The Secretary, Department of Home and Territories:

The Senate has carried an amendment to the motion for the second reading of the Northern Territory Representation Bill, as follows:

That the Senate is of opinion that residents of the Northern Territory who would under ordinary circumstances be entitled to a vote under the Commonwealth Electoral laws, should for that purpose be attached to the State of South Australia and accorded the right to vote at the election for senators of that State, thus being granted representation in the Commonwealth Parliament.

Section 7 of the Constitution provides that: 'The Senate shall be composed of senators for each State, directly chosen by the people of the State . . . '

Section 122 of the Constitution, dealing with the government of territories, provides that: 'The Parliament may . . . allow the representation of such territory in either House of the Parliament to the extent and on the terms which it thinks fit'.

In my opinion, the Constitution does not allow the people of a territory to be grouped with the people of a State for the purpose of representation in the Parliament.

To add to the people of a State a number of electors who are not in any sense a part of the people of the State-and who might exercise a controlling influence on the election of senators for the State-would, I think, be a clear breach of the constitutional provision that the senators for a State are to be chosen by the people of the State.

[Vol. 17, p.61]