The Victorian Electoral Matters Committee recommendations include:

• Truth in political advertising laws.
• Changes to how the Victorian upper house is elected.
  • The Committee acknowledges that “If group voting tickets were eliminated but the current structure of regions continued, major parties would likely be over-represented in the Upper House and there would likely be fewer minor parties and less diversity”.
• Prohibiting groups other than the Electoral Commission from distributing certain postal voter applications.
• Improving access to polling places for voters with disabilities.
• Parties to establish codes of conduct for their members in relation to their behaviour on social media.
• Further restricting which party names, abbreviations and logos can be registered, as is the case at the Commonwealth level.

“The Victorian Electoral Matters Committee has conducted a thorough and detailed investigation that gives the Victorian public a lot to consider,” said Bill Browne, Director of the Australia Institute’s Democracy & Accountability Program.

“With the multi-party Committee repeating its recommendation for truth in political advertising, there is no excuse for further delays from the Victorian Government.”

Truth in political advertising

“In Victoria, it is perfectly legal to lie in a political ad, and it shouldn’t be,” said Bill Browne.

“With bipartisan support in principle for truth in political advertising laws, it is time to get these laws in place for the next election.

“Our research shows four in five Victorians support the introduction of truth in political advertising laws, so why are Victorians still waiting for this important reform?”

Upper house reform recommendations

“While the recommendation to remove group voting tickets is a welcome, more should be done to reform the way members are elected to the Victorian upper house,” said Bill Browne.

“A single, state-wide electorate and ‘Robson rotation’ within party lists would make the upper house more proportional and representative of popular support. Anything else risks reducing diversity and increasing over-representation of the major parties, as the Committee itself acknowledges.

“Elections for Victoria’s upper house need holistic reform. All proposed changes should be considered together, but unfortunately the committee has prematurely rejected some changes, recommended others, regardless of what else changes, and suggested taking others to a review.”

Bans on party names and abbreviations

“Victoria should not follow the Commonwealth in banning words from appearing in two different party names. Australia has a long history of splinter parties, like the Democratic Labour Party and the Liberal Movement, whose names represent their background and concerns,” said Bill Browne.

Political finance rules

“The Committee has recognised that political finance rules give advantages to parties, especially large parties. That is an important first step towards fixing Victoria’s electoral laws to ensure competitive elections that allow a variety of voices to be heard,” said Bill Browne.