Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006

The Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006 was a New South Wales Act of Parliament, identified as Act No 6 of 2006. It amended the Constitution Act 1902 to change the formal declaration required from members of the New South Wales Parliament and members of the Executive Council. Under the pre-existing arrangement, elected members were required to swear allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II and her heirs and successors before taking their seats and voting. The 2006 legislation replaced that requirement for newly elected members with a pledge of loyalty to Australia and the people of New South Wales. The reform applied to members elected after the Act commenced. A member of either the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly could not sit or vote until taking the prescribed pledge before the Governor or another person authorised by the Governor. The statutory wording was: “Under God, I pledge my loyalty to Australia and to the people of New South Wales.” The Act also allowed the words “Under God” to be omitted, thereby providing an affirmation-style alternative within the pledge framework. The legislation made a related change for the Executive Council. A person appointed to the Executive Council after commencement had to take the pledge of loyalty and the Executive Councillor’s oath of office before assuming the position. The oath concerned faithful performance of official duties, provision of advice to the Governor for the proper management of public affairs, and confidentiality concerning matters committed to the Council’s secrecy. The Act allowed an Executive Councillor to make an affirmation instead of swearing the oath. The measure formed part of a broader constitutional debate in Australia about the relationship between state institutions, the Australian nation, the people of each state, and the Crown. It did not abolish the constitutional role of the Crown in New South Wales, nor did it remove every possible reference to allegiance. In 2012, the Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Act 2012 further amended the Constitution Act 1902, restoring an option to take the traditional oath of allegiance to the Queen, her heirs and successors alongside the pledge of loyalty. The 2006 Act is therefore best understood as a constitutional and parliamentary-procedure reform rather than a commercial brand or consumer-facing offering.

The Act originated in the constitutional setting of New South Wales, Australia's oldest state legislature. Before the reform, the Constitution Act 1902 required members of the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly to swear allegiance to the reigning monarch, the monarch's heirs, and successors before sitting or voting. Comparable requirements also applied to members of the Executive Council, whose formal obligations included both an allegiance component and an oath concerning the faithful discharge of their responsibilities. The Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006 altered that framework. It was enacted as Act No 6 of 2006 and received assent from the Governor of New South Wales on 3 April 2006. Its central change was to replace the relevant allegiance requirement for newly elected parliamentarians with a pledge directed to Australia and the people of New South Wales. The prescribed form referred to loyalty “Under God,” while expressly allowing a member to omit those words. This created a statutory pledge with an available non-religious form. The Act preserved a procedural condition for parliamentary service: a newly elected member could not sit or vote in the relevant House until the pledge had been taken before the Governor or another authorised person. The legislation applied only to members elected after commencement, rather than retrospectively rewriting the position of members already serving. The Executive Council provisions used the same pledge of loyalty for people appointed after commencement. In addition, an incoming Executive Councillor had to take an oath of office, or make an affirmation to the same effect. That oath addressed faithful performance of functions and duties, the giving of counsel and advice to the Governor for the good management of public affairs, and the protection of confidential matters discussed in Council. The Act thus dealt not only with the symbolic wording of allegiance but also with the formal entry requirements for a central part of the state executive. The reform did not fully remove the Crown from the constitutional arrangements of New South Wales. Rather, it changed the default statutory language used for the specified parliamentary and executive declarations. Subsequent constitutional legislation revisited the issue. The Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Act 2012, assented to on 5 June 2012, restored the option of taking the traditional oath of allegiance to the Queen, her heirs and successors, while retaining the pledge-of-loyalty option. This later development demonstrates that the 2006 change was part of an evolving debate over constitutional identity and official obligations, not a final settlement of the relationship between state institutions and the Crown. Because it is legislation, the Act has no consumer products, commercial owner, corporate headquarters, executive team, or conventional brand architecture. Its significance lies in the statutory language it introduced and the constitutional procedures it modified for New South Wales parliamentarians and Executive Councillors.

• 2012

  Traditional oath option is restored

  [1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  The Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Act 2012 restored an option to take the traditional oath of allegiance alongside the pledge of loyalty.

• 2006

  Act receives assent

  [1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  The Governor of New South Wales assented to the Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006 on 3 April 2006.

• 2006

  Parliamentary pledge replaces the former allegiance requirement

  [1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  For members elected after commencement, the Act required a pledge of loyalty to Australia and the people of New South Wales before they could sit or vote in either House.

• 2006

  Executive Council declaration is revised

  [1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  The Act required newly appointed Executive Councillors to take the pledge and an oath of office, while permitting an affirmation instead of the oath.

A state constitutional reform measure focused on civic loyalty, parliamentary eligibility, and the wording of official oaths and pledges.

• 2012

  Restore an alternative oath of allegianceStrategy

  Background

  The 2006 pledge-only change was subsequently revisited in the context of New South Wales constitutional arrangements and the continuing role of the Crown.

  Action taken

  The Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Act 2012 restored the option of swearing allegiance to the Queen, her heirs and successors, while retaining the pledge-of-loyalty option.

  Aftermath

  The statutory framework offered both the civic pledge and the traditional royal oath for the relevant parliamentary and Executive Council declarations.

  Source

• 2006

  Replace the parliamentary allegiance oath with a civic loyalty pledgeStrategy

  Background

  The New South Wales constitutional framework required parliamentary members to swear allegiance to the Queen, her heirs and successors before sitting or voting. The reform sought to use a pledge directed to Australia and the people of New South Wales instead.

  Action taken

  The Act amended the Constitution Act 1902 so that members elected after commencement had to pledge loyalty to Australia and the people of New South Wales. It also permitted omission of the words “Under God.”

  Aftermath

  The pledge became the relevant statutory declaration for the covered members, but a later 2012 Act restored the option of taking the traditional oath of allegiance.

  Source

• 2006

  Revise Executive Council oath proceduresOther

  Background

  The constitutional amendment also addressed the formal declarations required before a person could assume membership of the New South Wales Executive Council.

  Action taken

  Newly appointed Executive Councillors were required to take the pledge of loyalty and an oath of office, with an affirmation available as an alternative to the oath.

  Aftermath

  The Executive Council provisions became part of the state's revised statutory framework for appointments made after commencement.

  Source

• 2012

  New South Wales restores an option for the traditional oath of allegiance[1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  Regulation · Other

  The Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Act 2012 amended the Constitution Act 1902 to restore the option of taking an oath of allegiance to the Queen, her heirs and successors, in addition to the pledge of loyalty.

• 2006

  New South Wales enacts the Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006[1]Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org

  Other · Regulation

  The New South Wales legislation received assent on 3 April 2006. It substituted a pledge of loyalty to Australia and the people of New South Wales for the former parliamentary allegiance requirement for members elected after commencement, and revised the requirements applying to Executive Councillors.

1. 1Constitution Amendment (Pledge of Loyalty) Act 2006en.wikipedia.org