Chapter 283: Chapter 252: The Upcoming House of Representatives Election

On January 17, 1908, after several days of negotiations and preparations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs officially announced the establishment of the Australasian Propaganda Department, affiliated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for domestic and foreign propaganda work.

All news agencies, media, and writers associations will be monitored by the Propaganda Department to ensure that no information that would affect national stability would circulate domestically and internationally.

The news of the new department quickly caught the attention of many people in the political arena, as the current positions in Australasia could be described as more demand than supply, especially for important departments like the Propaganda Department affiliated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

With Arthur’s hints, Grant Wilson made his preparations early and took advantage of the Unity Party’s dominance to successfully secure the position of the first Minister of the Propaganda Department.

As the Minister of Propaganda, Grant Wilson naturally knew Arthur’s purpose, so on his first day in office, he reported his plans for the Propaganda Department to the Foreign Affairs Department and requested Cabinet approval.

On January 19, Foreign Minister Andrew successfully submitted Grant’s plan to the Cabinet for review, obtained the Cabinet’s approval, and put it into effect that same day.

Starting from January 19, all immigrants to Australasia will be allocated to different regions on a family basis, with the focus shifting more towards areas with smaller populations.

In order to encourage these immigrants to migrate to Western Australia and South Australia, the two state governments have introduced relevant policies at the advice of the Cabinet Departments, providing at least five acres of additional land as compensation to immigrants.

After all, these two areas account for almost half of Australasia’s land area and have only one-fifth of the population, so it is time to give them some support.

For immigrants, Australasia’s compensation is indeed generous. If they go to Western Australia and South Australia, they will gain at least fifteen acres of land, hire some indigenous labor, and have no problem becoming landlords.

And if they give up the fifteen acres of land, they can have priority to enter the Leonora Industrial District under construction and, after training, become workers in the industrial area with higher wages.

Currently, the income of workers in Australasia is not low, at least around 47 Australian dollars.

After the National Day, the Australasian government restarted its busy work, and the construction across the country continued in full swing.

Particularly the Leonora Industrial District, which is currently heavily prioritized by the government, has already invested more than 20,000 indigenous workers, with small changes in the site every few days and major changes every week.

Starting from February, Arthur successively attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Australasian battleship, the launch ceremony of the Russian Second Battleship, the formation ceremony of the Fourth Conventional Division, and finally got some rest time in March.

Although busy, Arthur finds it very gratifying.

The future of the Australasian navy has already entered the construction phase, which means that Australasia will soon acquire powerful naval forces, and the security of the country will finally be guaranteed.

On March 17, Prime Minister Walter requested Arthur to attend the regular Cabinet meeting, firstly to report on the current government situation, and secondly to determine the specific process and arrangements for the national election this year.

Australasia is different from other European nations. The people of Australasia can elect representatives at all levels, and representatives can elect government officials at the same level.

The term of a representative is generally two years, but it can be maintained by being re-elected.

The terms of all levels of the Australasian government are the same, currently uniformly set at four years.

The Prime Minister of the Cabinet can serve a maximum of two consecutive terms and three terms in total. Cabinet Ministers can serve a maximum of three consecutive terms and five terms in total.

State governors have slightly looser restrictions, with a maximum of two consecutive terms, but no limit on the number of terms in office.

This means that if a governor is popular with the people, there is the possibility of continuing in office under a “three-term, two-term” arrangement.

The rules for city mayors are even more lenient, with the term still lasting four years but no limit on the number of terms.

As long as city mayors are popular, Arthur doesn’t mind them continuing in office, as long as they achieve something.

As for lower-level towns, village heads are generally appointed by the State Parliament, with a term of six years and no limit on the number of terms.

All of these officials are under the supervision of the two Parliaments and the people, and the Parliament has the power to dismiss elected officials, of course, not including the Cabinet Government.

However, the House of Representatives may petition the Royal Parliament and Arthur for the removal of the current Cabinet and for new elections.

As the election of the House of Representatives is involved, Arthur decides to attend the meeting to better listen to the government officials’ reports on their work over the past few months.

On March 19, the regular meeting of the Australasian Cabinet Government was held in the Administrative Court.

Amid cheers and applause, Arthur also attended the meeting and naturally took his seat at the head of the meeting room.

The meeting first reported on the work of their respective departments, such as the Ministry of Industry expanding which industrial bases, the current status of new industrial base construction, and so on.