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Dual Australian Citizenship Essay

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INTRODUCTION
After the Prime Minister delivered his National Security Statement outlining the Government’s response to the Review of Australia’s Counter-Terrorism Machinery for a Safer Australia on 23 February 2015 questions were raised on the available methods to face the finding of the review.
The Review found that the terrorist threat in Australia is rising, specifically that the number of foreign fighters, potential terrorists and supporters for extremists were increasing.
From this came the proposal, by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, to strip dual nationals of their passports in May and thus the Australian Citizenship Amendment (Allegiance to Australia) Bill 2015- ‘The Bill’ has been a matter of constitutional debate.
Astonishing, three-quarters …show more content…

CONSTITUTIONAL BASIS FOR GRANTING CITIZENSHIP
The Commonwealth Constitution exists for the Australian community as a foundation document to serve its members ‘the people of the Commonwealth’. Yet, it has been deplored that the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia makes no direct reference to Australian citizenship or to whom these people are and how can they be identified. It has no definition on what group of people are citizens, how it is obtained, or even a comprehensible head of power for ‘citizenship’.
No constitutional provisions give direct support to citizenship laws. Yet, it has been argued that there may be an implied constitutional concept of Australian citizenship as inherent in the structure of the Constitution. On the same basis of the existence of implied freedom of political communication and discussions where Brennan CJ stated, ‘[i]mplications are not devised by the judiciary; they exist in the text and structure of the Constitution and are revealed or uncovered by judicial

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