It took a little over a decade to construct and has guided this country into a different era giving this nation stability, peace and confidence. Its people have never known war on its own soil, its government has been stable and have been able to get on with their lives without interference. The Constitution set out amongst other things, to protect trade through tariffs, to guarantee free trade between the States, to take responsibility for the defence of the country. The population of Australia has grown by nearly 4 times since the writing of the Constitution and is even more concentrated on the seaboard. The effect of this as years pass on rural people is that they are a minority group, almost an endangered species.
Governments display little interest or concern in the provision of goods and services.
Not only does the Federal Government seem remote, but State governments concentrate their efforts on the growth of their capitals and surrounding electorates. Early speeches by Sir Henry Parkes envisaged Divisional Councils, an idea whose time has certainly come. Local Government which largely takes responsibility for the day to day lives of rural people should be written into the Constitution. This tier of government is at the end of the line for the allocation of money, and has limited money powers, except through land rates. It is dependent on the States for money, who in turn get their funds allocated from the Commonwealth.