A new book by Dr Peta Stephenson, Nationhood, Executive Power and the Australian Constitution, was published recently.
About the book
The first comprehensive study of the nature and scope of the nationhood power, this book brings a fresh perspective to the scholarship on the powers of the executive branch in Australia.
The question of when the Federal Executive Government can act without the authorisation of the Parliament is contested and highly topical in Australia. In recent judicial decisions, Australian courts have suggested that statutory authorisation may not be required where the Federal Executive Government is exercising the nationhood power; that is, the implied executive power derived from the character and status of the Commonwealth as the national government.
The Federal Executive Government has relied on this power to implement controversial spending programmes respond to national emergencies and exclude non-citizens from Australia. Together, the chapters in this book analyse and evaluate judicial observations about the operation of the nationhood power in these different contexts and the limits that apply to it.
While the focus of this book is on the nationhood power, it also addresses broader issues concerning the relationship between the legislative and executive branches in parliamentary systems of government. This book makes an important contribution to the literature on executive power and will appeal to constitutional lawyers, scholars and practitioners and those who are involved in the administration of government.
Nationhood, Executive Power and the Australian Constitution is available now in Hardback and as an EBook from Bloomsbury.
About Dr Peta Stephenson
Dr Peta Stephenson is a Lecturer in the School of Law at QUT. She teaches and researches in the fields of constitutional and public law, and is particularly interested in exploring the powers and functions of the Executive, the relationship between the legislative and executive branches of government and federalism.
You can find out more about Peta and her research on her QUT Academic profile.
