Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942
| Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942 | |
|---|---|
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| Parliament of Australia | |
| An Act to remove Doubts as to the Validity of certain Commonwealth Legislation, to obviate Delays occurring in its Passage, and to effect certain related purposes, by adopting certain Sections of the Statute of Westminster 1931, as from the Commencement of the War between his Majesty the King and Germany | |
| Date of Royal Assent | 9 October 1942 |
| Date commenced | 3 September 1939 |
| Amendments | |
| 1986 (minor) | |
| Related legislation | |
| Australia Act 1986 | |
| Status: Current legislation | |
The Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942 is an Act of the Australian Parliament that formally adopted the Statute of Westminster 1931, an Act of the British Imperial Parliament enabling the legislative independence of the various self-governing Dominions of the British Empire. The Statute of Westminster allowed the Dominion parliaments and governments to act independently of the British Parliament and Government.
The Act is more important for its symbolic value than for the legal effect of its provisions. While Australia's growing independence from the United Kingdom was well accepted, the adoption of the Statute of Westminster formally demonstrated Australia's independence to the world. It also symbolised the shift in Australia's foreign policy from a focus on the United Kingdom to the United States.
Australia's progression to effective independence was gradual and largely without incident (with few exceptions such as the ).
New South Wales was founded as a British colony in Sydney in 1788. Other colonies split away from New South Wales or were separately established over the Australian continent in the ensuing decades. The colonies became self-governing during the second half of the 19th century, starting with Victoria in 1852, although well before this time, all of the colonies had non-elected Legislative Councils to advise their respective Governors on matters of administration.
When the Commonwealth of Australia was formed with federation of the six colonies in 1901, following royal assent of the Commonwealth of Australia Act 1900, it became classified as a Dominion of the British Empire. This accorded Australia somewhat greater independence. After the end of World War I, each of the Dominions (including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa but not Newfoundland) independently signed the Treaty of Versailles, but under the collective umbrella of the British Empire, and each became a founding member of the League of Nations in its own right. This was an important international demonstration of the independence of the Dominions.
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