Australasian Study of Parliament Group Lecture by Professor Emerita Anne Twomey AO - Can the Senate initiate a constitutional referendum?
24 March 2026
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Special Events Australian Parliament
11:03 - 12:38
Speaker 7
The treasurer of the ACT chapter of the ASPG and the director of procedure and research in the senate. And I would like to begin today's lecture by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we are meeting today, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples and their elders past, present, and emerging. As we have people joining us online from around Australia, I would also like to extend that acknowledgment to the aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, of the places you are joining from us... Joining us from. It is my pleasure to introduce today's presenter, professor emerita Anne Toomey, who many of you will likely know.
Anne is a professor emerita of the University of Sydney who has taught and researched in the field of constitutional law. She has previously worked for the Commonwealth Parliamentary Research Service, the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, the cabinet office of New South Wales, and is currently a consultant for Gilbert and Tobin Lawyers. She also has a YouTube channel, Constitutional Clarion, which addresses constitutional issues, including the very topic of today's lecture. Professor Toomey will present for about forty five minutes or so, and then if there is time permitting, we're, questions and discussion for about fifteen minutes. So I should also mention that the senate will be sitting at 01:00 today, so there will be some bowels in the middle of the presentation, but we are just gonna work through through that.
Would you please join me in welcoming professor Toomey to deliver her lecture, can the senate initiate a constitutional referendum? Thank you.
12:42 - 13:14
Speaker 1
Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to be back here. In fact, it was making me remember as I walked in the room that the very first senate committee hearing that I attended as a secretary to a committee was in this room, and senator Barney Cooney then introduced me to everyone as being a relative of very famous Victorian footballers. Not really, but there is a very, very distant relationship. But, anyway, I thought at that stage, well, whatever fame, you know, you can get, I'll I'll take it.
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