The Niue Assembly is the legislature of Niue

Niue

Niue , is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. It is commonly known as the "Rock of Polynesia", and inhabitants of the island call it "the Rock" for short. Niue is northeast of New Zealand in a triangle between Tonga to the southwest, the Samoas to the northwest, and the Cook Islands to...

. It consists of 20 members, 14 representatives of the villages and 6 elected on a common roll. Members are directly elected by universal suffrage, and serve a three year term. Niue follows the Westminster system

Westminster System

The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....

 of government, with the Premier

Premier of Niue

The Premier of Niue is Niue's head of government. He or she is elected by the Niue Assembly, and forms a Cabinet consisting of him- or herself and three other members of the Assembly....

 elected by the Assembly and the Cabinet drawn from it.

History

The Assembly is descended from the Island Council established under the Cook Islands Act 1915 (NZ). This was disbanded in 1959 and reconstituted as the Assembly, which was successively granted greater control. The Assembly assumed full law-making power within the constitution

Niue Constitution Act 1974 (NZ)

The Schedules of the Niue Constitution Act 1974 form the Niue constitution. It stipulates the make-up of the executive branch of the government, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch...

 upon self-government in 1974.

The Assembly is physically located in Alofi

Alofi

Alofi is the capital city of the Pacific Ocean nation of Niue. With a population of 581 , Alofi has the distinction of being the smallest national capital city in terms of population. It consists of the two villages Alofi North and Alofi South, where the government headquarters are located. Alofi...

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Speaker of the Assembly

The Assembly is presided over by a Speaker, elected by its members from outside their ranks. If a member of the Assembly is elected Speaker, they must resign their seat. The Speaker does not vote in proceedings, and does not enjoy a casting vote.

The current Speaker is Atapana Siakimotu from May 1, 2002.

Elections

Elections are held under a simple plurality system, with electors in the fourteen villages electing one member per village by majority vote, and six members from a common roll. Electors must be New Zealand citizens, resident for at least three months, and candidates must have been electors, resident for twelve months.

Terms of the Niue Assembly

The Assembly is currently in its 13th term. The 14th Assembly will be elected at the 2011 elections

Niuean general election, 2011

Parliamentary elections was held in Niue on 7 May 2011, to elect the members of the Niue Assembly. The assembly consists of 20 members, 6 elected on a common roll and 14 representatives of the villages...

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Term	Elected in	Government
13th Assembly 13th Niuean Assembly The 13th Niuean Assembly was a term of the Niue Assembly. Its composition was determined by the 2008 election, held on June 7, 2008.The Speaker of the 13th Assembly was Atapana Siakimotu.-Members:The members of the 13th Legislative Assembly were:...	2008 election Niuean general election, 2008 Parliamentary elections were held in Niue on June 7, 2008. They were initially expected to be held in April, but were delayed until June 2008. Niue has a 20 member legislative assembly, called the Niue Assembly, whose members are elected by approximately 600 registered voters...	Non-partisan
14th Assembly	2011 election Niuean general election, 2011 Parliamentary elections was held in Niue on 7 May 2011, to elect the members of the Niue Assembly. The assembly consists of 20 members, 6 elected on a common roll and 14 representatives of the villages...

Legislative Procedures

The power of the Assembly to pass legislation is circumscribed by the constitution. Any member may introduce a bill, but the Assembly may not proceed on bills dealing with financial matters without the consent of the Premier. Bills affecting the criminal law or personal status, the public service or Niuean land may not proceed without a report from the Chief Justice, the Niue Public Service Commission, or an appropriate Commission of Inquiry respectively.

A bill becomes law when passed by the Assembly and certified by the Speaker. There is no Royal Assent

Royal Assent

The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...

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