Brian Costar
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Author Swipe
View article: Postals and personation in the United Kingdom
Postals and personation in the United Kingdom Open
This paper outlines some of the findings and recommendations of the UK Electoral Commission's 2014 Final Report. It questions the methodology used in the report arguing that the data and discussion presented in the report on electoral frau…
View article: Paying the police: 'Greengate' and parliamentary privilege
Paying the police: 'Greengate' and parliamentary privilege Open
On 27 November 2008 the Sergeant at Arms of the United Kingdom House of Commons, Ms Jill Pay, signed a'consent form' to permit the Counter Terrorism Command of the Metropolitan Police to search the office of then Conservative Shadow Minist…
View article: Re-entering chartered waters?
Re-entering chartered waters? Open
In Tasmania, Greens leader Nick McKim is pushing for Labor or the Liberals to strike a written agreement with his party in return for its support. Brian Costar and Jennifer Curtin look at the precedents.
View article: Old figures, new money
Old figures, new money Open
This week’s release of data on political donations and spending hides as much as it reveals - and is already many months out of date, write Graeme Orr and Brian Costar.
View article: New name, old animosities?
New name, old animosities? Open
Next month's election is the first test for the new Liberal National Party in Queensland, writes Brian Costar, and it has quite a fight on its hands.
View article: A bicameral watershed: Parliamentary reform in Victoria
A bicameral watershed: Parliamentary reform in Victoria Open
Key features of Victoria's Constitution (Parliamentary Reform) Act, passed in March 2003.
View article: Looking for an electoral messiah
Looking for an electoral messiah Open
'Leadership' is seldom the key determinant of election results, writes Brian Costar. The mistaken belief has damaged both major parties.
View article: Independent in Indi: what happens now? (And why the Electoral Commission is suddenly under attack)
Independent in Indi: what happens now? (And why the Electoral Commission is suddenly under attack) Open
Peter Clarke talks to Brian Costar about why Cathy McGowan is likely to serve more than one term, why the Electoral Commission is under attack, and who should leader the Labor Party.
View article: The electoral system
The electoral system Open
An electoral system is a device for translating the votes won by candidates in elections into an authoritative outcome, such as seats in a Parliament. Free, fair and frequent elections are essential conditions for any functioning democracy…
View article: St Patrick's day massacre
St Patrick's day massacre Open
Australia's new electoral commissioner has puts the facts back into the electoral reform debate, writes Brian Costar.
View article: A hundred years later, it's time for another vital voting reform
A hundred years later, it's time for another vital voting reform Open
Out of the clash of interests in federal parliament in 1911 came an enduring electoral reform, writes Brian Costar. An update is long overdue
View article: Prisoners and the vote
Prisoners and the vote Open
Next week in Canberra the High Court will hear argument in the case of Roach vs Australian Electoral Commissioner. The plaintiff, who is an inmate of a Victorian Correctional Centre and not eligible for parole before August 2008, is seekin…
View article: Could Labor win Kooyong?
Could Labor win Kooyong? Open
On the back of an envelope, the figures look very interesting. But what's in it for Labor, asks Brian Costar.
View article: Victoria's unexpected minority
Victoria's unexpected minority Open
In Victoria, Steve Bracks's minority government transformed a knife-edge win into electoral longevity and parliamentary reform, write Brian Costar and David Hayward.
View article: Gippsland by-election targeted by alcopop makers
Gippsland by-election targeted by alcopop makers Open
The hottest topic in the south-east corner of Victoria is not alcohol but water, and the lack of it. But the makers of pre-mixed spirits are trying to make the new alcopop tax an issue in the coming Gippsland by-election. They're running a…
View article: Missing votes: the 2010 tally
Missing votes: the 2010 tally Open
The figures are in: almost 3,252,000 eligible Australians didn't cast a valid vote in last month's election, write Brian Costar and Peter Browne.
View article: Now it's urgent: why we need to simplify voting for the Senate
Now it's urgent: why we need to simplify voting for the Senate Open
Changes to how senators are elected would improve transparency, make voting easier, and stop parties with scarcely any support slipping into the Senate, says Brian Costar.
View article: B. A. Santamaria: a true believer?
B. A. Santamaria: a true believer? Open
By revisiting the existing scholarship deeding with Santamaria's career and legacy, as well as his own writings, this article explores the apparent tension between the standard historical view that Santamaria attempted to impose an essenti…
View article: The ballot box wars
The ballot box wars Open
Despite the vast difference in the way elections are run in the United States and Australia, we have one thing in common - persistent allegations that voting fraud is affecting election results. Peter Browne and Brian Costar look at how th…
View article: Rebels with a cause
Rebels with a cause Open
The prospect of a minority federal government throws a spotlight on the quiet rise of a generation of independent MPs in state and federal parliaments. In this updated extract from their book on the independents, Brian Costar and Jennifer …
View article: Social progressive who got the world to 'belt up'
Social progressive who got the world to 'belt up' Open
I first met Walter Jona under the grandstand at the Junction Oval on a wintry night in August 1985, at a meeting of the VFL Combined Supporters Association. He had formed the association in an attempt to democratise the VFL and to prevent …
View article: Political donations: the real-time disclosure option
Political donations: the real-time disclosure option Open
Labor failed to take the opportunity to make historic changes to campaign finance disclosure, writes Brian Costar.
View article: Election donations: lessons from the US
Election donations: lessons from the US Open
It might seem an unlikely place to go for advice, but the US disclosure system is more transparent and much more timely than Australia’s, writes Brian Costar.
View article: From breaking governments to a brake on government: a new bicameralism in Victoria?
From breaking governments to a brake on government: a new bicameralism in Victoria? Open
Shortly after its victory in the 2002 general election in Victoria, the Bracks Labor Government introduced a number of changes in the composition and powers of the Legislative Council. These changes, it has been argued, are a precondition …
View article: Finding fault where there was none before
Finding fault where there was none before Open
There is a rush to change Australia's electoral laws. Why now?
View article: Karl Marx and the branch stackers
Karl Marx and the branch stackers Open
The Brimbank Council scandal illustrates all that's wrong with party factions, writes Brian Costar.
View article: Political leadership and Queensland nationalism
Political leadership and Queensland nationalism Open
Denis Murphy had a strong political and historical interest in biography and the personal qualities involved in political leadership. Much of his best history was written during the 1970s-a time when Queensland was seen by many as being 'd…
View article: Election funding transparency: Australia has a lot to learn
Election funding transparency: Australia has a lot to learn Open
Australia votes in a fortnight but we won't find out who made large election donations to the parties until early 2012. In this respect, we can learn something from the United States, writes Brian Costar.
View article: The raid on Westminster
The raid on Westminster Open
What possessed senior police officers to raid the offices of a member of parliament without a warrant, asks Brian Costar in London.
View article: Getting off the bus
Getting off the bus Open
Neither the major parties nor the media coped well with the seventeen days of uncertainty after the election. Peter Clarke talks to Sophie Black and Brian Costar about how they need to change.