POLS1002 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Federalism In Australia, Russian Empire, Drainage Basin
23 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
L7 FEDERALISM
What is eat y ulti-leel goerets?
What are the difference between federal and unitary systems of governance?
What are the features of Australian federalism?
MULTILEVEL GOVERNANCE
- Multiple levels of govt. can offer different public goods and services at different territorial scales, from
global to local and many intermediate sizes. Multiple levels of governance go together with a
polycentric world.
- Classic categories of political communities include city, state, empire and federation. From small local
areas to metamorhpis colomgrants.
- Certain public goods can be considered global, where they are able to satisfy very large common
interests and benefit many people e.g. protection of the atmosphere, the seas and oceans, arms trade,
fight against terrorism require universal maintenance. Trade agreements and common currencies
would better the larger the scale at which they were enforced.
- Broad transport routes and communication networks may be well provided, perhaps, at a continental
level.
- Midsize territorial ranges include management of the waters of a river basin and administration of civil
law and justice.
- Local level includes services for personal assistance.
- Right now
o Suburb of Action
o Inner North of Canberra
o Australian Capital Territory
o Australia
o Southern Hemisphere
o As an analytical tool this helps us establish who has authority, separation of powers. Geography
lesson. Political dynamics in city.
Classification
- Small: City
- Medium: Sub-territorial unit
- Large: State
- Very largeEmpire
City
- Small size in territory and population
- High degrees of internal harmony, as defined by the economic and ethnic characteristics of their
members
- Simple and soft forms of governance based on the ease with which they form a social majority
supporting collective, enforceable decisions.
- E.g. The poleis of Greece; the German territories, the Swiss cities.
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- Among the UN members 41 are microstates with fewer than one million inhabitants, and seventy mini-
states with a population between1 and 10 million inhabitants e.g. Ireland, Botswana. The median
country size is 7 million inhabitants.
- Loal puli goods.
▪ Rubbish collection, water
- Bad at making money. Bad at national defence.
- Why do oth the Clth ad state got. fight for your affetio? Beause thats here all the people
live.
The State
- The state is the combination of people, territory and sovereignty
- A state exists when a sovereign power (i.e. Parliament) rules over a population residing within the
boundaries of a fixed territory
- Large or medium size in terms of both territory and population
- Fixed territory and formal borders. Formal recognition of the territorial limits of state are intended as
protection from external attack, invasion, immigrants and imports.
- Sovereignty → the state has supreme authority over a territory and population.
- Monopoly and homogenization. Has an internal hierarchy of powers. Tends to establish a uniform
administration over the territory, and to promote the homogenization of important social and cultural
characteristics of its subjects or citizens.
- First Wave: Dissolution of the Spanish Empire in the Americas. By 1840 the Spanish colonial
viceroyalties had become fifteen republics of disparate size and composition.
- Second Wave: arose during the WWI with the fall of the Austrio-Hungarian, Ottoman and Russian
empires.
- Third Wave: Post WWII due to the dismantling of the European colonial empires especially the British
and French in Sothern Asia, Africa and the Middle East. 40 new independent states were created
between 1945-1960 and 30 more by 1975.
- Fourth Wave: Due to the end of the Cold War. Soviet disunion of the Russian empire, the disintegration
of the multi-ethnic Yugoslavia and the split of Czechoslovakia. After 1991 within a couple of years 20
new independent republics were created in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
- The etter estalished large states are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD). These states must share a commitment to democratic govt., good governance,
and a market economy. 32 states. 23 in Europe, 3 in North America, 2 in Asia and 2 in Oceania.
Empire
- Very large size
- Absence of fixed or permanent boundaries
- Compound of diverse groups and territorial units. Today, multiethenic federations can be arranged
with less heterogeneous institutional regimes but may develop their own rules and be linked to the
center by diverse institutional formulas.
- Multilevel, often overlapping jurisdictions. Central govt. may rule indirectly through local govts.,
division of powers is widespread.
- Had local, state, national and a tie back to the empire e.g. fur trade in Canada with Britain.
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Unitary Systems
- Unitary systems are those in which a single sovereign govt. rules
the country. Like pies → held together with mushy stuff in the
middle.
- All powers are concentrated in one level of govt.
o Sub-levels of govt. can be created, abolished, expanded, and
retracted by the central authority
o Britain, Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden, Italy,
France
o Devolve power → e.g. Scotland being devolved power by the
national govt.
Devolution
- Devolution systems of government are those in which the central
government devolves (or gives) power to regional governments, subject to its overriding control
- Scotland and Wales
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Multiple levels of govt. can offer different public goods and services at different territorial scales, from global to local and many intermediate sizes. Multiple levels of governance go together with a polycentric world. Classic categories of political communities include city, state, empire and federation. Certain public goods can be considered global, where they are able to satisfy very large common interests and benefit many people e. g. protection of the atmosphere, the seas and oceans, arms trade, fight against terrorism require universal maintenance. Trade agreements and common currencies would better the larger the scale at which they were enforced. Broad transport routes and communication networks may be well provided, perhaps, at a continental level. Midsize territorial ranges include management of the waters of a river basin and administration of civil law and justice. Inner north of canberra: australian capital territory, australia, southern hemisphere, as an analytical tool this helps us establish who has authority, separation of powers.
