Negotiate a minority government

Getting started

• Ensure students understand the difference between a majority and minority government: a majority government occurs when a party is voted in with more than half of the members of the House of Representatives. If no party wins a majority of seats, it is called a hung parliament. The parties will negotiate with independents and minor parties – the crossbench – to try to secure support for their party.
  If the negotiations are successful, the party with the support of more than half of the members of the House of Representatives forms a minority government.
• Research Australia’s most recent minority government – the Minority government milestone on the Australian Parliament history timeline is a good place to start. Ask students to find out:
  • the number of seats won by each of the major parties
  • the minor parties and independents that won seats and which major party they supported
  • the final numbers of support for each major party.
• Discuss with students why they think it took 17 days of negotiation before the Labor party was able to form government. What sort of discussions might have taken place during this time?

Activity (up to 45 minutes)

1. Present students with the following scenario:

There has been an election in Australia but neither of the 2 major parties has a majority in the House of Representatives. The only way one of the parties can form government is if they can negotiate an agreement with the independents or minor parties – the crossbench – to achieve the support of the majority of members of the House. Without the support of the majority of members of the House, the government will be unable to get their bills, including the Budget, passed. One of the major parties needs the support of at least 3 of the 5 crossbenchers to form government.

2. Organise the class using the Group organisation table as a guide. Each student will either be a member of the House of Representatives or a press gallery journalist whose role is to report on the negotiations as they unfold.
3. Distribute a Secret instruction card to each group and give them a few minutes to read and think about their secret instructions. Remind students they are to play the part they have been allocated and to focus on what they want to achieve. 
4. Allocate space within the classroom as a party room for each major party. The major parties meet at the party room space to develop a shared understanding of their party’s values and priorities. Each party should then elect a party leader and announce who they have elected to the class.
5. Assign each crossbencher their own office space within the classroom. Whilst the major parties are in discussions, crossbench members should talk to each other about their values and priorities and identify common areas of interest. These common areas of interest may lead the crossbench to form alliances. 
6. Ask the press gallery to listen to the discussions and share with the class what they hear by writing on the whiteboard, typing on a screen or putting post-it notes on the walls. 
7. Hold a press conference. Invite the press gallery journalists to interview the leaders of the major parties about what their values are and what they would achieve if they formed government. Then journalists interview each crossbencher about their values and what they would like to achieve during this parliament.
8. Give both major parties 2 minutes to strategise: 
   • Whose support do they want to win?
   • What are they prepared to say or do to win it?
9. Ensure crossbenchers understand that it is in their interest for one party to form government, as they would have to recontest their seats in another election if neither team gained the support of the majority of the House.
10. Toss a coin or play rock, paper, scissors to decide which major party will negotiate with the crossbench first. The team that wins has 2 minutes to negotiate with the crossbench in their offices. The team should send at least one representative to negotiate with each crossbencher. The students acting as the press gallery listen to these negotiations to report back to the class. Meanwhile, the party that lost the coin toss can continue to strategise.
11. Provide an opportunity for the other major party to negotiate with the crossbench for 2 minutes. The first party can return to their party room and discuss the results of the first round of negotiations. Once again, the press gallery listens in and reports on the negotiations.
12. The press gallery journalists present a ‘news bulletin’ to the class summarising the negotiations so far.
13. The major parties have a second chance to negotiate for 2 minutes each with the crossbenchers. Drawing on what was reported in the news bulletin, the major parties may wish to make new offers to some of the crossbenchers to secure their support.
14. At the completion of the second round of negotiations, the crossbenchers hold a press conference with the press gallery journalists.
    They announce which major party they will support to form government or if neither major party has the support of the crossbench.

Discussion questions

• If a party was able to form government, how did they gain the support they needed? If neither party was able to form government, another election must be held. Why would this outcome usually be avoided?
• Were there similarities or overlap in the values and policies presented by the 2 major parties? Did the parties make any similar offers or promises to the crossbench? Why might this happen?
• How did the press gallery reporting impact the negotiations? At Parliament House, there is dedicated office space for journalists, as well as a gallery for them to watch proceedings in the Senate and House of Representatives. Why do you think there is space for the media at Parliament House?

Extension

Test the strength of your class’s minority government by passing a bill in the Make a law classroom activity.

• Government
• Years 7+8