Constitution of Australia
Henry Parkes, the Premier of New South Wales, pushed for a series of conferences in the 1890s to talk about federalism. The first was in Melbourne in 1890, and another, the National Australasian Convention, in Sydney in 1891. These were attended by colonial leaders. By the 1891 conference, many people wanted a federal system. Most of the discussion was about how this federal system would work. With help from Sir Samuel Griffith, a draft constitution was written. These meetings did not have popular support. The draft constitution also left out important, but difficult, issues, such as tariff policy. The draft of 1891 was given to colonial parliaments but was not supported by New South Wales. Without New South Wales, the other colonies were unwilling to continue.