Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states. The terms of this contract are embodied in the Australian Constitution, which was drawn up at a Constitutional Convention and ratified by the people of the colonies at referendums. The Australian head of state is the Queen of Australia who is represented by the Governor-General of Australia, with executive powers delegated by constitutional convention to the Australian head of government, the Prime Minister of Australia.
Economic history of Australia
This process of economic reform and restructuring continued under the Coalition Government led by John Howard which took power in 1996. The Howard Government established a goods and services tax from 2000, established a national Productivity Commission, and further deregulated labor markets under WorkChoices in 2006. The result of the process of economic reform is that Australia is now one of the most open economies in the world. It was enjoyed over two decades of economic growth, coupled with low inflation and relatively low unemployment.