912,^[1] was an unsuccessful referendum held in 1913 that sought to alter the Australian Constitution to give the Commonwealth legislative power in respect to trusts.

1913 Australian Trusts referendum

31 May 1913 (1913-05-31)
Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled — "Constitution Alteration (Trusts) 1912" ?
Results
Choice Votes  % Yes 967,331 49.78% No 975,943 50.22% Valid votes 1,943,274 95.69% Invalid or blank votes 87,496 4.31% Total votes 2,030,770 100.00% Registered voters/turnout 2,760,216 73.57%

Question

Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled 'Constitution Alteration (Trusts) 1912'?

The proposal was to alter the text of section 51 of the Constitution to read as follows:^[2]

51. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have Legislative power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to:

(xl.) Trusts, combinations, and monopolies in relation to the production, manufacture, or supply of goods, or the supply of services.

Results

The referendum was not approved by a majority of voters, and a majority of the voters was achieved in only three states.^[3][4]

Result ^[3][4]

State	Electoral roll	Ballots issued	For		Against		Informal
			Vote	%	Vote	%
New South Wales	1,036,187	717,855	319,150	47.12	358,155	52.88	39,294
Victoria	830,391	626,861	301,729	49.71	305,268	50.29	19,536
Queensland	363,082	280,525	147,871	54.78	122,088	45.22	10,345
South Australia	244,026	195,463	96,400	51.67	90,185	48.33	8,661
Western Australia	179,784	132,149	67,342	53.59	58,312	46.41	6,162
Tasmania	106,746	80,398	314,839	45.38	41,935	54.62	3,498
Total for Commonwealth	2,760,216	2,033,251	967,331	49.78	975,943	50.22	87,496
Results	Obtained majority in three states and an overall minority of 8,612 votes. Not carried

Discussion

The 1911 referendum asked a single question that dealt with the acquisition of monopolies. This resolution separated laws in relation to monopolies and the acquisition of monopolies into different questions. Like its forebear, neither resolution was carried. On each of the many occasions a similar question was asked at a referendum the public decided not to vest power in the Commonwealth over these matters.^[4]

• 1911 referendum on monopolies

See also

• Politics of Australia
• History of Australia