The Minister for Home Affairs:

The Government Statist of New South Wales has telegraphed as follows to the Secretary, Department of Home Affairs:

Re your telegram. Important to have decision if proviso section six of Queensland Elections Act 1885 and similar provisions other Acts exclude Asiatics and Africans within meaning of Constitution Act section 25. These aliens have votes for property only.

The Minister for Home Affairs asks to be advised on the question. Section 6 of the Queensland Act 1885⁽¹⁾ provides(proviso l)that:

No aboriginal native of Australia, India, China, or of the South Sea Islands shall be entitled to be entered on the roll except in respect of a freehold qualification.

Section 25 of the Constitution, with reference to the ascertainment of the quota under section 24, provides that:

For the purposes of the last section, if by the law of any State all persons of any race are disqualified from voting at elections for the more numerous House of the Parliament of the State, then, in reckoning the number of the people of the State or of the Commonwealth, persons of that race resident in that State shall not be counted.

Aboriginal natives of Australia are excluded from the reckoning under section 127 of the Constitution.

The question appears to be whether by the Queensland Act 'all persons' of the other aboriginal races mentioned are disqualified from voting at elections for the Legislative Assembly of the State-in view of the exception of a freehold qualification.

In my opinion the Queensland Act does disqualify 'all persons' of the races named, within the meaning of section 25 of the Constitution; and persons of those races should therefore not be reckoned for the purpose of the quota.⁽²⁾

[Vol. 2, p. 426]

(1) The Elections Act of1885 (Qld).

(2) This opinion was published in Commonwealth of Australia, House of Representatives, Votes and Proceedings 1904, Vol. I, p. 415.