Government of Australia
The federal nature of the Commonwealth and the structure of the Parliament of Australia were the subject of long negotiations among the colonies. The House of Representatives is elected on a basis which shows the different sized populations of the States. So New South Wales has 50 members while Tasmania has only five. But the Senate is elected on a basis of equality among the States: all States have 12 Senators, regardless of population. This was so the Senators of the smaller States could form a majority and change or even reject laws from the House of Representatives. The ACT and the NT elect two senators each.