It is nine years since the last referendum was held to amend the Australian Constitution, and it is over 30 years since there was a successful referendum to amend Australia’s Constitution. The present decade may be the first since Federation during which there is no referendum held.

The lack of reform to the Constitution has had many unintended consequences, including a proliferation in the number of federal–state intergovernmental agreements with no formal oversight mechanisms for these agreements. The report recommends that all intergovernmental agreements are referred to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny. The report also advocates greater public debate on constitutional reform, and in particular on issues such as whether the Constitution should be revised to:

• acknowledge where we as Australians have come from;
• set out rights and protections as well as practical national governance structures; and
• articulate aspirations for a nation.