Parliament of Tasmania

Bicameral parliament in Tasmania

Parliament of Tasmania

52nd Parliament

Coat of arms of Tasmania

Tasmanian Parliament logo

Type
Type|

Bicameral

Houses| Legislative Council
House of Assembly
Sovereign| Governor of Tasmania[a]
History
Founded| 2 December 1856; 168 years ago (2 December 1856)
Leadership

Governor

Barbara Baker
since 16 June 2021

President of the Legislative Council

Craig Farrell, Labor
since 21 May 2019

Speaker of the House of Assembly

Vacant
since 19 July 2025

Premier

Jeremy Rockliff, Liberal
since 8 April 2022

Leader of the Opposition

Dean Winter, Labor
since 10 April 2024

Structure
Seats| 50 MPs
35 MHAs
15 MLCs

House of Assembly political groups

| Caretaker government (14)

* Liberal (14)

Opposition (10)

* Labor (10)

Crossbench (11)

* Greens (5)
* Independent (5)
* Shooters, Fishers and Farmers (1)

Legislative Council political groups

| Government (3)

* Liberal (3)[b]

Opposition (3)

* Labor (3)[c]

Crossbench (9)

* Greens (1)
* Independent (8)[d][4]

Elections

House of Assembly voting system

| Proportional representation via Hare-Clark system (STV)

Legislative Council voting system

| Partial Preferential (IRV)

Last House of Assembly election

| 19 July 2025

Last Legislative Council election

| 24 May 2025 (periodic)

Next House of Assembly election

| By 2029

Next Legislative Council election

| 2 May 2026
Meeting place
Parliament House, Hobart,
Tasmania, Australia
Website
parliament.tas.gov.au

The Parliament of Tasmania is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Tasmania. It follows a Westminster-derived parliamentary system and consists of the governor of Tasmania (as representative of the King), the Legislative Council (the upper house), and the House of Assembly (the lower house).[1] Since 1841, the Legislative Council has met in Parliament House, Hobart, with the House of Assembly following suit from its establishment in 1856. The Parliament of Tasmania first met in 1856.

The powers of the Parliament are prescribed in the Constitution of Tasmania. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, Tasmania has been a state of the Commonwealth of Australia, and the Constitution of Australia regulates its relationship with the Commonwealth. Under the Australian Constitution, Tasmania ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas.

The leader of the party or coalition with the confidence of the House of Assembly is invited by the governor to form the Government and become the premier of Tasmania.

Throughout its history, the Tasmanian Parliament frequently had members who previously served in Federal Parliament proportionally more so than the other state and territory parliaments.

The Government currently consists of a Liberal Lambie minority government, formed after the 2024 State Election. The Second Rockliff ministry consists of solely Liberal members.

## History

[edit]

The island of Van Diemen's Land (now known as Tasmania) was claimed and subsequently settled by the United Kingdom in 1803. Initially, it was administered by the governor of New South Wales, as part of that British Colony of New South Wales. In 1825, Van Diemen's Land became a separate British colony, administered separately from New South Wales, with a Legislative Council of six men appointed to advise the lieutenant governor of Van Diemen's Land who had sole governance of the colony. The Council initially held meetings in a room adjacent to the old Government House that was located near to the present site of Franklin Square, but by 1841 they relocated meetings to the 'Long Room' (now the Members' Lounge) in the Customs House.[5]

In 1850, the British Parliament enacted the Australian Colonies Government Act, which gave Van Diemen's Land the right to elect its first representative government. The size of the Legislative Council was increased from six to 24. Eight members were appointed by the Governor, and 16 were elected by property owners. The new Legislative Council met for the first time in 1852, and by 1854 they had passed the Tasmanian Constitution Act, giving Van Diemen's Land responsible self-government and a new bicameral parliament. Queen Victoria granted Royal assent in 1855 and Van Diemen's Land became a self-governing colony. In the following year, 1856, one of the new parliament's first acts was to change the name of the colony from Van Diemen's Land to Tasmania.

## Houses of Parliament

[edit]

### House of Assembly

[edit]

Main article: Tasmanian House of Assembly

The Tasmanian House of Assembly is the lower house of the Tasmanian Parliament. There are 35 members, with seven members elected from the five divisions.[6][7] The divisions are: Bass, Braddon, Clark, Franklin, and Lyons. The Tasmanian House of Assembly electoral divisions share the same names and boundaries as the Australian House of Representatives divisions for Tasmania.

Members are elected using the Hare-Clark voting system of multi-member proportional representation for a term of up to 4 years.[e]

#### Current distribution of seats

[edit]

The distribution of seats is currently:

Party  | Seats held  | Percentage  | Seat distribution

|
|
|

Liberal | 14 | 40.0%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Labor | 10 | 28.6%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Greens | 5 | 14.3%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Independent | 5 | 14.3%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers | 1 | 2.9%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

| Electorate  | Seats won

|

Bass |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Braddon |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Clark |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Franklin |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Lyons |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  | Liberal

|

| Labor
| Greens
| Independent
| Shooters, Fishers and Farmers

### Legislative Council

[edit]

Main article: Tasmanian Legislative Council

The Tasmanian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Tasmanian Parliament. It has 15 members, each elected from a single-member electoral division. The boundaries of the divisions are reviewed by tribunal every 9 years.[9]

Elections are conducted annually on a 6-year periodic cycle; 3 divisions will be up for election in May one year, then 2 divisions in May the following year and so on. As such, each member will normally serve a term of 6 years.

#### Current distribution of seats

[edit]

The current distribution of seats (updated post 2024 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election is:

Party  | Seats held  | Percentage  | Seat distribution

|
|
|

Independents | 7 | 46.7%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Liberal Party | 4 | 26.7%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Labor Party | 3 | 20.0%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Greens | 1 | 6.7%  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

| Electorate  | Seats won

|

Derwent |
Elwick |
Hobart |
Huon |
Launceston |
McIntyre |
Mersey |
Montgomery |
Murchison |
Nelson |
Pembroke |
Prosser |
Rosevears |
Rumney |
Windermere |
|  | Independent

|

| Liberal
| Labor
| Greens

## Longest-serving members

[edit]

Members of the Tasmanian upper and lower houses with over 30 years of service.

Name  | Party  | Chamber  | Start of tenure  | End of tenure  | Period of service

|
|
|
|
|

Michael Polley |  | Labor | House of Assembly  | 22 April 1972 | 15 March 2014 | 41 years, 327 days
Sir John Evans |  | Commonwealth Liberal | House of Assembly  | 20 January 1897 | 20 February 1937 | 40 years, 31 days
William Dodery |  | Independent  | House of Assembly  | 4 June 1861 | 30 June 1870 | 39 years, 94 days
Legislative Council  | 7 March 1877 | 7 May 1907
Neil Campbell |  | Liberal League | House of Assembly  | 10 June 1922 | 19 February 1955 | 37 years, 236 days
Legislative Council  | 14 May 1955 | 25 April 1960
Sir Walter Lee |  | Liberal League | House of Assembly  | 30 April 1909 | 23 November 1946 | 37 years, 207 days
William Moore |  | Independent  | House of Assembly  | 14 September 1871 | 1 August 1877 | 37 years, 198 days
Legislative Council  | 13 September 1877 | 4 May 1909
Dr Edward Crowther |  | Free Trade | House of Assembly  | 26 November 1878 | 30 April 1912 | 33 years, 156 days
Sir Robert Cosgrove |  | Labor | House of Assembly  | 31 May 1919 | 10 June 1922 | 33 years, 70 days
30 June 1925 | 9 May 1931
9 June 1934 | 25 August 1958
Frederick Grubb |  | Independent  | Legislative Council  | 6 March 1879 | 1 November 1880 | 31 years, 325 days
12 February 1881 | 1 May 1911
John Madden |  | Labor | House of Assembly  | 20 June 1936 | 13 October 1956 | 31 years, 255 days
23 December 1957 | 10 May 1969
Bill Neilson |  | Labor | House of Assembly  | 23 November 1946 | 1 December 1977 | 31 years, 8 days
John Dwyer VC |  | Labor | House of Assembly  | 9 May 1931 | 17 January 1962 | 30 years, 253 days
Sir Alexander Lillico |  | Independent  | Legislative Council  | 6 May 1924 | 8 May 1954 | 30 years, 2 days

## See also

[edit]

* Parliaments of the Australian states and territories
* Official Openings by the Monarch in Australia

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Unlike most of the other states, the governor of Tasmania is explicitly listed as a constituent part of Parliament, instead of merely acting in the King’s name.[1][2]
2. ^ Nick Duigan, MLC for Windermere, Kerry Vincent, MLC for Prosser, Jo Palmer, MLC for Rosevears
3. ^ Craig Farrell, MLC for Derwent, Luke Edmunds, MLC for Pembroke, Sarah Lovell, MLC for Rumney
4. ^ Current independent MLCs: Rosemary Armitage (Launceston), Ruth Forrest (Murchison), Mike Gaffney (Mersey), Dean Harriss (Huon), Casey Hiscutt (Montgomery), Tania Rattray (McIntyre), Bec Thomas (Elwick), Meg Webb (Nelson).[3]
5. ^ Since 1976; prior to 1976, the maximum term of the Assembly was five years.[8]

## References

[edit]

### Specific references

[edit]

1. ^ a b Constitution Act 1934 (Tas) s 10. "The Governor and the Legislative Council and House of Assembly shall together constitute the Parliament of Tasmania."
2. ^ Carney, Gerard (2006). The Constitutional Systems of the Australian States and Territories. Cambridge University Press. pp. 78–79\. ISBN 9780521863056.
3. ^ "Members of the Tasmanian Legislative Council (as of 6 June 2019)" (PDF). Parliament of Tasmania. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
4. ^ "Legislative Council elections 2025". Tasmanian Electoral Commission. 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
5. ^ "Tasmanian Parliament". Parliament.tas.gov.au. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
6. ^ "pure"+AND+PitValid=@pointInTime(20230816000000))+OR+(PrintType="act.reprint"+AND+Amending="pure"+AND+PitValid=@pointInTime(20230816000000))+OR+(PrintType="reprint"+AND+Amending<>"pure"+AND+PitValid=@pointInTime(20230816000000))+OR+(PrintType="reprint"+AND+Amending="pure"+AND+PitValid=@pointInTime(20230816000000)))+AND+Title=("expansion")&dQuery=Document+Types="Acts,+Amending+Acts,+SRs,+Amending+SRs",+Search+In="Title",+All+Words="expansion",+Point+In+Time="16/08/2023"">"Expansion of House of Assembly Act 2022". legislation.tas.gov.au.
7. ^ Matt Maloney (17 November 2022). "Tasmania's House of Assembly to have 35 members in 2025 - if not sooner". The Examiner.
8. ^ Constitution Act 1972 (Tas) s.79
9. ^ "Tasmanian Legislative Council". Tasmanian Electoral Commission. 2006-09-08. Archived from the original on 2006-03-01.

### General references

[edit]

* "Tasmanian Parliament". Parliament of Tasmania. 2023-07-21.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Parliament of Tasmania.

* Parliament of Tasmania

* v
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Members of the Parliament of Tasmania

House of Assembly|

* 1856–1861
* 1861–1862
* 1862–1866
* 1866–1871
* 1871–1872
* 1872–1877
* 1877–1882
* 1882–1886
* 1886–1891
* 1891–1893
* 1893–1897
* 1897–1900
* 1900–1903
* 1903–1906
* 1906–1909
* 1909–1912
* 1912–1913
* 1913–1916
* 1916–1919
* 1919–1922
* 1922–1925
* 1925–1928
* 1928–1931
* 1931–1934
* 1934–1937
* 1937–1941
* 1941–1946
* 1946–1948
* 1948–1950
* 1950–1955
* 1955–1956
* 1956–1959
* 1959–1964
* 1964–1969
* 1969–1972
* 1972–1976
* 1976–1979
* 1979–1982
* 1982–1986
* 1986–1989
* 1989–1992
* 1992–1996
* 1996–1998
* 1998–2002
* 2002–2006
* 2006–2010
* 2010–2014
* 2014–2018
* 2018–2021
* 2021–2024
* 2024–2025
* 2025–2029

Legislative Council|

* 1879–1885
* 1885–1891
* 1891–1897
* 1897–1903
* 1903–1909
* 1909–1915
* 1915–1921
* 1921–1927
* 1927–1933
* 1933–1939
* 1939–1945
* 1945–1951
* 1951–1957
* 1957–1963
* 1963–1969
* 1969–1975
* 1975–1981
* 1981–1987
* 1987–1993
* 1993–1999
* 1999–2005
* 2002–2006
* 2005–2011
* 2006–2010
* 2010–2014
* 2011–2017
* 2017–2023
* 2023–2029

* v
* t
* e

Government of Tasmania

Executive|

* Monarchy
* Governor
* Premier
* Deputy Premier
* Cabinet
* Police

Legislative|

* Parliament
* House of Assembly
* Legislative Council
* Electoral divisions
* MHAs
* MLCs
* President of the Legislative Council
* Speaker of the House of Assembly
* Opposition Leader

Judicial|

* Supreme Court
* Magistrates Court
* Coroners Court

* v
* t
* e

Tasmania

General|

* Ecology
* Economy
* Education
* Energy
* Flag
* Geography
* Geology
* Government
* History
* Local Government
* Parliament
* Police
* Politics
* Rail transport
* Sport
* Symbols
* List of Tasmanians

Regions|

* Central Highlands
* East Coast
* Midlands
* North East
* North West
* South East
* South West
* West Coast

Cities|

* Burnie
* Devonport
* Hobart
* Launceston

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